Overview
Routing protocols refer to the mechanisms by which routing information exchange occurs between routers to ensure that routing decisions occur. They determine how the information exchanged reaches its destination or recipient and help make the entire process as efficient as possible (OOL). They also help the computer networks communicate efficiently and effectively regardless of the size of the network, and understanding various routing protocols is one way that helps an individual determine the best type of protocol (Rayes and Salam). Notably, they are used in determining the optimal data communication path between the network and nodes. Routers use the routing protocols in sharing routing information between different routers to dynamically build global routing tables. One can implement routing protocols only when the network has grown to an extent with unmanageable static routes. The management of dynamic routing adjusts automatically for traffic and topology changes (OOL). On the other side, routed protocols comprise data needed for packets sent outside their host networks. This traffics is directed from the source by the routers to their intended places or destinations. They include SIP, SSH, HTTP, and IP.
Routing in computer networking is the process of path selection for networks to carry network traffic. There are several types of network traffic in which routing is performed, which includes the Internet’s data packets (Manzoor et al.). It is the dedicated routers that usually perform routing, especially those that use routing protocols when exchanging information regarding network conditions to ensure that the best routes are selected. Routing main importance is to allow devices that are networked to share resources. One example is when a single location has several routes coming from it to another, and the routing allows the best route to be selected by the network based on factors like latency, cost, or bandwidth. Security can also be promoted by routing, and it can also be used in policy enforcement. For instance, it can be used in traffic routing through firewalls or in the implementation of QOS (quality of services) policies. A network routing example would be the path selection across a network (Cunha et al.). The routes are chosen through routing for IP (internet protocol) packets to move to their destinations from their place of origin in networks that are packet-switched, such as the Internet. The decisions for internet routing are made by network hardware specialized components referred to as routers. It’s a technique where data is organized to ensure that everything communicated can be understood by the computers, especially those communicated using network protocols. The IP specifies the initial data and destination address (OOL). The routers inspect every internet protocol packet header to determine the route they are supposed to take (Beckett et al.). BGP routing dynamic protocols used by larger networks in determining the network that controls specific internet protocol addresses can be applied in notifying every user how their internet protocols are controlled and by which network.
Additionally, the routing protocols are network hardware pieces that send packets between points on networks. The router sends the received data packets between subnetworks or internet protocol networks. Since the routes that are the fastest across the Internet are identified by smart routing, data packets are dispatched around congested networks instead of sending them by Cloudflare. The laying of a path or a route for transmitting data from one area to the other is a routing algorithm excellent example. They also help when directing internet traffic in a more efficient way. The most effective path is always chosen by the data that should be taken after leaving its sources.
Routing Importance in Computer Networks
Basic internet communications are, at the simplest level, established by routing. Routing is the IP connectivity’s revolving hub, and it also implements and addresses structures that uniquely identify individual devices and organize them into a network structure that is hierarchical. Routers have traditionally served as media adapters with remote offices connected through WAN to the headquarters. The trend that has been recently witnessed is to find routers as the wide range of network enhancement integration platforms such as services, security, and policies extending IP capabilities to support video, telephony, and legacy service integration, among other converged network applications (OOL). It means that routers have become the primary points of control in the increasingly multifaceted network world/environment that holds security and service quality responsibility along with efficiency and monitoring, among other attributes allowing the network to add value. When the routers are controlled, the network is controlled and happens in static networks. However, it happens even in the current typical situations of rapidly evolving enterprises where people are moving to services that are fully-internet protocols-based (OOL). Using juniper routers eases the migration and arrives at outcomes that are more successful where the work is less than what is required from other platforms. It is vital since, despite the routing basics remaining somehow similar, the aspects that are more advanced are constantly being developed, and researchers have always been demonstrating how the enterprise network environment is constantly changing. People should always understand that constant change is today’s network’s fact and has worked to provide new performance levels, scalability, and dependability to routing platforms along with the software that makes them operate. The IT departments and CIOs discover that by putting a more flexible and powerful tool at the control points of their networks, they equip their networks to address the new economic challenges more easily, which is the best way to support their companies’ competitiveness.
Airehrour et al. argue that routing protocol for RPL (Lossy Networks) and low power are the de facto Internet of Things routing protocol that provides little protection against routing attacks of different forms (Rayes and Salam). Attackers can exploit the RPL routing system launching attacks that are very devastating and destructive against the Internet of Things network. Sybil and Rank are the most known Internet of Things attacks.
FANETs (Flying Ad hoc Networks) have also used routing protocols. Since the FANETs were introduced, different kinds of military and civilian applications have been introduced including rescue teams’ coordination on the ground, autonomous tracking, and border supervising (Roy and Deb). Some other civilian applications include yards and agricultural monitoring, filmmaking, and oil field discovery. These application types need serious support from many scholars and research areas requiring scientists’ interest and attention (Azua et al.). The two aerial node forms of applications exist. The first application is the single-aerial node whereby the AN (aerial node) is centered at the base stations as the router relays the communication to other base stations that are away from within their range of communication. However, some problems are experienced, including the short AN transmission range and the interference problem (Oubbati et al.). But these problems are overcome by using the other application, which uses Ans (aerial nodes) teams that offer several possibilities for solving these challenges and supplying applications of different types known as the multi-aerial node applications. The multi-aerial node applications’ advantages over the single0-aerial node include the increment of multi-aerial nodes fault tolerance when the node fails and parallelizing of the tasks in the cooperative missions, which may considerably decrease the missions’ duration. The storage and calculations’ capabilities can be disseminated among aerial nodes.
Routing Protocol Types and Their Differences
Before looking at the types of routing protocols, it is of great significance that the categories of protocols are first discussed. All the routing protocols fall into the Link State or Distance Vector protocols, exterior Gateway or Interior Gateway protocols, and the Classless or Classful protocols.
Link States or Distance Vector Protocols.
Distance vector protocol (DVP) uses distance to ensure that the best packets’ routing within networks is worked out. The DVP measures the distance according to the number of hops the data or the information sent will pass through before it reaches its destination. The hops number is essentially the router’s number it takes to arrive at the intended place or the destination (Keary). These protocols normally convey the message or the information to nearby devices that may require large supporting bandwidths. By conveying this information, the best routing paths that are also more efficient are decided. Distance vector protocols generally convey a routing information (RI) table to nearby devices (LinkedIn). The administrators find this approach better because of low investment since they can be deployed with less management, but they need more bandwidth to be conveyed on the routing tables and can run as well into loops.
The LSRP (Link state routing protocols) employs an algorithm to ensure this is worked out. The DVP and this LSRP protocol are that LSRP never sends out routing tables; routers alert their partners and each router whenever changes are noticed. Routers using LSRP create three tables: topology, routing table, and neighbor table (Ruiz de Azua et al.). The neighboring routers make the neighbor table store details using the LSRP, the entire network topology is stored in the topology table, and the table routing stores (IET, 2022). Neighboring tables can store details and information from other routers nearby, topology tables store info about all networks regarding the organization, and routing tables store info regarding more efficient data routes.
Exterior Gateway (EGP) and Interior (IGP) protocols
IGP refers to the routing protocols exchanging RI with other single autonomous systems (AS) routers. The AS can be described as a single network or network collection under one enterprise’s control. The AS company is, therefore, separated from the ISP autonomous system.
EGP
Routing protocols, EGP, are used in transferring routine information between various autonomous systems’ routers (IET). These protocols are multifaceted, with border gateway (BGP) being the only protocol under this category that is mostly encountered. However, individuals should also remember that this category has another external gateway protocol (EGP) protocol.
Classless and Classful Protocols
Routing updates are performed by the classful protocols without subnet mask information inclusion. It is a device’s number identification with the same IP network information. Information may be excluded here since its main focus is on the entire network identification instead of the address identification of individual IPs (Cheng et al.). Greater bandwidth is required since the updates are carried out at regular intervals. It is becoming less common due to its less protocol-support nature.
Classless protocol concentrates more on detailed data transferring at higher complexity levels. Data efficiency may be produced by including more accurate routes that result from subnet mask information inclusion. Less bandwidth is used in classless because the updates are performed when data changes are experienced.
Routing Protocols Types
RIP (Routing Information Protocol)
RIP refers to the first IGP-created protocols. It can be used with LANs (local area networks) that are in small range linked computers or the WANs (wide area networks), which cover a greater range like the telecommunications networks (Liu et al.). It has two versions, including RIPv1, the classful protocol original version that evaluates and examines network paths according to the hops to the pre-determined destinations. It typically communicates by broadcasting its internet protocol address to other networks. The RIPv2 newer version shares its routing table via the multicast addresses for identifying the network of the main computer (IET). The version is classless and features advanced security measures such as authentication for data protection. Smaller networks benefit from RIPv2 since it can support fifteen hops router journey or less.
IGRP (Interior gateway protocol)
It was created by Cisco company and uses several foundational functions of RIP but increases the maximum supported hops to a hundred. For larger networks, it works better. They are classful and distance vector protocols. It includes metrics like reliability, network capacity, and load to compare. It also automatically updates changes such as adjustments of routes preventing routing loops that are data transfer endless circle error creators.
EIGRP (Enhanced interior gateway routing protocol)
Developed by Cisco, and allows for two hundred and fifty-five hops. Classified as the interior gateway, distance vector, and classless protocol. Uses diffusing update algorithm and reliable transport protocol to speed up the process of converging data and maximizing efficiency. Its router can take other table routers’ information and reference them by recording (Ghoreyshi et al.). If there are changes, all routers alert their neighboring ones to ensure the functioning routes are known, preventing potential miscommunications among routers.
OSPF (Open shortest path first)
Ensures the data transmission efficiency by first using the shortest path algorithm. This type internally maintains several databases with information and topology tables concerning its entire network. The link state advertisements bring information after individual routers send them. The reports, like advertisements, share detailed path distance descriptions and the number of resources that may be required (Dlamini). Calculates algorithms with Dijkstra when changes in topology occur (IET). It secures data by using authentication practices. Has beneficial scalability features.
EGP (Exterior Gateway Protocol)
Useful for information or data exchange between autonomous systems and different gateway hosts. Helps provide routers with spaces to share information across domains such as the Internet (IET). The protocol has a routing table that includes route costs, recognized routers, and nearby device network addresses. Other protocol types include BGP (border gateway protocol) and the IS-IS (immediate system-to-immediate system (Ciscopress). They are classified as an exterior gateway protocol and a link state.
Works Cited
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