Module 4

The Network Layer

Chapter 4: outline
4.1 routing
4.5 introduction
algorithms
4.2▪ virtual
link state
circuit and datagram networks
▪ distance vector
4.3 what’s inside a router
▪ hierarchical routing
4.4 IP: Internet Protocol
▪ datagram format
▪ IPv4 addressing
▪ ICMP
▪ IPv6
Network layer
▪ transport segment from sending to
receiving host
▪ on sending side encapsulates
segments into datagrams
▪ on receiving side, delivers
segments to transport layer
▪ network layer protocols in every
host, router
▪ router examines header fields in all
IP datagrams passing through it
Two key network-layer functions
▪ forwarding: move packets from analogy:
router’s input to appropriate
router output  routing: process of
▪ routing: determine route taken by planning trip from source
packets from source to dest.
to dest
▪ routing algorithms
 forwarding: process of
getting through single
interchange
Routing algorithms determine values in forwarding tables
Connection setup
▪ 3rd important function in some network architectures:
▪ ATM, frame relay, X.25

▪ before datagrams flow, two end hosts and intervening routers

establish virtual connection
▪ routers get involved

▪ network vs transport layer connection service:

▪ network: between two hosts (may also involve intervening routers in case
of VCs)
▪ transport: between two processes
Network service model
Q: What service model for “channel” transporting
datagrams from sender to receiver?
example services for individual example services for a flow of
datagrams: datagrams:

guaranteed delivery ▪ in-order datagram delivery

guaranteed delivery with ▪ guaranteed minimum

bandwidth to flow
less than 40 msec delay
▪ restrictions on changes in
inter-packet spacing (jitter)
▪ Security services
Network layer service models:
Connection, connection-less service
datagram network provides network-layer connectionless service
virtual-circuit network provides network-layer connection service
analogous to TCP/UDP connecton-oriented / connectionless transport-layer
services, but:
 service: host-to-host
 no choice: network provides one or the other
 implementation: in network core
Virtual circuits
“source-to-dest path behaves much like telephone circuit”
▪ performance-wise
▪ network actions along source-to-dest path

▪ call setup, teardown for each call before data can flow
▪ each packet carries VC identifier (not destination host address)
▪ every router on source-dest path maintains “state” for each passing
connection
▪ link, router resources (bandwidth, buffers) may be allocated to VC
(dedicated resources = predictable service)
VC implementation
a VC consists of:
1. path from source to destination
2. VC numbers, one number for each link along path
3. entries in forwarding tables in routers along path

 packet belonging to VC carries VC number (rather than dest address)

 VC number can be changed on each link.
 new VC number comes from forwarding table
 VC forwarding table
12 22 32

1 3
2
VC number
interface
forwarding table in number
northwest router:
Incoming interface Incoming VC # Outgoing interface Outgoing VC #

1 12 3 22
2 63 1 18
3 7 2 17
1 97 3 87
… … … …

VC routers maintain connection state information!

Virtual circuits: signaling protocols
▪ used to setup, maintain teardown VC
▪ used in ATM, frame-relay, X.25
▪ not used in today’s Internet

application application
5. data flow begins 6. receive data
transport transport
network 4. call connected 3. accept call
1. initiate call network
data link 2. incoming call
data link
physical physical
Datagram networks
▪ no call setup at network layer
▪ routers: no state about end-to-end connections
▪ no network-level concept of “connection”

▪ packets forwarded using destination host address

application application
transport transport
network 1. send datagrams 2. receive datagrams network
data link data link
physical physical
Datagram forwarding table
4 billion IP addresses, so
routing algorithm rather than list individual
destination address
local forwarding table
list range of addresses
dest address output (aggregate table entries)
address-range 1 3 link
address-range 2 2
address-range 3 2
address-range 4 1

IP destination address in
arriving packet’s header
1
3 2
Datagram forwarding table
Destination Address Range Link Interface

11001000 00010111 00010000 00000000

through 0
11001000 00010111 00010111 11111111

11001000 00010111 00011000 00000000

through 1
11001000 00010111 00011000 11111111

11001000 00010111 00011001 00000000

through 2
11001000 00010111 00011111 11111111

otherwise 3

Q: but what happens if ranges don’t divide up so nicely?

Longest prefix matching
longest prefix matching
when looking for forwarding table entry for given
destination address, use longest address prefix that
matches destination address.

Destination Address Range Link interface

11001000 00010111 00010*** ********* 0
11001000 00010111 00011000 ********* 1
11001000 00010111 00011*** ********* 2
otherwise 3
examples:
DA: 11001000 00010111 00010110 10100001 which interface?
DA: 11001000 00010111 00011000 10101010 which interface?
Datagram or VC network: why?
Internet (datagram) ATM (VC)
▪ data exchange among ▪ evolved from telephony
computers
▪ “elastic” service, no strict timing req. ▪ human conversation:
▪ strict timing, reliability
▪ many link types requirements
▪ different characteristics ▪ need for guaranteed
▪ uniform service difficult service

▪ “smart” end systems ▪ “dumb” end systems

(computers) ▪ telephones
▪ can adapt, perform control, error ▪ complexity inside
recovery network
▪ simple inside network,
complexity at “edge”
What’s inside a Router?
Router architecture overview
two key router functions:

 run routing algorithms/protocol (RIP, OSPF, BGP)

 forwarding datagrams from incoming to outgoing link

Generic router architecture

Router Architecture (conti.)
▪ Four router components:
▪ (1) Input ports:
▪ Performs physical layer function like terminating an incoming physical link at a router
▪ Performs link layer function
▪ Lookup function performed (forwarding table is consulted for output port)
▪ Control packets (carrying routing protocol info) is sent from input port to routing
processor
▪ Port : physical input and output router interfaces

▪ (2) Switching fabric:

▪ Connects router input port to its output port
Router Architecture (conti.)
▪ (3) Output port:
▪ Stores packets received from the switching fabric and transmits on the outgoing link by performing physical and
link layer functions

▪ (4) Routing processor:

▪ Executes the routing protocols, maintains routing tables, attaches state information and computes forwarding
table for router

▪ Router Forwarding Plane:

▪ Collectively the forwarding functions (input port, output port and switching fabric)
▪ Implemented using hardware

▪ Router Control Plane:

▪ Control functions like executing the routing protocol and responding to attached links
▪ Implemented in software
▪ Execute on the router processor (CPU)
Input port functions
lookup,
link forwarding
line layer switch
termination protocol fabric
(receive)
queueing

physical layer:
bit-level reception
data link layer: decentralized switching:
e.g., Ethernet ▪ given datagram dest., lookup output port using
see chapter 5 forwarding table in input port memory (“match plus
action”)
▪ goal: complete input port processing at ‘line
speed’
▪ queuing: if datagrams arrive faster than
forwarding rate into switch fabric
Input port functions
▪ forwarding table is computed and updated by the routing processor
▪ a shadow copy is stored at each input port
▪ forwarding table is copied from the routing processor to the line cards over a
separate bus indicated by the dashed line
▪ With a shadow copy, forwarding decisions can be made locally, at each input
port, without invoking the centralized routing processor
Switching fabrics
transfer packet from input buffer to appropriate output buffer
switching rate: rate at which packets can be transfer from inputs
to outputs
 often measured as multiple of input/output line rate
 N inputs: switching rate N times line rate desirable
three types of switching fabrics

memory

memory bus crossbar

Switching via memory
first generation routers:

▪ traditional computers with switching under

direct control of CPU (routing processor)

▪ input port with an arriving packet first signaled

the routing processor via an interrupt

▪ packet copied to processor memory

▪ routing processor then extracts the

destination address from the header

▪ looked up the appropriate output port in the

forwarding table, and copied the packet to the
output port’s buffers

▪ speed limited by memory bandwidth (2 bus

crossings per datagram)
Switching via a bus
 an input port transfers a packet directly to the
output port over a shared bus
without intervention by the routing processor

 input port pre-pend a header to the packet

indicating the local output port to which this packet
is being transferred

 packet is received by all output ports

 port that matches the label will keep the packet

 bus contention: switching speed limited by bus

bandwidth

 32 Gbps bus, Cisco 5600: sufficient speed for

access and enterprise routers

4-
Switching via interconnection network
A crossbar switch is an interconnection network
consisting of 2N buses that connect N input
ports to N output port
overcome bus bandwidth limitations
banyan networks, crossbar, other
interconnection nets initially developed to
connect processors in multiprocessor
advanced design: fragmenting datagram into
fixed length cells, switch cells through the fabric.
Cisco 12000: switches 60 Gbps through the
interconnection network
 Output ports

datagram
switch buffer link
fabric layer line
protocol termination
queueing (send)

buffering required when datagrams arrive from fabric faster than the transmission
rate
scheduling discipline chooses among queued datagrams for transmission

Datagram (packets) can be lost

Priority scheduling – who gets best due to congestion, lack of buffers
performance, network neutrality
Output port queueing

switch
switch
fabric
fabric

at t, packets more one packet time later

from input to output

▪ buffering when arrival rate via switch exceeds output line speed
▪ queueing (delay) and loss due to output port buffer overflow!
How much buffering?
▪ RFC 3439 rule of thumb: average buffering equal to “typical” RTT (say 250 msec)
times link capacity C
▪ e.g., C = 10 Gpbs link: 2.5 Gbit buffer

▪ recent recommendation: with N flows, buffering equal to

RTT . C
N
Output port
▪ A consequence of output port queuing is :

▪ Packet scheduler at the output port must choose one packet among those queued for
transmission

▪ selection might be done on a simple basis, such as first-come-first-served (FCFS)

scheduling, or weighted fair queuing (WFQ)

▪ If there is not enough memory to buffer an incoming packet, either drop the arriving or
remove one or more already-queued packets

▪ Random Early Detection (RED) algorithm :

▪ queue length is less than a minimum threshold, when a packet arrives, the packet is
admitted to the queue
▪ if the queue is full or the average queue length is greater than a maximum threshold,
packet is dropped or marked
Input port queuing
▪ fabric slower than input ports combined -> queueing may
occur at input queues
▪ queueing delay and loss due to input buffer overflow!
▪ Head-of-the-Line (HOL) blocking: queued datagram at front of
queue prevents others in queue from moving forward

switch switch
fabric fabric

output port contention: one packet time later:

only one red datagram can be green packet
transferred. experiences HOL
lower red packet is blocked blocking
The Internet network layer
Internet’s network layer major
components:
▪ IP Protocol
▪ Routing Component
(determines the path a datagram
follows)
▪ ICMP Protocol (error
and information reporting protocol)

physical layer
IP Datagram Format
Datagram Format
▪ Network layer packet is referred as datagram
▪ Key fields in IPv4 datagram:
▪ Version Number:
▪ 4 bits specify the IP protocol version of the datagram
▪ Different versions of IP use different datagram formats
▪ Header Length:
▪ IPv4 datagram can contain a variable number of options
▪ 4 bits are needed to determine where in the IP datagram the data begins
▪ typical IP datagram has a 20-byte header
Datagram Format
▪ Type of Service:
▪ allow different types of IP datagrams
▪ datagrams requiring low delay, high throughput, or reliability

▪ Datagram Length:
▪ total length of the IP datagram (header plus data) in bytes
▪ 16 bits field
▪ minimum value 20 bytes and the maximum is 65,535 bytes

▪ Identifier, flags fragmentation offset:

▪ Used for IP fragmentation
Datagram Format
▪ Time-to-Live:
▪ 8 bits
▪ ensure that datagrams do not circulate forever in network
▪ this field is decremented by one each time the datagram is processed by a router
▪ TTL field reaches 0, the datagram must be dropped

▪ Protocol:
▪ used only when an IP datagram reaches its final destination
▪ value of this field indicates the specific transport-layer protocol to which the data portion of this IP
datagram should be passed
▪ 6 indicates that the data portion is passed to TCP
▪ 17 indicates that the data is passed to UDP

▪ Port number binds transport and application layer

▪ Protocol number binds network and transport layer
Datagram Format
▪ Header Checksum:
▪ aids a router in detecting bit errors in a received IP datagram
▪ 1s complement of the sum of bytes, known as the Internet checksum, is stored in the
checksum field
▪ checksum must be recomputed and stored again at each router
▪ routers discard datagrams for which an error has been detected
▪ only the IP header is checksummed at the IP layer
▪ TCP/UDP checksum is computed over the entire TCP/UDP segment

▪ Source and Destination IP addresses:

▪ source creates a datagram; it inserts the source IP address and destination IP address
▪ source host determines the destination address via a DNS lookup
Datagram Format
▪ Options:
▪ allow an IP header to be extended

▪ Data(payload):
▪ the data field of the IP datagram contains the transport-layer segment (TCP or UDP)
▪ data field can carry other types of data, such as ICMP messages

▪ Due to presence of option field, size of header is 20 to 60 bytes

IP Datagram Fragmentation
▪ maximum amount of data that a link-layer frame can carry is called the maximum
transmission unit (MTU)
▪ problem is
▪ each link along the route between sender and destination can use different link-layer
protocols, and each of these protocols can have different MTUs

▪ When outgoing link has an MTU smaller than the size of IP datagram
▪ Fragment the data into two or three smaller datagrams
▪ Smaller datagrams are called fragments
IP fragmentation, reassembly
▪ network links have MTU
(max.transfer size) - largest
possible link-level frame
▪ different link types, different
MTUs
▪ large IP datagram divided
(“fragmented”) within net
▪ one datagram becomes
several datagrams
▪ “reassembled” only at final
destination
▪ IP header bits used to
identify, order related
fragments
IP fragmentation, reassembly
example:
 4000 byte datagram
 20 bytes header
 3980 bytes of payload
 MTU = 1500 bytes
 IP addressing: Introduction
223.1.1.1
▪ IP address: 32-bit identifier
for host, router interface 223.1.2.1

▪ interface: connection 223.1.1.2

223.1.1.4 223.1.2.9
between host/router and
physical link
223.1.3.27
▪ Routers typically have multiple 223.1.1.3
223.1.2.2
interfaces
▪ host typically has one or two
interfaces (e.g., wired
Ethernet, wireless 802.11) 223.1.3.1 223.1.3.2

▪ IP address is associated
with each interface rather
than host or router 223.1.1.1 = 11011111 00000001 00000001 00000001
containing that interface
223 1 1 1
IP addressing: Introduction
▪ IP address is 32 bits long (4 bytes)
▪ Total of 2^32 possible IP addresses
▪ Written in Dotted Decimal Notation
▪ each byte of the address is written in its decimal form and is separated by a period (dot)
from other bytes in the address
▪ the address 193.32.216.9 in binary notation is
▪ 11000001 00100000 11011000 00001001
IP addressing: Introduction
223.1.1.1

Example of IP addressing and

223.1.2.1
Interface
• one router (with three interfaces)
223.1.1.2
• Interconnected seven hosts 223.1.1.4 223.1.2.9

223.1.3.27
223.1.1.3
223.1.2.2

wired Ethernet interfaces connected

by Ethernet switches
223.1.3.1 223.1.3.2

• The network interconnecting

three host interfaces and one
router interface forms a subnet wireless WiFi interfaces connected
by WiFi base station
Subnets
▪ IP address:
▪ subnet part - high order
bits(1s)
▪ host part - low order bits(0s)

▪ What’s a subnet ?
▪ device interfaces with same
subnet part of IP address
▪ can physically reach each
other without intervening
router
▪ The subnet is also called an
IP network Subnet Addresses
Subnets
▪ IP addressing assigns an address to this subnet: 223.1.1.0/24
▪ the /24 notation is known as a subnet mask
▪ indicates that leftmost 24 bits of the 32-bit quantity define the subnet address

▪ subnet 223.1.1.0/24 thus consists of the three host interfaces (223.1.1.1,

223.1.1.2, and 223.1.1.3) and one router interface (223.1.1.4)
▪ Any additional hosts attached to the 223.1.1.0/24 subnet would be required to
have an address of the form 223.1.1.xxx
Subnets

to determine the subnets,

detach each interface from its
host or router, creating
islands of isolated networks
each isolated network is
called a subnet

Subnet Addresses
Subnets
how many?
Each router has three interfaces,
one for each point-to-point link and
one for the broadcast link that directly
connects the router to a pair of hosts
Three additional subnets:
223.1.9.0/24, for the interfaces that
connect routers R1 and R2
223.1.8.0/24, for the interfaces that
connect routers R2 and R3
223.1.7.0/24, for the interfaces that
connect routers R3 and R1 Three routers interconnecting six subnets
IP addressing: CIDR
 Internet’s address assignment strategy is known as Classless
Interdomain Routing (CIDR—pronounced cider) [RFC 4632]
 32-bit IP address is divided into two parts
 has the dotted-decimal form a.b.c.d/x, where x indicates the number of
bits in the first part of the address
 x most significant bits are referred as prefix of the address

subnet host
part part

11001000 00010111 00010000 00000000

200.23.16.0/23
IP addressing: CIDR
▪ the first 21 bits of the CIDRized address a.b.c.d/21 specify the organization’s
network prefix
▪ are common to the IP addresses of all devices in that organization
▪ remaining 11 bits identify the specific hosts in the organization
▪ These 11 rightmost bits are used for subnetting within the organization
▪ E.g. : a.b.c.d/24 might refer to a specific subnet within the organization
Address Aggregation or Route Aggregation
▪ Address aggregation : ability to use a single prefix to advertise multiple
networks
▪ Example:
▪ Fly-By-Night-ISP advertises to the outside world that it should be sent any datagrams
whose first 20 address bits match 200.23.16.0/20
▪ rest of the world need not know that within the address block 200.23.16.0/20 there are in
fact eight other organizations
▪ each with its own subnets
Hierarchical addressing: route aggregation
hierarchical addressing allows efficient advertisement of routing information:
Hierarchical addressing: more specific routes
ISPs-R-Us has a more specific route to Organization 1
IP Addressing : Classful Addressing
▪ network portions of an IP address were constrained to be 8, 16, or 24 bits in
length
▪ subnets with 8-, 16-, and 24-bit subnet addresses were known as class A, B,
and C networks, respectively
▪ class C (/24) subnet could accommodate only up to 28 – 2 = 254 hosts, too small
for organizations
▪ class B (/16) subnet, which supports up to 65,634 hosts, was too large
▪ Another type of IP address
▪ Broadcast address 255.255.255.255 : When a host sends a datagram with destination
address 255.255.255.255, the message is delivered to all hosts on the same subnet
Obtaining a Block of Addresses
Q: how does network get subnet part of IP addr?
A: gets allocated portion of its provider ISP’s address space

ISP's block 11001000 00010111 00010000 00000000 200.23.16.0/20

Organization 0 11001000 00010111 00010000 00000000 200.23.16.0/23

Organization 1 11001000 00010111 00010010 00000000 200.23.18.0/23
Organization 2 11001000 00010111 00010100 00000000 200.23.20.0/23
... ….. …. ….
Organization 7 11001000 00010111 00011110 00000000 200.23.30.0/23
DHCP: Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol
goal:allow host to dynamically obtain its IP address from network
server when it joins network
▪ can renew its lease on address in use
▪ allows reuse of addresses (only hold address while connected/“on”)
▪ support for mobile users who want to join network (more shortly)

For a newly arriving host, the DHCP protocol is a four-step process:

▪ DHCP server discovery : a client sends within a UDP packet to port 67
▪ DHCP server offer(s) : is broadcast to all nodes on the subnet since several DHCP
servers can be present on the subnet
▪ DHCP request : newly arriving client will choose from among one or more server offers
▪ DHCP ACK : server responds to the DHCP request message with a DHCP ACK
message
DHCP client-server scenario

DHCP client-server scenario

DHCP client-server
interaction
DHCP: more than IP addresses
DHCP can return more than just allocated IP address on subnet:
 address of first-hop router for client
 name and IP address of DNS sever
 network mask (indicating network versus host portion of address)
IP addressing: the last word...
Q: how does an ISP get block of addresses?
A: ICANN: Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers
http://www.icann.org/
 allocates addresses
 manages DNS
 assigns domain names, resolves disputes
Network Address Translation (NAT)
▪ Used for address allocation in widespread areas
▪ RFC 2663, RFC 3022
▪ A realm with private addresses refers to a network whose addresses only have
meaning to devices within that network
▪ The NAT-enabled router does not look like a router to the outside world
▪ NAT router behaves to the outside world as a single device with a single IP
address
▪ NAT-enabled router is hiding the details of the home network from the outside
world
Network Address Translation (NAT)
▪ all datagrams arriving at the NAT router from the WAN have the same destination
IP address
▪ how does the router know the internal host to which it should forward a given
datagram
▪ NAT translation table : include port numbers as well as IP addresses in the table
entries
NAT: network address translation

rest of local network

Internet (e.g., home network)
10.0.0/24 10.0.0.1

10.0.0.4
10.0.0.2
138.76.29.7

10.0.0.3

all datagrams leaving local datagrams with source or

network have same single source destination in this network
NAT IP address: have 10.0.0/24 address for
138.76.29.7,different source port source, destination (as usual)
numbers
NAT: network address translation
implementation: NAT router must:

▪ outgoing datagrams: replace (source IP address, port #) of every outgoing

datagram to (NAT IP address, new port #)
. . . remote clients/servers will respond using (NAT IP address,
new port #) as destination addr

▪ remember (in NAT translation table) every (source IP address, port #) to (NAT
IP address, new port #) translation pair

▪ incoming datagrams: replace (NAT IP address, new port #) in dest fields of

every incoming datagram with corresponding (source IP address, port #)
stored in NAT table
 NAT: network address translation
NAT translation table 1: host 10.0.0.1
2: NAT router WAN side addr LAN side addr
changes datagram sends datagram to
source addr from 138.76.29.7, 5001 10.0.0.1, 3345 128.119.40.186, 80
10.0.0.1, 3345 to …… ……
138.76.29.7, 5001,
updates table S: 10.0.0.1, 3345
D: 128.119.40.186, 80
10.0.0.1
1
S: 138.76.29.7, 5001
2 D: 128.119.40.186, 80 10.0.0.4
10.0.0.2
138.76.29.7 S: 128.119.40.186, 80
D: 10.0.0.1, 3345
4
S: 128.119.40.186, 80
D: 138.76.29.7, 5001 3 10.0.0.3
4: NAT router
3: reply arrives changes datagram
dest. address: dest addr from
138.76.29.7, 5001 138.76.29.7, 5001 to 10.0.0.1, 3345
 NAT: network address translation

▪ 16-bit port-number field:

▪ 60,000 simultaneous connections with a single LAN-side

address!
▪ NAT is controversial:
▪ Port numbers are meant to be used for addressing processes, not addressing hosts
▪ Routers are supposed to process packets only upto layer 3
▪ Violates end to end argument
▪ Use IPv6 for shortage of IP addresses
UPnP
▪ Universal Plug and Play
▪ protocol that allows a host to discover and configure a nearby NAT
▪ an application running in a host can request a NAT mapping between its (private
IP address, private port number) and the (public IP address, public port number)
for some requested public port number
▪ If the NAT accepts the request and creates the mapping, then nodes from the
outside can initiate TCP connections to (public IP address, public port number)
▪ UPnP allows external hosts to initiate communication sessions to NATed hosts,
using either TCP or UDP
Internet Control Message Protocol (ICMP)
▪ ICMP, specified in [RFC 792]
▪ used by hosts and routers to communicate network-layer information to each other
▪ most typical use of ICMP is for error reporting

▪ ICMP is often considered part of IP but architecturally it lies just above IP

▪ ICMP messages are carried as IP payload, just as TCP or UDP segments are
carried as IP Payload
▪ ICMP messages have a type and a code field
▪ contain the header and the first 8 bytes of the IP datagram
ICMP Message Types
IPv6 : Introduction
▪ In early 1990s Internet Engineering Task Force(IETF) began to develop a
successor to IPv4
▪ Motivation:
▪ Realization that 32-bit IP address space is beginning to be used up

▪ Solution:
▪ Need a large IP address space, a new IP protocol, IPv6
IPv6
▪ Important changes in IPv6:
▪ Expanded addressing capabilities:
▪ size of the IP address increased from 32 to 128 bits
▪ Introduced a new type of address
▪ Anycast : allows a datagram to be delivered to any one of a group of hosts

▪ A streamlined 40-byte header:

▪ a few IPv4 fields have been dropped or made optional
▪ 40-byte fixed-length header allows faster processing of the IP datagram
IPv6
▪ Flow labelling and priority:
▪ IPv6 definition of a flow :
▪ “labeling of packets belonging to particular flows for which the sender requests special
handling, such as a nondefault quality of service or real-time service”
▪ For example
▪ audio and video transmission might likely be treated as a flow
▪ file transfer and e-mail, might not be treated as flows
IPv6 : Datagram Format
▪ Version:
▪ 4-bit field identifies the IP version
number
▪ putting a 4 in this field does not create a
valid IPv4 datagram

▪ Traffic class:
▪ 8-bit field is similar to the TOS field in
IPv4

▪ Flow label
▪ this 20-bit field is used to identify a flow
of datagrams
IPv6 : Datagram Format
▪ Payload length:
▪ This 16-bit value gives the number of bytes in the IPv6 datagram

▪ Next header:
▪ identifies the protocol to which the contents (data field) of this datagram will be delivered
(for example, to TCP or UDP)

▪ Hop limit:
▪ The contents of this field are decremented by one by each router that forwards the
datagram
▪ If the hop limit count reaches zero, the datagram is discarded.
IPv6 : Datagram Format
▪ Source and destination addresses:
▪ The various formats of the IPv6 128-bit addresses are described in RFC 4291

▪ Data:
▪ payload portion of the IPv6 datagram
▪ When the datagram reaches its destination
▪ the payload will be removed from the IP datagram
▪ passed on to the protocol specified in the next header field
IPv6
▪ Few fields in IPv4 datagram are no longer present in the IPv6 datagram
▪ Fragmentation/Reassembly:
▪ IPv6 does not allow for fragmentation and reassembly at intermediate routers; it can be
performed only by the source and destination
▪ IPv6 datagram received by a router is too large
▪ the router simply drops the datagram
▪ sends a “Packet Too Big” ICMP error message to sender

▪ Header Checksum:
▪ Transport-layer and link-layer protocols perform checksumming, so designers of IP felt
that this functionality was redundant
IPv6
▪ Options:
▪ no longer a part of the standard IP header
▪ removal of the options field results in a fixed-length, 40- byte IP header

▪ ICMP protocol is used by IP nodes to report error conditions and provide limited
information (for example, the echo reply to a ping message) to an end system
▪ New version of ICMP
▪ ICMPv6 added new types and codes required by the new IPv6 functionality
▪ include the “Packet Too Big” type, and an “unrecognized IPv6 options” error code
Transitioning from IPv4 to IPv6
▪ Already deployed IPv4-capable systems are not capable of handling IPv6
datagrams
▪ RFC 4213 describes two approaches for gradually integrating IPv6 hosts and
routers into an IPv4 world
▪ Dual-stack approach
▪ IPv6 nodes also have a complete IPv4 implementation
▪ Such nodes are referred as IPv6/IPv4 nodes
▪ has the ability to send and receive both IPv4 and IPv6 datagrams
Problem with Dual Stack Approach:
▪ Node A is IPv6-capable and wants to
send an IP datagram to Node F, which
is also IPv6-capable
▪ Node B must create an IPv4 datagram
to send to C
▪ data field of the IPv6 datagram can be
copied into the data field of the IPv4
datagram
▪ While conversion few IPv6 fields will
be lost
▪ arriving IPv4 datagram at E from D do
not contain all the fields that were in
the original IPv6 datagram sent from A
Transitioning from IPv4 to IPv6 : Tunneling
▪ Alternative to the dual-stack approach is Tunneling

▪ Basic idea
▪ Suppose two IPv6 want to interoperate using IPv6 datagrams but are connected
to each other by intervening IPv4 routers
▪ the intervening set of IPv4 routers between two IPv6 routers is a tunnel
▪ With tunneling, the IPv6 node on the sending side of the tunnel takes the entire
IPv6 datagram and puts it in the data (payload) field of an IPv4 datagram
▪ This IPv4 datagram is then addressed to the IPv6 node on the receiving side of
the tunnel
Transitioning from IPv4 to IPv6 : Tunneling
▪ Routers will be unaware that the IPv4 datagram itself contains a complete IPv6
datagram
▪ IPv6 node on the receiving side of the tunnel receives the IPv4 datagram
▪ determines that the IPv4 datagram contains an IPv6 datagram
▪ extracts the IPv6 datagram and then routes the IPv6 datagram
Transitioning from IPv4 to IPv6 : Tunneling
Routing Algorithms
▪ Forwarding function:
▪ when a packet arrives to a router, the
router indexes a forwarding table and
determines the link interface to which the
packet is to be directed
▪ Routing algorithms, operating in network
routers, exchange and compute the
information that is used to configure these
forwarding tables
▪ Routing function:
▪ determining the path, a packets takes
from sender to receiver
Routing Algorithms
▪ A host is attached directly to one router, the default router for the host also
called the first-hop router for the host
▪ the default router of the source host is the source router
▪ the default router of the destination host is the destination router
▪ Purpose of a Routing algorithm:
▪ given a set of routers with links connecting the routers, a routing algorithm finds a “good”
path from source router to destination router
▪ a good path is one that has the least cost
Routing Algorithms
▪ A graph is used to formulate routing problems
▪ Graph G = (N,E) is a set N of nodes and a collection E of edges, where each
edge is a pair of nodes from N
▪ Nodes in the graph represent routers—the points at which packet-forwarding
decisions are made
▪ Edges connecting these nodes represent the physical links between routers
Routing Algorithms
▪ Edge has a value representing its cost
▪ For any edge (x,y) in E,
▪ c(x,y) as the cost of the edge between
nodes x and y
▪ if the pair (x,y) does not belong to E, we
set c(x,y) = ∞

▪ Consider undirected graphs whose

edges do not have a direction
▪ so that edge (x,y) is the same as edge
(y,x) and
▪ c(x,y) = c(y,x)
Routing Algorithms
▪ One way of classification is whether they are global or decentralized
▪ Global routing algorithm
▪ computes the least-cost path between a source and destination using complete, global
knowledge about the network
▪ algorithm takes the connectivity between all nodes and all link costs as inputs
▪ Ex : Link-state (LS) algorithm

▪ Decentralized routing algorithm

▪ the calculation of the least-cost path is carried out in an iterative, distributed manner
▪ no node has complete information about the costs of all network links
▪ Ex : Distance vector (DV) algorithm
Routing Algorithms
▪ Second way of classification is whether they are static or dynamic
▪ Static routing algorithms, routes change very slowly over time, often as a result of
human intervention (for example, a human manually editing a router’s forwarding table)
▪ Dynamic routing algorithms change the routing paths as the network traffic loads or
topology change
▪ Third way of classification is whether they are load-sensitive or load-insensitive
▪ In Load-sensitive algorithm, link costs vary dynamically to reflect the current level of
congestion in the underlying link
▪ Today’s Internet routing algorithms are Load-insensitive, as a link’s cost does not
explicitly reflect its current (or recent past) level of congestion
A Link-State Routing Algorithm
Dijkstra’s algorithm
notation:
▪ net topology, link costs known
to all nodes
▪ c(x,y): link cost from node x to y; = ∞ if not direct neighbors
▪ accomplished via “link state
broadcast”
▪ D(v): current value of cost of path from source to dest. v
▪ all nodes have same info
▪ p(v): predecessor node along path from source to v
▪ computes least cost paths
▪ N': setfrom
of nodes whose
one node leasttocost path definitively known
(“source”)
all other nodes
▪ gives forwarding table for that
node

▪ iterative: after k iterations,

know least cost path to k
destinations
Dijsktra’s Algorithm
1 Initialization:
2 N' = {u}
3 for all nodes v
4 if v adjacent to u
5 then D(v) = c(u,v)
6 else D(v) = ∞
7
8 Loop
9 find w not in N' such that D(w) is a minimum
10 add w to N'
11 update D(v) for all v adjacent to w and not in N' :
12 D(v) = min( D(v), D(w) + c(w,v) )
13 /* new cost to v is either old cost to v or known
14 shortest path cost to w plus cost from w to v */
15 until all nodes in N'
Dijkstra’s algorithm : Example
Step N' D(v),p(v) D(w),p(w) D(x),p(x) D(y),p(y) D(z),p(z)
0 u 2,u 5,u 1,u ∞ ∞
1 ux 2,u 4,x 2,x ∞
2 uxy 2,u 3,y 4,y
3 uxyv 3,y 4,y
4 uxyvw 4,y
5 uxyvwz

5
3
v w 5
2
u 2 1 z
3
1 2
x 1
y
Dijkstra’s algorithm: example (2)
resulting shortest-path tree from u:

v w
u z
x y resulting forwarding table in u:
destination link
v (u,v)
x (u,x)
y (u,x)
w (u,x)
z (u,x)
Dijkstra’s algorithm: another example
D(v) D(w) D(x) D(y) D(z)
Step N' p(v) p(w) p(x) p(y) p(z)
0 u 7,u 3,u 5,u ∞ ∞
1 uw 6,w 5,u 11,w ∞
2 uwx 6,w 11,w 14,x
3 uwxv 10,v 14,x
4 uwxvy 12,y
5 uwxvyz x
9

notes: 5 7
4
 construct shortest path tree by
tracing predecessor nodes 8
 ties can exist (can be broken 3 w y z
arbitrarily) u
2
3
7 4
v
Dijkstra’s algorithm, discussion
algorithm complexity: n nodes
each iteration: need to check all nodes, w, not in N
n(n+1)/2 comparisons: O(n2)

oscillations possible:
e.g., support link cost equals amount of carried traffic:
Distance Vector (DV) Routing Algorithm
▪ The distance vector (DV) algorithm is iterative, asynchronous, and distributed
▪ Distributed
▪ each node receives some information from one or more of its directly attached neighbors,
performs a calculation, and then distributes the results of its calculation back to its neighbors

▪ Iterative
▪ this process continues until no more information is exchanged between neighbors
▪ the algorithm is also self-terminating

▪ Asynchronous
▪ it does not require all of the nodes to operate in lockstep with each other.
Distance vector algorithm

Bellman-Ford equation (dynamic programming)

let
dx(y) := cost of least-cost path from x to y
then
dx(y) = minv {c(x,v) + dv(y) }
cost from neighbor v to destination y
cost to neighbor v

min taken over all neighbors v of x

Bellman-Ford example

5
3
clearly, dv(z) = 5, dx(z) = 3, dw(z) = 3
v w 5
2
u 2 1 z B-F equation says:
3
1 2 du(z) = min { c(u,v) + dv(z),
1
x y
c(u,x) + dx(z),
c(u,w) + dw(z) }
= min {2 + 5,
1 + 3,
5 + 3} = 4
node achieving minimum is next
hop in shortest path, used in forwarding table
Distance vector algorithm
▪ Dx(y) = estimate of least cost from x to y
▪ x maintains distance vector Dx = [Dx(y): y є N ]
▪ node x:
▪ knows cost to each neighbor v: c(x,v)
▪ maintains its neighbor’s distance vectors. For each neighbor v, x
maintains
Dv = [Dv(y): y є N ]
Distance vector algorithm
key idea:
from time-to-time, each node sends its own distance vector
estimate to neighbors
when x receives new DV estimate from neighbor, it updates its
own DV using B-F equation:

Dx(y) ← minv{c(x,v) + Dv(y)} for each node y ∊ N

 under minor, natural conditions, the estimate Dx(y)

converge to the actual least cost dx(y)
Distance vector algorithm
iterative, asynchronous: each each node:
local iteration caused by:
▪ local link cost change wait for (change in local link
cost or msg from neighbor)
▪ DV update message
from neighbor
distributed:
recompute estimates

▪ each node notifies

neighbors only when its if DV to any dest has
DV changes changed, notify neighbors

▪ neighbors then notify their

neighbors if necessary
 Distance-Vector (DV) Algorithm

1. Each node waits for an update

from any neighbor (Lines 10–11)

2. calculates its new distance vector

when receiving an update (Line
14)

3. and distributes its new distance

vector to its neighbors (Lines 16–
17)
 Dx(z) = min{c(x,y) +
Dx(y) = min{c(x,y) + Dy(y), c(x,z) + Dz(y)}
= min{2+0 , 7+1} = 2 Dy(z), c(x,z) + Dz(z)}
= min{2+1 , 7+0} = 3
node x cost to cost to
table x y z x y z
x 0 2 7 x 0 2 3

from
y ∞∞ ∞ y 2 0 1
from
z ∞∞ ∞ z 7 1 0

node y cost to
table x y z y
2 1
x ∞ ∞ ∞
x z
y 2 0 1 7
from

z ∞∞ ∞

node z cost to
table x y z
x ∞∞ ∞
from

y ∞∞ ∞
z 7 1 0
time
 Dx(z) = min{c(x,y) +
Dx(y) = min{c(x,y) + Dy(y), c(x,z) + Dz(y)}
= min{2+0 , 7+1} = 2 Dy(z), c(x,z) + Dz(z)}
= min{2+1 , 7+0} = 3
node x cost to cost to cost to
table x y z x y z x y z
x 0 2 7 x 0 2 3 x 0 2 3

from
y ∞∞ ∞ y 2 0 1
from
y 2 0 1

from
z ∞∞ ∞ z 7 1 0 z 3 1 0
node y cost to cost to cost to
table x y z x y z x y z y
2 1
x ∞ ∞ ∞ x 0 2 7 x 0 2 3 x z
y 2 0 1 y 2 0 1 7
from

from
y 2 0 1

from
z ∞∞ ∞ z 7 1 0 z 3 1 0

node z cost to cost to cost to

table x y z x y z x y z
x ∞∞ ∞ x 0 2 7 x 0 2 3
from

y 2 0 1 y 2 0 1

from
from

y ∞∞ ∞
z 7 1 0 z 3 1 0 z 3 1 0
time
▪ In the DV algorithm
▪ a node x updates its distance-vector estimate
▪ when it either sees a cost change in one of its directly attached links or
▪ receives a distance vector update from some neighbor

▪ to update its own forwarding table for a given destination y

▪ x needs to know the neighboring node v*(y) that is the next-hop router along the shortest
path to y
▪ v*(y) can be any of the minimizing neighbors
▪ Lines 13–14
Distance vector: link cost changes
link cost changes: 1
 node detects local link cost change y
4 1
 updates routing info, recalculates x z
distance vector 50
 if DV changes, notify neighbors

“good t0 : y detects link-cost change, updates its DV, informs its

news neighbors.
travels t1 : z receives update from y, updates its table, computes new
fast” least cost to x , sends its neighbors its DV.

t2 : y receives z’s update, updates its distance table. y’s least costs
do not change, so y does not send a message to z.
Distance vector: link cost changes
link cost changes: 60
 node detects local link cost change y
4 1
 bad news travels slow - “count to x z
infinity” problem! 50
 44 iterations before algorithm
stabilizes

poisoned reverse:
 If Z routes through Y to get to X :
 Z tells Y its (Z’s) distance to X is infinite (so Y won’t route to
X via Z)
 will this completely solve count to infinity problem?
Comparison of LS and DV algorithms
message complexity robustness: what happens if
▪ LS: with n nodes, E links, O(nE) router malfunctions?
msgs sent
LS:
▪ DV: exchange between neighbors
only ▪ node can advertise incorrect link
cost
▪ convergence time varies
▪ each node computes only its
speed of convergence
own table
▪ LS: O(n2) algorithm requires O(nE)
msgs DV:
▪ may have oscillations ▪ DV node can advertise incorrect
path cost
▪ DV: convergence time varies
▪ each node’s table used by
▪ may be routing loops others
▪ count-to-infinity problem ▪ error propagate thru network
Hierarchical routing
Our Study:
 Viewed network as collection of interconnected routers
 All routers execute same routing algorithm to compute routing paths
 Its simplistic for 2 reasons:

scale: more no. of routers, administrative autonomy :

overhead involved in computing, researchers tend to ignore issues
sorting, comm. Info. , becomes such as company’s desire to run its
prohibitive. router or hide its network’s
organization.
▪ Storing routing info requires huge
amount of memory ▪ An organization should be able to
run and administer its network as it
▪ LS updates will leave no wishes.
bandwidth for sending data
packets
Hierarchical routing
▪ Problems can be solved by Gateway router:
aggregating routers into
▪ It’s necessary to connect ASs
regions, “autonomous
systems” (AS) to each other , thus one or
more routers in AS will be
▪ routers in same AS run same responsible for forwarding
routing protocol packets to destinations
outside the AS.
▪ “intra-AS” routing protocol
▪ These routers are Gateway
▪ routers in different AS can router
run different intra-AS
routing protocol ▪ at “edge” of its own AS
▪ has link to router in another AS
Interconnected ASes

forwarding table
configured by both intra-
and inter-AS routing
algorithm
 intra-AS sets entries for
internal dests
 inter-AS & intra-AS sets entries
for external dests
Inter-AS tasks
suppose router in AS1 AS1 must:
receives datagram
destined outside of AS1: 1. learn which dests are
reachable through
 router should forward packet to
gateway router, but which one? AS2, which through
AS3
2. propagate this
reachability info to all
routers in AS1
3c
job of inter-AS routing!
3a
3b
AS3 2c other
1c 2a networks
other 1a 2b
networks 1b AS2
AS1 1d
Example: setting forwarding table in router 1d
▪ suppose AS1 learns (via inter-AS protocol) that subnet x
reachable via AS3 (gateway 1c), but not via AS2
▪ inter-AS protocol propagates reachability info to all internal routers

▪ router 1d determines from intra-AS routing info that its

interface I is on the least cost path to 1c
▪ installs forwarding table entry (x,I)

3c … x
3a
3b
AS3 2c other
1c 2a networks
other 1a 2b
networks 1b AS2
AS1 1d
Example: choosing among multiple ASes
▪ now suppose AS1 learns from inter-AS protocol that
subnet x is reachable from AS3 and from AS2.
▪ to configure forwarding table, router 1d must determine
which gateway it should forward packets towards for
dest x
▪ this is also job of inter-AS routing protocol!

3c … x …
3b
3a …
AS3 2c other
1c 2a networks
other 1a 2b
networks 1b AS2
AS1 1d
?
Example: choosing among multiple ASes
▪ now suppose AS1 learns from inter-AS protocol that
subnet x is reachable from AS3 and from AS2.
▪ to configure forwarding table, router 1d must determine
towards which gateway it should forward packets for dest x
▪ this is also job of inter-AS routing protocol!

▪ hot potato routing: send packet towards closest of two

routers.

use routing info determine from

learn from inter-AS hot potato routing: forwarding table the
from intra-AS
protocol that subnet choose the gateway interface I that leads
protocol to determine
x is reachable via that has the to least-cost gateway.
costs of least-cost
multiple gateways smallest least cost Enter (x,I) in
paths to each
of the gateways forwarding table