Network Working Group C. Hedrick
Request for Comments: 1058 Rutgers University
June 1988
Routing Information Protocol
Status of this Memo
This RFC describes an existing protocol for exchanging routing
information among gateways and other hosts. It is intended to be
used as a basis for developing gateway software for use in the
Internet community. Distribution of this memo is unlimited.
Table of Contents
1. Introduction 2
1.1. Limitations of the protocol 4
1.2. Organization of this document 4
2. Distance Vector Algorithms 5
2.1. Dealing with changes in topology 11
2.2. Preventing instability 12
2.2.1. Split horizon 14
2.2.2. Triggered updates 15
3. Specifications for the protocol 16
3.1. Message formats 18
3.2. Addressing considerations 20
3.3. Timers 23
3.4. Input processing 24
3.4.1. Request 25
3.4.2. Response 26
3.5. Output Processing 28
3.6. Compatibility 31
4. Control functions 31
Overview
This memo is intended to do the following things:
- Document a protocol and algorithms that are currently in
wide use for routing, but which have never been formally
documented.
- Specify some improvements in the algorithms which will
improve stability of the routes in large networks. These
improvements do not introduce any incompatibility with
existing implementations. They are to be incorporated into
Hedrick