IGRP Features

Ch.16/Mod.7 – Distance Vector Routing

Protocols
Part 2 of 2: Distance Vector Routing and
IGRP

• IGRP is a distance vector routing protocol developed by Cisco.

• IGRP sends routing updates at 90 second intervals, advertising
networks for a particular autonomous system.
• Key design characteristics of IGRP are a follows:
– The versatility to automatically handle indefinite, complex
topologies
– The flexibility needed to segment with different bandwidth and
delay characteristics
– Scalability for functioning in very large networks

IGRP Features IGRP Metrics

• By default, the IGRP routing protocol uses bandwidth and delay as

metrics.
• Additionally, IGRP can be configured to use a combination of variables
to determine a composite metric.
• Those variables include:
– Bandwidth
– Delay
– Load
– Reliability

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IGRP Metrics Administrative Distances

• The metrics that IGRP uses are: Cisco Default Administrative Distances
– Bandwidth – The lowest bandwidth value in the path
Route Source Administrative Distance
– Delay – The cumulative interface delay along the path Connected interface 0
– Reliability – The reliability on the link towards the destination as Static Route 1
determined by the exchange of keepalives EIGRP summary route 5
– Load – The load on a link towards the destination based on bits per External BGP 20
second EIGRP 90

– NO… MTU – The Maximum Transmission Unit value of the path. IGRP 100
MTU has never been used by IGRP or EIGRP as a routing OSPF 110
metric. IS-IS 115

• IGRP has an administrative distance of 100, more “trustworthy” than RIP 120
RIP at 120. EGP 140

• This means a Cisco router will prefer an IGRP learned route over a RIP External EIGRP 170
Internal BGP 200
learned route to the same network.
Unknown 255

IGRP Metrics IGRP Routes

• Interior
“Interior routes are routes between subnets of a network attached to a
router interface(Router Subinterfaces and VLANs:Inter-VLAN Routing).
If the network attached to a router is not subnetted, IGRP does not
advertise interior routes.”
• Clarification
• IGRP also advertises three types of routes:
– interior, system, and exterior.
• Interior routes are routes between subnets in the network attached to a
router interface.
• If the network attached to a router is not subnetted, IGRP does not
advertise interior routes.

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IGRP Routes IGRP Routes

• System • Exterior
“System routes are routes to networks within an autonomous system. “Exterior routes are routes to networks outside the autonomous system
The Cisco IOS software derives system routes from directly connected that are considered when identifying a gateway of last resort. The Cisco
network interfaces and system route information provided by other IOS software chooses a gateway of last resort from the list of exterior
IGRP-speaking routers or access servers. System routes do not include routes that IGRP provides. The software uses the gateway (router) of
subnet information.” last resort if a better route is not found and the destination is not a
connected network. If the autonomous system has more than one
connection to an external network, different routers can choose different
exterior routers as the gateway of last resort.”

IGRP
IGRP Timers
Timers

Update timer

• The update timer specifies how frequently routing update

• IGRP has a number of features that are designed to enhance its messages should be sent.
stability, such as:
– Holddowns • The IGRP default for this variable is 90 seconds.
– Split horizons
– Poison reverse updates

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 IGRP IGRP
Timers Timers

Invalid timer Holddown

timer

• The invalid timer specifies how long a router should wait in the absence • The holddown timer specifies the amount of time for which
of routing-update messages about a specific route before declaring that information about poorer routes are ignored.
route invalid (unreachable), but still in the routing table. • Zinin: “Holddown specifies the number of seconds that a route must
• The IGRP default for this variable is three times the update period or spend in holddown state after expiration of the Invalid Timer.”
270 seconds. • The IGRP default for this variable is three times the update timer
• Then placed in the holddown state. period plus 10 seconds = 280 seconds.
• “If I haven’t heard from you in 270 seconds, I am considering this route • The original route is still in the routing table but marked as
as unreachable, I will start the holddown timer, but I will keep it in the unreachable, until the flush timer expires.
routing table until the flush timer expires.”

IGRP IGRP
Timers Timers

Flush timer

• Finally, the flush timer indicates how much time should pass before a route is
flushed from the routing table.
• The IGRP default is seven times the routing update timer or 630 seconds.
• Zinin: “Flush specifies the number of seconds that a route must remain in the • All timers begin at the same time.
routing table in the garbage collection state after it exits the holddown state.”
– Update timer = 90 seconds
• Each time an update is received the invalid and flush timers are reset.
– Invalid timer = 270 seconds
• If the invalid timer expires before another update is heard, the route is marked
– Holddown timer = 280 seconds
as unreachable, but remains in the routing table.
– Flush timer = 630 seconds
• If the flush timer then expires before another update is heard, the route will be
deleted from the routing table. • Today, IGRP is showing its age, it lacks support for variable length
subnet masks (VLSM).
• Enhanced IGRP (EIGRP) supports VLSM.

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Configuring IGRP Configuring IGRP

Router(config-router)#router igrp 100

Router(config-router)#timers basic update invalid holddown
flush [sleeptime]
Router(config-router)# no timers basic

timers basic (IGRP)

• To adjust Interior Gateway Routing Protocol (IGRP)
network timers, use the timers basic router configuration
command. To restore the default timers, use the no form of
• Same network commands as RIP. this command.
• IGRP “AS” number must be the same on all routers.

Migrating from RIP to IGRP Verifying IGRP

Router(config)#router rip
Router(config-router)#network 172.16.0.0
Router(config-router)#network 192.168.1.0
Router(config-router)#exit
Router(config)#router igrp 10
Router(config-router)#network 172.16.0.0
Router(config-router)#network 192.168.1.0
Router(config-router)#exit
Router(config)#no router rip

• Enable IGRP
• Suggestion: Remove RIP configuration from routers even
though the administrative distance will prefer RIP

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Verifying IGRP Verifying IGRP

Verifying IGRP Verifying IGRP

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Troubleshooting IGRP Troubleshooting IGRP

Troubleshooting IGRP Two Types of Autonomous Systems:

Process Domains and Routing Domains

Process Domain

Process Domain

Router Router Router

BGP
Router Router Router Router Router

Router
Router Router

IGRP 30 IGRP 40 AS 90
Routing Domain
AS 10
Routing Domain

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Summary

IGRP Metric Information

But there is still more!

Metric Calculation Displaying Interface Values

Router> show interfaces s1/0 Router> show interface s0/0

Serial1/0 is up, line protocol is up Serial0/0 is up, line protocol is up
Hardware is QUICC Serial bandwidth delay Hardware is QUICC Serial Bandwidth Delay
Description: Out to VERIO Description: Out to VERIO
Internet address is 207.21.113.186/30 Internet address is 207.21.113.186/30
MTU 1500 bytes, BW 1544 Kbit, DLY 20000 usec, MTU 1500 bytes, BW 1544 Kbit, DLY 20000 usec,
rely 255/255, load 246/255 rely 255/255, load 246/255
Encapsulation PPP, loopback not set Encapsulation PPP, loopback not set
Keepalive set (10 sec) Keepalive set (10 sec)
<output omitted> <output omitted> Reliability Load

reliability load
Routing Table Metric
• Default: Slowest of bandwidth plus the sum of the delays of
all outgoing interfaces from “this router” to the destination
network.

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Metric Calculation Metric Calculation
Bandwidth
Changing the bandwidth informational parameter:
• Expressed in kilobits (show interface)
• This is a static number and used for metric calculations only.
• Does not necessarily reflect the actual bandwidth of the link. The bandwidth can be changed using:
• It is an information parameter only. Router(config-if)# bandwidth kilobits
• You cannot adjust the actual bandwidth on an interface with this command.
• Use the show interface command to display the raw value To restore the default value:
Router(config-if)# no bandwidth
The default values:
• Default bandwidth of a Cisco interface depends on the type of interface.

• Default bandwidth of a Cisco serial interface is 1544 kilobits or 1,544,000

bps (T1), whether that interface is attached to a T1 line (1.544 Mbps) or a 56K
line.

• IGRP metric uses the slowest bandwidth of all of the outbound interfaces to
the destination network.

Metric Calculation Metric Calculation

Delay Changing the delay informational parameter:
• Like bandwidth, delay it is a static number. The delay can be changed using:
• Expressed in microseconds, millionths of a second Router(config-if)# delay tens-of- S
• (Uses the Greek letter mu with an S, S, NOT “ms” which is millisecond or (microseconds)
thousandths of a second)
• Use the show interface command to display the raw value
• It is an information parameter only. Example of changing the delay on a serial interface to 30,000
microseconds:
The default values: Router(config-if)# delay 3000
• The default delay value of a Cisco interface depends upon the type of
interface. To restore the 20,000 microsecond default value:
Router(config-if)# no delay
• Default delay of a Cisco serial interface is 20,000 microseconds, that of a T1
line.

• IGRP metric uses the sum of all of the delays of all of the outbound interfaces
to the destination network.

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Metric Calculation IGRP Metrics
Values displayed in show interface
commands and sent in routing updates.
IGRP
• bandwidth = (10,000,000/bandwidth) Media
Bandwidth
K= kilobits
BWIGRP
10,000,000/Bandwidth Delay
DLYIGRP
Delay/10
100M ATM 100,000K 100 100 S 10
Fast Ethernet 100,000K 100 100 S 10
• delay = delay/10 FDDI
HSSI
100,000
45,045K
100
222
100 S
20,000 S
10
2,000
16M Token Ring 16,000K 625 630 S 63
Ethernet 10,000K 1,000 1,000 S 100
T1 (Serial Default) 1,544K 6,476 20,000 S 2,000
512K 512K 19,531 20,000 S 2,000
DS0 64K 156,250 20,000 S 2,000
56K 56K 178,571 20,000 S 2,000

BWIGRP and DLYIGRP display values as sent in IGRP updates and used in calculating
the IGRP metric.

Metric Calculation From Casablanca to 172.20.40.0/24

Using the Calculated Values
Router> show interfaces s1/0 1,000 1,000 1,000 6,476 6,476
100 100 100 2,000 2,000
Serial1/0 is up, line protocol is up
Hardware is QUICC Serial bandwidth delay
172.20.4.0/24 172.25.1.0/24
Description: Out to VERIO Casablanca Teheran 172.20.2.0/24 Quebec
Internet address is 207.21.113.186/30 19,531
MTU 1500 bytes, BW 1544 Kbit, DLY 20000 usec, Legend: 2,000
Bandwidth
rely 255/255, load 246/255 Bandwidth (lowest or minimum) Delay 172.20.20.0/24

Encapsulation PPP, loopback not set slowest bandwidth: Quebec

Keepalive set (10 sec) = 19,531
<output omitted> 19,531
2,000
reliability load Delay (sum of outgoing interfaces)
= 100+2,000+2,000+100
172.20.40.0/24
= 4,200
Yalta

Metric = 19,531 + 4,200 1,000

= 23,731 100

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From Casablanca to 172.20.40.0/24

Using BWIGRP and DLYIGRP to calculate the IGRP metric:

The slowest bandwidth has the highest BWIGRP value.

IGRP metric
Calculating the IGRP Metric
= highest BWIGRP + total of the DLYIGRP
Using the
= 19,531 + (100 + 2,000 + 2,000 + 100) Raw Values:
= 19,531 + 4,200 Bandwidth and Delay
= 23,731

From Casablanca to 172.20.40.0/24 Calculating Bandwidth

Using the Raw Values
So how is Bandwidth, BWIGRP, calculated?
10,000K
1,000uS
10,000K 10,000K 1,544K 1,544K • The bandwidth metric is calculated by taking 107 (10,000,000)
1,000uS 1,000uS 20,000uS 20,000uS
and dividing it by the slowest bandwidth metric along the route to
the destination.
172.20.4.0/24
Casablanca
172.25.1.0/24
Teheran 172.20.2.0/24 Quebec
• This is known as taking the inverse of the bandwidth scaled by a
factor of 107 (10,000,000)
512K
Legend: 20,000uS
Bandwidth The lowest bandwidth on the route is 512K or 512 (measured in
Bandwidth (lowest or minimum) 172.20.20.0/24
Delay
lowest bandwidth = 512 kilobits), the outgoing interface of the Quebec router.
= 10,000,000/512
= 19,531 Divide 10,000,000 by 512 and you get the bandwidth!
512K
20,000uS
Delay (sum of outgoing interfaces)
= (1,000/10) + (20,000/10) + Bandwidth = 10,000,000/512
172.20.40.0/24
(20,000/10) + (1,000/10) = 19,531
= 42,000/10 Yalta

= 4,200 Which is the lowest BWIGRP along the route

10,000K
1,000uS
Metric = 19,531 + 4,200
= 23,731

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Calculating Delay Slowest Bandwidth + Sum of Delays
So how is Delay, DLY IGRP, calculated? IGRP metric = Bandwidth + Delay
• Delay is the total sum of delays on the outgoing interfaces, in 10-
microsecond units
• The sum of the delays on each of the outgoing interfaces between IGRP metric = 19,531 + 4,200
Casablanca and Yalta, from 172.20.1.0/24 through 172.20.40.0/24 is:
= 23,731
• 1,000 (Casablanca) + 20,000 (Teheran) + 20,000 (Quebec) + 1,000
(Yalta) = 42,000
IF we were using RIP, the RIP metric would be 3 hops.
We need this in 10-microsecond units:
= (1,000/10)+(20,000/10) + (20,000/10) + (1,000/10)
= 100 + 2,000 + 2,000 + 100
or
= (1,000 + 20,000 + 20,000 +1,000) / 10

In either case the total sum is:

Delay = 4,200
Which is the total of the DLYIGRP, the total Delays along the route!

show ip route 172.20.40.0

Ch.16/Mod. 7 – Distance Vector Routing
Casablanca# show ip route 172.20.40.0
Known via igrp 1, distance 100, metric 23,731 Protocols
… Part 2 of 2: Distance Vector Routing and
172.20.1.2, from 172.20.1.2 on Ethernet 0
Route metric is 23,731 IGRP
Total delay is 42,000 microseconds,
minimum bandwidth is 512 Kbit
...

• Not to be redundant, but if we were using RIP, the

RIP metric would be 3 hops.

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