Simon Fraser University School of Engineering Science Ensc 427: Communication Networks Spring 2013

ENSC427-‐
Final Project
Simon Fraser University

School of Engineering Science
ENSC 427: COMMUNICATION NETWORKS
Spring 2013
FINAL PROJECT:
Analysis of RIP, OSPF, and EIGRP Routing
Protocols using OPNET
www.sfu.ca/~mtn9/Group5.html
Group #5
Kiavash Mirzahossein Michael Nguyen Sarah Elmasry
[email protected] [email protected] [email protected]
301125446 301153543 301066134
ENSC427-‐ Final Project
Table of Contents
List of Tables ........................................................................................................................................... 3
List of Figures ......................................................................................................................................... 3
Abstract .................................................................................................................................................... 4
1 Introduction ..................................................................................................................................... 5
2 Background ...................................................................................................................................... 6
2.1 Routing Information Protocol (RIP): ............................................................................................. 7
2.2 Open Shortest Path First (OSPF) ..................................................................................................... 7
2.3 Enhanced Interior Gateway Routing Protocol (EIGRP) ........................................................... 8
3 Implementation ............................................................................................................................... 9
3.1 Network Topologies ............................................................................................................................ 9
3.1.1 Small Ring Topology ....................................................................................................................................... 9
3.1.2 Small Mesh Topology .................................................................................................................................. 10
3.1.3 Large Mesh Topology .................................................................................................................................. 11
3.1.4 Large Tree Topology .................................................................................................................................... 11
3.2 Simulation Parameters & Collected Statistics ......................................................................... 12
3.3 Routing Protocol Parameters ........................................................................................................ 12
3.3.1 RIP Parameters .............................................................................................................................................. 12
3.3.2 OSPF Parameters ........................................................................................................................................... 13
3.3.3 EIGRP Parameters ........................................................................................................................................ 14
4 Results ............................................................................................................................................. 15
4.1 Routing Tables .................................................................................................................................... 15
4.2 Performance Results ........................................................................................................................ 17
4.2.1 Small Ring Topology .................................................................................................................................... 17
4.2.2 Small Mesh Topology .................................................................................................................................. 18
4.2.3 Large Mesh Topology .................................................................................................................................. 20
4.2.4 Large Tree Topology .................................................................................................................................... 21
5 Discussion ........................................................................................................................................ 24
5.1 Analysis ................................................................................................................................................. 24
5.2 Improvements and Future Work ................................................................................................. 24
5.3 Difficulties and Solutions ................................................................................................................ 25
6. Conclusion ......................................................................................................................................... 26
References .............................................................................................................................................. 27
Appendix A: List of Acronyms ......................................................................................................... 28
Appendix B: Work on LTE ............................................................................................................... 29
2

List of Tables
Table 3.1: RIP Parameters

Table 3.2: OSPF Parameters
Table 3.3: EIGRP Parameters
Table 4.1: RIP Routing Table
Table 4.2: OSPF Routing Table
Table 4.3: EIGRP Routing Table
Table 4.4: Convergence durations (seconds) of small ring topology
Table 4.5: Convergence durations (seconds) of small mesh topology
Table 4.6: Convergence durations (seconds) of large mesh topology
Table 4.7: Convergence durations (seconds) of large tree topology
List of Figures
Figure 1.1: Hierarchy Chart of Routing Protocols

Figure 3.1: Simple Ring Topology
Figure 3.2: Simple Mesh Topology
Figure 3.3: Large Mesh Topology
Figure 4.1: Simple Ring Topology including link costs
Figure 4.2: Routing Traffic Sent in bits/sec for Small Ring
Figure 4.3: Convergence for Small Ring
Figure 4.4: Routing Traffic Sent in bits/sec for Small Mesh
Figure 4.5: Convergence for Small Mesh
Figure 4.6: Routing Traffic Sent in bits/sec for Large Mesh
Figure 4.7: Convergence for Large Mesh
Figure 4.8: Routing Traffic Sent in bits/sec for Large Tree
Figure 4.9: Convergence for Large Tree
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Abstract
Routing protocols determine the best routes to transfer data from one node to another and specify
how routers communicate between each other in order to complete this task. There are different
classes of routing protocols, two of which are Exterior Gateway Protocol (EGP) and Interior
Gateway Routing (IGR). A routing protocol can be dynamic or static, as well as distance-vector
or link-state. In this project, we will focus on Routing Information Protocol (RIP), Open Shortest
Path First (OSPF), and Enhanced Interior Gateway Routing Protocol (EIGRP). All three
protocols are dynamic IGP’s, meaning that these protocols route packets within one Autonomous
System (AS). RIP is a distance-vector protocol; EIGRP is an enhanced distance vector protocol
developed by Cisco and OSPF is a link-state routing protocol. Detailed descriptions of these
routing protocols are provided later in this report. We will study characteristics such as
convergence time and routing traffic sent within small and large topologies. Using OPNET, we
will obtain simulation results for the specified routing protocols and compare performance in
order to determine the best routing protocol for a given network topology.
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1 Introduction
On the network layer, achieving routing convergence, the process in which routing tables are
updated, is a crucial and complex process. At every topology change, including a link failure or
recovery, the routing tables need to be updated at which time the convergence process takes
place. The task of updating these tables is accomplished by routers that communicate according
to a set of rules set by routing protocols. The main goals of any routing protocol are to achieve
fast convergence, while remaining simple, flexible, accurate and robust. In this project, we
analyze and compare the convergence times of three protocols: Routing Information Protocol
(RIP), Open Shortest Path First (OSPF), and Enhanced Interior Gateway Routing Protocol
(EIGRP).
We will consider different topologies or different sizes, each of which will be simulated on
OPNET 16.0. We will simulate each topology with all three routing protocols and collect
statistics such as convergence time and routing traffic sent. We will also analyze the routing
tables of a simple network topology in order to study the metrics of each protocol and gain a
better understanding of how routes are chosen. By examining the results (convergence times in
particular), we will identify the routing protocol with the best performance for a large, realistic
network.
Finally, we will discuss the limitations that exist within our project and network implementations
of the routing protocols. Furthermore, we will provide possible modifications that could be
explored for future work.
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2 Background
Routing links together small networks to form huge internetworks that span vast regions. This
cumbersome task makes the network layer the most complex in the OSI reference model. The
network layer provides the transfer of packets across the network. Routing protocols define the
path of each packet from source to destination. To complete this task, routers use routing tables,
which contain information about possible destinations in the network and the metrics (distance,
cost, bandwidth, etc.) to these destinations. Routers have information regarding the neighbor
routers around them. The degree of a router’s network knowledge and awareness depends on the
routing protocol it uses. At every change in the network, including link failure and link recovery,
routing tables must be updated. The efficiency of these updates determines the efficiency of the
routing protocols.
There are two main types of routing protocols: static routing and dynamic routing. Static routing
assumes that the network is fixed, meaning no nodes are added or removed and routing tables are
therefore only manually updated. Dynamic or adaptive routing, more commonly used for
internetworking, allows changes in the network topology by using routing tables that update with
each network change. In this report we will only consider dynamic routing protocols. Within the
class of dynamic protocols, we can have Interior or Exterior Gateway Protocols. EGP’s deals
with routing information between different autonomous. An example of an EGP is Border
Gateway Protocol (BGP). The three routing protocols we chose to compare are IGP’s, protocols
that exchange routing information within an AS. These protocols can either use distance vector
(such as RIP and EIGRP) or link-state algorithms (such as OSPF) to optimize convergence
times. In this project we will compare the three dynamic routing protocols shown on the right of
the hierarchy chart below: RIP, OSPF and EIGRP.
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EGP BGP
Dynamic Routing RIP

Protocols
Distance Vector
EIGRP
IGP
Link-‐State OSPF
Figure 1.1: Hierarchy Chart of Routing Protocols
2.1 Routing Information Protocol (RIP):
The Routing Information Protocol (RIP), which is a distance-vector based algorithm, is one of
the first routing protocols implemented on TCP/IP. Information is sent through the network using
UDP. Each router that uses this protocol has limited knowledge of the network around it. This
simple protocol uses a hop count mechanism to find an optimal path for packet routing. A
maximum number of 16 hops are employed to avoid routing loops. However, this parameter
limits the size of the networks that this protocol can support. The popularity of this protocol is
largely due to its simplicity and its easy configurability. However, its disadvantages include slow
convergence times, and its scalability limitations. Therefore, this protocol works best for small-
scaled networks.
2.2 Open Shortest Path First (OSPF)
Open Shortest Path First (OSPF) is a very widely used link-state interior gateway protocols
(IGP). This protocol routes Internet Protocol (IP) packets by gathering link-state information
from neighboring routers and constructing a map of the network. OSPF routers send many
message types including hello messages, link state requests and updates and database
descriptions. Djisktra’s algorithm is then used to find the shortest path to the destination. Shortest
Path First (SPF) calculations are computed either periodically or upon a received Link State
Advertisement (LSA), depending on the protocol implementation. Topology changes are
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detected very quickly using this protocol. Another advantage of OSPF is that its many
configurable parameters make it a very flexible and robust protocol. Contrary to RIP, however,
OSPF has the disadvantage of being too complicated.
2.3 Enhanced Interior Gateway Routing Protocol (EIGRP)

EIGRP is a Cisco-developed advanced distance-vector routing protocol. Routers using this
protocol automatically distribute route information to all neighbors. The Diffusing Update
Algorithm (DUA) is used for routing optimization, fast convergence, as well as to avoid routing
loops. Full routing information is only exchanged once upon neighbor establishment, after which
only partial updates are sent. When a router is unable to find a path through the network, it sends
out a query to its neighbors, which propagates until a suitable route is found. This need-based
update is an advantage over other protocols as it reduces traffic between routers and therefore
saves bandwidth. The metric that is used to find an optimal path is calculated with variables
bandwidth, load, delay and reliability. By incorporating many such variables, the protocol
ensures that the best path is found. Also, compared to other distance-vector algorithms, EIGRP
has a larger maximum hop limitation, which makes it compatible with large networks. The
disadvantage of EIGRP is that it is a Cisco proprietary protocol, meaning it is only compatible
with Cisco technology.
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3 Implementation
In this section, we will discuss the breakdown of the project implementation from initiating the
topologies to setting various protocol and simulation parameters. In the following sections, we
will present the obtained simulation results and compare the performance of the three routing
protocols.
In order to compare RIP, OSPF and EIGRP, we used OPNET 16.0 to implement four networks:
two small topologies and two large topologies. These implementations were realized using Cisco
routers connected by PPP_DS1. The small ring and mesh topologies that we implemented,
though unrealistic, are simple examples that are easy to analyze and focus on routing protocol
behavior and performance. In other words, the purpose of the two simple topologies is for
validation of the routing protocols. We obtained routing tables from the small ring topology in
order to better understand the routing system of each protocol. The large mesh and tree
topologies implemented are more realistic and serve as better models for real-world
communication networks.
3.1 Network Topologies
3.1.1 Small Ring Topology

We first implemented the simple ring topology shown in Figure 3.1 with 5 routers, each
connected to 2 neighbor routers. The Rapid Configuration option on OPNET was used to
achieve this network. We chose this topology because of its simplicity, and also because we
wanted to analyze its behavior when a link failure is added between Router 1 and Router 2.
When this failure occurs, routes will be changes and routing tables will be updated. For
example, all packets from Router 1 will now have to flow through Router 5. We will analyze
the routing tables from this topology after the link failure so as to ensure that this expected
behavior is achieved.

9

Figure 3.1: Simple Ring Topology
3.1.2 Small Mesh Topology

Our next topology, also attained by Rapid Configuration, is shown in Figure 3.2. This small
mesh also consists of 5 routers; however, now each router is connected to the 4 other
routers in the network. As in the ring topology, we implemented a link failure between
Router 1 and Router 2. Unlike in the ring topology, now each destination in the network is
only one hop away. Therefore, when a link fails, routers have more than one backup path.
Also, we expect more routing traffic sent than in the ring topology because each router has
more neighbors to communicate with. Though this topology is not realistic for most
networks, it is simple and easy to understand.
Figure 3.2: Simple Mesh Topology
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3.1.3 Large Mesh Topology
Now we move on to our large network topologies. Figure 3.3 shows our large mesh
topology. Though most large networks are not in a mesh topology, we wanted to analyze
the result of scaling up one of our smaller topologies. This network consists of 100 routers,
each of which is connected to 2 to 4 neighbor routers. The Rapid Configuration option on
OPNET resulted in a large mesh arranged in a ring format, where routers were not visible.
Therefore, for aesthetic purposes, we manually created the topology below. However, we
did ensure that the results were comparable to those obtained by Rapid Configuration.
Furthermore, we implemented a link failure on only one link in this network. Because of
the size of this topology, the link failure will not affect all routes, but all routing tables will
still be required to update.
Figure 3.3: Large Mesh Topology
3.1.4 Large Tree Topology
Our last topology is shown in Figure 3.4. This large tree topology was generated by use of
Rapid Configuration. It consists of 156 routers, with one central router, 4 levels and 5 splits
per level. Being our most realistic topology, we expect the results to be most accurate.
Again, we implemented a link failure between the central router and a level 2 router. Unlike
in the large mesh topology, this link failure will have the distinct consequence of rendering
31 routers inaccessible to the rest of the network.
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Figure 3.4: Large Tree Topology
3.2 Simulation Parameters & Collected Statistics

We chose to collect three sets of statistics. First, for the small ring topology we exported the
routing tables of each protocol after the link failure. These tables serve to give us a better
understanding of each protocol. Next, for all scenarios we collected Convergence Activity,
Convergence Duration (sec) and Traffic Sent (bits/sec). It should be noted that the traffic
sent only includes routing traffic, as we have not implemented user applications.
Here we mention the simulation parameters that are common to all network topologies
and all protocols implementations. First, we simulate each scenario for 10 minutes, with a
random seed of 128. Also, the link failure occurs at 300 seconds, and recover occurs at 480
seconds. Each protocol starts with a constant distribution and a mean outcome of 5. In
OPNET’s Discrete Event Simulation (DES) preferences window, we disabled RIP, OSPF, and
EIGRP simulation efficiency to ensure that these protocols continue throughout the entire
simulation.
3.3 Routing Protocol Parameters
3.3.1 RIP Parameters
The following table lists and describes the RIP protocol parameters. It should be noted that the
parameters that define RIP are the maximum hop count and the update interval. Unlike the other
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protocols we are analyzing, RIP routers send their full routing information periodically,
according to the update interval parameter in the first row. The default OPNET values for these
and other parameters are also shown below.
Table 3.1 RIP Parameters

Description Default
Update Interval How often a router sends updates to its neighbors 30 seconds
(seconds)
Route Invalid Used to indicate an invalid route. This timer is initialized 180 seconds
(seconds) when the route is inserted into the routing table. When it
expires, the route is removed.
Flush (seconds) Indicates that a route should be removed from the routing 240 seconds
table. This value should be greater than the “Route
Invalid” parameter.
Holddown Used to avoid route flapping. This timer starts when 180 seconds
(seconds) “Route Invalid” expires. During holddown time, updates
regarding invalid routes are ignored.
Maximum hops Maximum number of packet supported by RIP. 16 hops
Implemented in order to prevent endless loops. If this
value is too low, network size is limited. If this value is
too high, packets may get stuck in loops.
Advertisement Specified how a router advertises to its neighbors. Three Split Horizon
Mode options on OPNET: with Poison
1. No Filtering: Advertises routes to all neighbors Reverse
2. Split Horizon: Does not advertise route to the
neighbor from which route was learned.
3. Split Horizon with Poison Reverse: Advertises route to
neighbor from which route was learned with a metric of
infinity (or max 16).
3.3.2 OSPF Parameters
The table below presents various OSPF parameters. These parameters differ greatly from those
of RIP because OSPF is a link-state algorithm, which means it maps out the network before
choosing the best routing path. This protocol has many more parameters with much more
complexity than RIP.
Table 3.2 OSPF Parameters

Description Default
Interface cost Cost of each interface can be specified. These values are used to 1
calculate the shortest path.
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Hello interval How often a router sends hello messages to its neighbors. If this 10
(seconds) parameter is too small, more router traffic results. This increases seconds
the risk of dropped packets, which could result in false alarms.
If interval is too big, topology changes will take longer to be
detected, and router dead interval may expire.
Router dead Used to declare neighbor routers dead when no Hello messages 40
interval (seconds) have been received. This interval should be a multiple of the seconds
“Hello interval”.
Transmission Estimated time to transmit a Link State Advertisement (LSA) 1.0
delay (seconds) packet. seconds
Retransmission Time between LSA retransmissions. Must be greater than the 5.0
interval (seconds) expected round-trip time between any two routers in the seconds
network.
SPF Calculation Specifies how often shortest paths are recalculated. Two LSA
Parameters Options: Driven
1. Periodic: Recalculate at each specified interval, unless no
change has occurred.
2. LSA driven: Recalculate after every LSA has been received.
3.3.3 EIGRP Parameters
The table below shows the EIGRP parameters. The maximum hop parameter of 100 allows for
larger network sizes than RIP’s 16 hops. EIGRP also uses hello messages and a hold time timer
similar to OSPF in order to detect topology changes. As we can see, EIGRP does not have many
configurable parameters because it is a proprietary protocol.
Table 3.3 EIGRP Parameters

Description Default
Maximum Hops (As described for RIP) 100 hops
Hello Interval (As described for OSPF) 5 seconds
(seconds)
Hold Time Same function as “Router dead interval” for OSPF 3 Hello
(seconds) Times
Split Horizon When enabled, Split Horizon does not advertise route to the Enabled
neighbor from which route was learned.
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4 Results
4.1 Routing Tables

Routing tables lists the routes from a node to other nodes in the network and includes the metric
(e.g. hop count, cost, or delay) and the next hop towards the destination. Once a topology change
is detected, the routing tables are updated in order to reach convergence. Each router has its
individual routing table and the number of entries in this table is dependent on the number of
nodes in the network. For the purpose of our project, we analyzed the routing tables of our ring
topology, where every router has 2 neighbors.
We obtained the routing tables for each routing protocol in order to compare their outputs at 350
seconds, when the link between Router 1 and Router 2 is still in a failed state. The routing table
for Router 1 using RIP is shown below. The metric used for RIP is the hop count shown in the
third column. The first row shows the metric of IF10 link from Router 1 to Router 2 as 16, which
is the maximum hop value in RIP, because the link has failed.
Table 4.1: RIP Routing Table

Destination Destination Metric Next Hop Address Next Hop Node Outgoing Interface
Node
192.0.0.0/24 Router 2 16 192.0.0.1 Router 1 IF10
192.0.1.0/24 Router 1 0 192.0.1.1 Router 1 IF11
192.0.2.0/24 Router 4 3 192.0.1.2 Router 5 IF11
192.0.3.0/24 Router 5 1 192.0.1.2 Router 5 IF11
192.0.4.0/24 Router 3 2 192.0.1.2 Router 5 IF11
We used OSPF’s interface cost parameters to change the cost of each interface in order to
investigate the effects on the routing table.
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Figure 4.1: Simple Ring Topology including link costs
Below is Router 1’s routing table at 350 seconds using OSPF. The metric displayed in the third
column is the interface cost we implemented. As expected, when the link from Router 1 to
Router 2 fails, packets are all routed to their destination through Router 5.
Table 4.2: OSPF Routing Table

Destination Destination Metric Next Hop Address Next Hop Node Outgoing Interface
Node
192.0.1.0/24 Router 5 4 192.0.1.0 Router 1 IF11
192.0.2.0/24 Router 2 21 192.0.1.2 Router 5 IF11
192.0.3.0/24 Router 4 6 192.0.1.2 Router 5 IF11
192.0.4.0/24 Router 3 11 192.0.1.2 Router 5 IF11
Below is the equivalent EIGRP routing table. The metric in the third column is calculated by the
protocol. It is calculated using the following formula which is valid when coefficient K5=0:
𝐾2 ∗ 𝑏𝑎𝑛𝑑𝑤𝑖𝑑𝑡ℎ
Metric = K1 ∗ bandwidth + + K3 ∗ delay
256 − 𝑙𝑜𝑎𝑑
Our default values are K1=K3=1, K2=K4=K5=0 and bandwidth = 1.544 Mbps. This simplifies
to
10!
Metric = 256 × + 𝑑𝑒𝑙𝑎𝑦𝑠
𝑀𝑖𝑛𝑖𝑚𝑢𝑚 𝐵𝑎𝑛𝑑𝑤𝑖𝑑𝑡ℎ
where minimum bandwidth is in Kbps and delay is in 𝜇𝑠𝑒𝑐. The metric from Router 1 to Router
5 is calculated as follows:
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10!
Metric = 256 × + 2000 (𝜇sec ) = 2170031
1544 (𝐾𝑏𝑝𝑠)
This value is approximately equal to the metric in the table below. Additionally, the table
includes successor’s metric, which is the metric from the router’s neighbor closest to the
destination.
Table 4.3: EIGRP Routing Table
Destination Destination Metric/Successor's Next Hop Next Outgoing Delay
Node Metric Address Hop Interface (msec)
Node
192.0.1.0/24 Router 5 2169856/0 192.0.1.1 Router 1 IF11 20.00
192.0.2.0/24 Router 2 3705856/3193856 192.0.1.2 Router 5 IF11 80.00
192.0.3.0/24 Router 4 2681856/2169856 192.0.1.2 Router 5 IF11 40.00
192.0.4.0/24 Router 3 3193856/2681856 192.0.1.2 Router 5 IF11 60.00
4.2 Performance Results
4.2.1 Small Ring Topology
Figure 4.2 shows the router traffic sent in bits/sec of the three protocols in a small ring network.
From the graph of routing traffic sent we observe that EIGRP has the highest bandwidth
efficiency while RIP has the lowest. It should be noted that OSPF has better bandwidth
efficiency than EIGRP when there are no new routers added. OSPF has the highest initial peak
because the routers must first map out the network before choosing a path. This requires routers
to distribute a significant amount of information initially.
Figure 4.2: Routing Traffic Sent in bits/sec for Small Ring
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The figure below shows the convergence activity of each protocol. The first, second, and third
peaks represents the initial setup, the link failure at 300 seconds, and link recovery at 480
seconds. The width of each peak represents the convergence duration. The longer a protocol
takes to converge, the wider the peak will be. From these results we observe that EIGRP has the
fastest convergence in all the stages while OSPF has a faster convergence time than RIP during a
link-failure.
Figure 4.3: Convergence Activity for Small Ring
The table below displays the approximate convergence durations, including initial convergence,
convergence after link failure and convergence after link recovery. From this table it is clear that
OSPF is much quicker at detecting and recovering from a link failure than it is at realizing
convergence initially and after link recovery.
Table 4.4: Convergence durations (seconds) of small ring topology

RIP OSPF EIGRP
Initial Convergence 4 15 < 1
Link Failure 10 5 <1
Link Recovery 5 15 <1
4.2.2 Small Mesh Topology
The traffic sent and convergence results of the small mesh are shown in figures 4.4 and 4.5
respectively. Similarly to the results in the small ring topology, the first, second, and third peak
represents the initial setup, link-failure, and link recovery in the network. Looking at the traffic
sent results we can see the throughput has increased for each protocol due to the increase of
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neighbor routers, but in comparison to the small ring the bandwidth efficiency (the amount of
routing traffic sent within the network topology) has not changed.
Figure 4.4: Routing Traffic Sent in bits/sec for Small Mesh
However, the convergence results shown below are different; while EIGRP is still the fastest,
RIP now has faster convergence times than OSPF at all three peaks. RIP is unseen in this graph
as it overlaps with EIGRP during the first and third peak, and OSPF during the second peak.
Figure 4.5: Convergence Activity for Small Mesh
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The table below confirms that RIP has surprisingly fast convergence times. This behavior is
contradictory to that we expected, as OSPF should be significantly faster than RIP. We attribute
this discrepancy to the unrealistic network topology, and that the OSPF parameters have not been
set to optimal for the protocol to perform at its “best”. Because each destination in this topology
is only one hop away, RIP is able to easily find its destination. In contrast, OSPF must first map
out the entire network even though for this topology, it suffices to only having knowledge of
neighbor routers.
Table 4.5: Convergence durations (seconds) of small mesh topology
RIP OSPF EIGRP
Initial Convergence <1 15 < 1
Link Failure 4 5 <1
Link Recovery 1.5 15 <1
4.2.3 Large Mesh Topology
Figure 4.6 and Figure 4.7 shows the traffic sent and convergence results of the large mesh
network. The traffic sent results show that the traffic of all the protocols increasing substantially;
however, EIGRP’s and OSPF’s bandwidth efficiency is significantly superior to that of RIP, with
peaks of 1Mbps every 30 seconds.
Figure 4.6: Routing Traffic Sent in bits/sec for Large Mesh
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Looking at the convergence results we can see OSPF’s and RIP’s convergence time increase
while EIGRP remains the fastest. It should also be noted that OSPF’s convergence time is faster
than RIP, as expected in a realistic topology.
Figure 4.7: Convergence Activity for Large Mesh
Table 4.6 shows that RIP has very slow convergence of around 45 seconds in a large network.
Also, note that OSPF converges 3 times faster upon link failure than it does upon initial
convergence and link recovery. This is due to the prompt LSA’s and the LSA driven SPF
calculations. It should also be noted that even though the network size has significantly
increased, EIGRP has convergence times approximately equal to those of smaller topologies.
Table 4.6: Convergence durations (seconds) of large mesh topology

RIP OSPF EIGRP
Link Failure 45 5 <1
4.2.4 Large Tree Topology
Routing traffic sent for the large tree topology is shown in Figure 4.8. Again, we observe that
RIP wastes bandwidth with 1.3 Mbps peaks of traffic every 30 seconds. Both OSPF and EIGRP
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utilize the bandwidth more efficiently. However, OSPF has a much larger initial peak of traffic
than EIGRP, at approximately 3.5 Mbps compared to 1 Mbps. This is due to OSPF being a link-
state algorithm, which requires it to map out the entire network.
Figure 4.8: Routing Traffic Sent in bits/sec for Large Tree
Below we see the convergence activity of each protocol in the large tree configuration. In
comparison with the large mesh topology, convergence occurs more quickly in this topology
with the exception of EIGRP, whose convergence is fairly constant.
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Figure 4.9: Convergence Activity for Large Tree
The table below displays the approximate convergence durations of each protocol. The
difference between RIP and OSPF are not as radical as those of the large mesh topology. We
expect OSPF to be much faster than RIP in a large topology at each convergence event. For this
reason, we believe that our large mesh results are more accurate than the results shown here.
Table 4.7: Convergence durations (seconds) of large tree topology

RIP OSPF EIGRP
Link Failure 7.5 5 <1
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5 Discussion
5.1 Analysis
Based on our results, EIGRP had the best convergence time and bandwidth efficiency for all
scenarios. As for RIP, its initial convergence performance was better than OSPF for small
topologies, but its bandwidth efficiency was the lowest for all scenarios. We expected RIP to
have the lowest bandwidth efficiency, as it requires full periodic updates while OSPF and EIGRP
do not. It should also be noted that OSPF had a better convergence time for small ring topologies
after a link failure. This result makes sense, because like EIGRP, OSPF has an early detection
mechanism for changes in the network. OSPF’s overall convergence time and bandwidth
efficiency, they stayed constant for both small topologies.
Our results for the large mesh were most accurate according to our expected results. In this
scenario, EIGRP remained the fastest while OSPF converged sooner than RIP at each
convergence event. In comparison, our large tree topologies resulted in much smaller
convergence durations. Furthermore, RIP and OSPF had very similar convergence times, which
is not accurate in a large topology.
In conclusion, EIGRP is the best routing protocol because it has the best convergence and
bandwidth efficiency in all the scenarios. Comparing OSPF and RIP, the former is better for
large topologies as confirmed by our large mesh topology, while the latter is only suitable for
small networks.
5.2 Improvements and Future Work
The only varying parameter in our analysis, other than routing protocol of course, was the size of
the network topology. Improvement or future works for this project can include adding metrics
on interfaces such as cost, bandwidth, distance, Bit Error Rate (BER), and delay. Furthermore,
various network topologies (in terms of size, routers and links used) can be implemented for
comparison of performance between these routing protocols. Since OSPF is the most complex
routing protocol, more time could be spent on analyzing it to find the value of parameters that
need to be set in order for it to perform optimally. Another possibility is to implement real
network topologies used, perhaps in a university campus a company office, or a larger network
24

size while also modifying the network parameters, such as interfaces, to those of the actual
scenario being analyzed.
5.3 Difficulties and Solutions
We initially started our project with a topic on LTE technology, so a lot of time and research was
spent into its development. However, due to the uncertainty of obtaining an OPNET LTE
license we changed our project’s topic to routing protocols. Since routing protocols have been
popular areas of research for some time, implementation of the routing protocols on OPNET was
straightforward. The main challenge of this project lied in understanding the protocol parameters,
and how they affected the simulation results. Another challenge was in understanding the routing
tables we obtained, as well as the convergence times and how they were influenced by the
network topology.
25

6. Conclusion
In this project, we used OPNET as our tool to analyze and compare the performance of three
routing protocols commonly used in today’s networks: RIP, OSPF, and EIGRP. We initially
implemented a simple ring topology and a simple mesh topology to examine the performance of
each routing protocol in simple scenarios, as well as the routing tables of the small ring. Next, we
implemented a large mesh topology and a large tree topology, while holding all other protocol
and simulation parameters the equal to those of previous simulations in order to compare the
routing performances in a larger and more complicated network.
We first examined the routing tables of the small ring topology to gain a better understanding of
each routing protocol’s metric calculations and path routing systems. In order to be able to
compare the performance of the protocols, we collected convergence and routing traffic sent
statistics. Our simulation results confirmed that EIGRP has the fastest convergence for all
network topologies. We also observed that EIGRP and OSPF both efficiently utilize the
bandwidth, as we expected from our research. On the other hand, RIP sends full routing
information through periodic updates, which floods the network and unnecessarily wastes
bandwidth. Our large mesh topology also proved that RIP converges very slowly and is therefore
only suitable for small networks.
In conclusion, our simulations confirmed that EIGRP is the best choice for all network
topologies implemented as it has a fast convergence, while also efficiently utilizing bandwidth.
OSPF is the second choice for large networks, as established by our large mesh results. RIP
performs poorly in large networks and is therefore limited to small, simple networks.
26

References
[1] B. Wu. “Simulation Based Performance Analyses on RIPv2, EIGRP, and OSPF Using
OPNET.” Internet:
http://digitalcommons.uncfsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1011&context=macsc_wp, Aug.
20, 2011, [Mar. 15, 2013]
[2] D. Xu. “OSPF, EIGRP, and RIP performance analysis based on OPNET.” Internet:
www.sfu.ca/~donx, [Mar. 15, 2013].
[3] J. Varsalone, in Cisco CCNA/CCENT Exam 640-802, 640-822, 640-816 preparation kit
[electronic resource] : with Cisco router simulations, Rockland, Mass. : Syngress ; Oxford:
Elsevier Science, 2009.
[4] U.D. Black, in IP routing protocols : RIP, OSPF, BGP, PNNI, and Cisco routing protocols,
Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 2000.
[5] M.K. Denko, in Mobile opportunistic networks : architectures, protocols and applications,
Boca Raton: CRC Press, 2011.
[6] D. Medhi & K. Ramasamy, in Network routing : algorithms, protocols, and architectures,
Amsterdam ; Boston : Elsevier: Morgan Kaufmann Publishers, 2007.
27

Appendix A: List of Acronyms

AS: Autonomous System
BER: Bit Error Rate
BGP: Border Gateway Protocol
DES: Discrete Event Simulation
DUA: Diffusing Update Algorithm
EGP: Exterior Gateway Protocol
EIGRP: Interior Gateway Routing Protocol
IGP: Interior Gateway Protocol
IP: Internet Protocol
LSA: Link State Advertisement
OSPF: Open Shortest Path First
RIP: Routing Information Protocol
SPF: Shortest Path First
UDP: User Datagram Protocol
28

Appendix B: Work on LTE
Analysis of Quality of Service of Video Streaming over LTE
Abstract
Long Term Evolution (LTE) is an IP based technology that has quickly become a leading global
standard for 4G cellular networks. In order to keep up with traffic growth demands, the 3GPP
(Third Generation Partnership Project) developed LTE technology with the goal of increasing
capabilities and system performance, while reducing network complexity and minimizing costs.
This technology improves quality of service and minimizes latency using a packet-switched
approach. LTE's increased data rate makes high-resolution video streaming possible. The focus
of this project will be to simulate LTE video traffic patterns using Opnet. Furthermore, we will
analyze the simulation results, evaluate Quality of Service (QoS) and compare performance with
current industry standards.
References
[1] G. A. Abed, M. Ismail, and K. Jumari, "Traffic Modeling of LTE Mobile Broadband
Network Based on NS-2 Simulator," Computational Intelligence, Communication Systems and
Networks (CICSyN), 2011 Third International Conference on, 2011, pp. 120-125.
[2] M. Sauter, From GSM to LTE: An Introduction to Mobile Networks and Mobile Broadband.
Wiley, 2011, pp. 205-276.
[3] A. Kulkarni, M. Heindlmaier, D. Traskov, M. Montpetit, and M. Medard, An Implementation
of Network Coding with Association Policies in Heterogeneous Networks. in Proc.
NETWORKING Workshops, 2011, pp.110-118.
[4] A Ghosh, J Zhang, JG Andrews, R Muhamed, Fundamentals of LTE. Boston, MA: Prentice-
Hall, 2010.
[5] F. Khan, "LTE performance verification", in LTE for 4G Mobile Broadband: Air Interface
Technologies and Performance. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2009, pp. 468-487.
[6] E. Dahlman, S. Parkvall, J. Skold, P. Beming,3G Evolution - HSPA and LTE for Mobile
Broadband. 2nd ed. Elsevier Ltd. 2008.
29

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List of Tables ........................................................................................................................................... 3

List of Figures ......................................................................................................................................... 3

References .............................................................................................................................................. 27

Appendix A: List of Acronyms ......................................................................................................... 28

Appendix B: Work on LTE ............................................................................................................... 29

Table 3.1: RIP Parameters

Figure 1.1: Hierarchy Chart of Routing Protocols

Dynamic Routing RIP

Figure 1.1: Hierarchy Chart of Routing Protocols

2.1 Routing Information Protocol (RIP):

2.2 Open Shortest Path First (OSPF)

2.3 Enhanced Interior Gateway Routing Protocol (EIGRP)

3.1 Network Topologies

3.1.1 Small Ring Topology

Figure 3.1: Simple Ring Topology

3.1.2 Small Mesh Topology

Figure 3.2: Simple Mesh Topology

3.1.3 Large Mesh Topology

Figure 3.3: Large Mesh Topology

3.1.4 Large Tree Topology

3.2 Simulation Parameters & Collected Statistics

3.3 Routing Protocol Parameters

3.3.1 RIP Parameters

Table 3.1 RIP Parameters

3.3.2 OSPF Parameters

Table 3.2 OSPF Parameters

3.3.3 EIGRP Parameters

Table 3.3 EIGRP Parameters

4.1 Routing Tables

Table 4.1: RIP Routing Table

Figure 4.1: Simple Ring Topology including link costs

Table 4.2: OSPF Routing Table

4.2 Performance Results

4.2.1 Small Ring Topology

Figure 4.2: Routing Traffic Sent in bits/sec for Small Ring

Figure 4.3: Convergence Activity for Small Ring

Table 4.4: Convergence durations (seconds) of small ring topology

4.2.2 Small Mesh Topology

Figure 4.4: Routing Traffic Sent in bits/sec for Small Mesh

Figure 4.5: Convergence Activity for Small Mesh

4.2.3 Large Mesh Topology

Figure 4.6: Routing Traffic Sent in bits/sec for Large Mesh

Figure 4.7: Convergence Activity for Large Mesh

Table 4.6: Convergence durations (seconds) of large mesh topology

4.2.4 Large Tree Topology

Figure 4.8: Routing Traffic Sent in bits/sec for Large Tree

Figure 4.9: Convergence Activity for Large Tree

Table 4.7: Convergence durations (seconds) of large tree topology

5.2 Improvements and Future Work

5.3 Difficulties and Solutions

Appendix A: List of Acronyms

Appendix B: Work on LTE

Analysis of Quality of Service of Video Streaming over LTE

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ENSC427-‐