Routing Protocols

RIP: It is a distance vector routing protocol that uses hop count as its metric to determine the direction and distance to any link in the internetwork. If there are multiple paths to a destination, RIP selects the path with the least number of hops. However, because hop count is the only routing metric used by RIP, it does not always select the fastest path to a destination. Also, RIP cannot route a packet beyond 15 hops. RIP Version 1 (RIPv1) requires that all devices in the network use the same subnet mask, because it does not include subnet mask information in routing updates. This is also known as classful routing. RIP Version 2 (RIPv2) provides prefix routing, and does send subnet mask information in routing updates. This is also known as classless routing. With classless routing protocols, different subnets within the same network can have different subnet masks. The use of different subnet masks within the same network is referred to as variable-length subnet masking (VLSM).

IGRP: Is a distance-vector routing protocol developed by Cisco. IGRP was developed specifically to address problems associated with routing in large networks that were beyond the range of protocols such as RIP. IGRP can select the fastest available path based on delay, bandwidth, load, and reliability. IGRP also has a much higher maximum hop count limit than RIP. IGRP uses only classful routing.

OSPF: Is a link-state routing protocol developed by the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) in 1988. OSPF was written to address the needs of large, scalable internetworks that RIP could not.

Intermediate System-to-Intermediate System (IS-IS): is a link-state routing protocol used for routed protocols other than IP. Integrated IS-IS is an expanded implementation of IS-IS that supports multiple routed protocols including IP.

EIGRP: Proprietary Cisco protocol. It is an advanced version of IGRP. Specifically, EIGRP provides superior operating efficiency such as fast convergence and low overhead bandwidth. EIGRP is an advanced distance-vector protocol that also uses some link-state protocol functions. Therefore, EIGRP is sometimes categorized as a hybrid routing protocol.

Border Gateway Protocol (BGP): is an example of an External Gateway Protocol (EGP). BGP exchanges routing information between autonomous systems while guaranteeing loop-free path selection. BGP is the principal route advertising protocol used by major companies and ISPs on the Internet. BGP4 is the first version of BGP that supports classless interdomain routing (CIDR) and route aggregation. Unlike common Internal Gateway Protocols (IGPs), such as RIP, OSPF, and EIGRP, BGP does not use metrics like hop count, bandwidth, or delay. Instead, BGP makes routing decisions based on network policies, or rules using various BGP path attributes.