IP Routing Fast Convergence

Historical Routing
Convergence Artifacts
It is a common belief that for an IGP (ISIS,
OSPF, EIGRIP, RIP) there is 10 to 30 seconds
convergence time, while for BGP it may take
up to few minutes.

The Components of IPFRR?

Edge Failures

Scheduled Outage

A
 void per-prefix updates
(PIC)

With multiple paths available

to an IP destination:
Deploy BGP PIC

SSO: Dual control plane with stateful

switch-over

M
 inimize time for a local
error repair
C
 onverge first the BGPNext Hops in the IGP

Fast Convergence is about improving

protocols to provide best convergence
(down to 1 second or better). Pre-computed
repair paths are not part of this design.

Technologies involved
include: ISIS/OSPF, BGP,
BFD, LDP, TE/FRR

FRR is about adding mechanism to

pre-populate TCAM with a repair path
pre-computed by some technique like LFA
to protect from a node failure or from a link
failure within milliseconds per prefix in the
routing table.

With only a single path to

an IP destination: Converge
BGP as quickly as possible
Technologies involved
include: ISIS/OSPF, BGP,
BFD, LDP, TE/FRR

Network Operations Failures

87%
87%

Physical Link Failures

Network Hardware Failures

79%

Network Software Failures

67%

Customer Premises Equipment Failure

67%

PIC is an FRR reroute improvement to

protect from a node failure or from a link
failure within milliseconds independent to the
number of prefixes in the routing table.

44%

Unknown

37%

Acts of Nature

37%
25%

Malicious Damage
0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

Non-Stop-Routing (NSR): To implement

routing continuity to reduce the scope of
the downtime upon the network routing

Non-scheduled Outage
BGP PIC (Prefix Independent Convergence)
Core: A technology to converge within the
Core a network issue
Bi-directional Forwarding detection (BFD):
Lightweight mechanism to detect
bi-directional link problems

62%

Physical Environment Failures

Graceful Restart (GR): To implement

Non-Stop-Forwarding (NSF) during
control plane switch-over

In-Service Software Upgrades (ISSU):

Reduce the impact for software upgrades
upon the network

Causes of Unscheduled Downtime

Congestion/Overload

What is Prefix Independent

Convergence (PIC)?

Principles

Core Failures

What is Fast Convergence

(FC)?

What is Fast Re-Route

(FRR)?

Cheat Sheet

100%

% of Respondents
Source: Sage Research, IP Service Provide Downtime Study: Analysis of Downtime Causes, Costs and
Containment Strategies, August 17, 2001, Prepared for Cisco SPLOB

BGP PIC Edge: If there is more as one path

to the customer site, then pre-program the
alternate path in the forwarding ASIC
Loop Free Alternate (LFA): A technology
used by an IGP to pre-calculate an alternate
path during link or node failures

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