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Why is EIGRP called a hybrid routing protocol? What is unique about it?
In today's era of network interconnection, choosing an appropriate routing protocol is crucial to ensuring network efficiency and stability. Enhanced Interior Gateway Routing Protocol (EIGRP) is an advanced distance vector routing protocol developed by Cisco Systems and is widely used for automated routing decisions and configuration. EIGRP is called a hybrid routing protocol because it combines the characteristics of distance vector and link state routing protocols, which gives it significant advantages in performance and scalability.
The main feature of EIGRP is its ability to transmit only changed data instead of the entire routing table, which can reduce the consumption of network bandwidth and improve efficiency.
Basic principles of EIGRP
EIGRP has replaced the Interior Gateway Routing Protocol (IGRP) since 1993, primarily because IGRP was unable to adapt to the introduction of classless IPv4 addresses as network requirements changed. The dynamic routing capability provided by EIGRP allows routers to automatically share routing information, which greatly reduces the need for network administrators to manually adjust routing tables.
Characteristics of hybrid routing protocols
EIGRP is unique in that it combines the advantages of distance vector and link state routing protocols. For example, the Diffusion Update Algorithm (DUAL) used by EIGRP not only calculates the best path, but also prevents errors in route calculation, allowing it to quickly find new data paths when routing changes occur.
EIGRP's topology table stores routing information learned from neighbor routers and marks each route as "active" or "passive". This management mode shows the flexibility of EIGRP because the router is able to adjust routing based on the current network status.
Additional functions of EIGRP
EIGRP features also include supporting load balancing on parallel links, providing different authentication passwords for different periods of time, and supporting MD5 and SHA-2 authentication. Through these functions, EIGRP can optimize routing based on actual network conditions and improve overall network performance.
How to deploy EIGRP
In Cisco's IOS, configuring EIGRP is very simple. Network boot commands enable efficient use of network resources. For example, EIGRP can be applied to a specific private network with just a few lines of commands, which shows that it is easy to adapt to various network environments.
Technical details and measurement methods
EIGRP is based on five different metrics, such as bandwidth, load, latency, reliability, and MTU, to calculate the best path to the destination. Based on these factors, EIGRP can optimize route selection and adjust based on the immediate status of the network. In EIGRP, adjacencies are established between neighboring routers each time only the actual changes are transmitted after the first exchange of the entire routing table.
EIGRP's feasible successor feature ensures that routing loops do not occur, which improves routing reliability and makes routing updates more stable in dynamic environments.
Conclusion
In short, EIGRP, with its hybrid routing protocol characteristics, not only improves the operating efficiency of the network, but also expands availability and flexibility. By utilizing its unique structure and functions, EIGRP can adapt to various complex network environments and continuously promote the automated routing decision-making process. In such an ever-changing technology field, the benefits and challenges of operating EIGRP make people think deeply. In which direction will our routing strategy develop in the future?
