EvolvedRouteSim

Network Topology

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Routing Information Protocol (RIP)
A classic distance-vector routing protocol.
  • RIP uses hop count as its sole routing metric. Every link between routers has a cost of 1 hop.
  • It is a distributed application of the Bellman-Ford algorithm. Routers periodically share their entire routing table with their immediate neighbors.
  • By receiving a neighbor's table, a router learns about the total cost (hop count) to reach all network destinations via that neighbor and updates its own table if a shorter path is found.
  • RIP has a maximum hop count of 15. Any route with a cost of 16 is considered infinite, marking that destination as unreachable.
  • The Bellman-Ford algorithm guarantees convergence in at most V-1 iterations (where V is the number of nodes) when the network is stable.
  • Known Limitations: RIP can be slow to converge after a network failure. The 'counting to infinity' problem occurs when two routers form a routing loop, continuously advertising incrementing costs (2→3→4...→16) until reaching the infinity threshold. Solutions include split horizon (don't advertise routes back to their source) and route poisoning.
  • Use Case: Best suited for small, simple networks where simplicity is more important than fast convergence or optimal path selection.
Simulation Log
What's happening in the network right now.

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