OSPF: A Network Routing Protocol

Learn how routers network using the OSPF (Open Shortest Path First) protocol and unpick Dijkstra’s Network Algorithm to see how OSPF performs the calculations to determine the shortest or most appropriate path between two routers. OSPF: A Network Routing Protocol dives deep into the OSPF protocol without sacrificing simplicity in language. All of this is done with running examples and illustrations to clarify concepts and enhance the enjoyment of networking.

OSPF: A Network Routing Protocol is an absorbing, comprehensible account of OSPF, including the algorithm which is used for calculating its routes. While OSPF has traditionally been an organizational networking protocol, in these exciting times of Software Defined Networking (SDN), it has assumed an important role in the consolidated data center too. Now that the traditional distinctions between server and network roles are getting blurred, everyone in the data center needs to become familiar with networking and networking protocols!

Table of Contents

Chapter 1: Six Degrees of Separation
Chapter 2: A LinkedIn User’s Professional Circles
Chapter 3: Router Physiology 101
Chapter 4: The OSI Model—Division of Labor
Chapter 5: The OSI Model—A Closer Look
Chapter 6: Network Addresses
Chapter 7: The Magnificent Internet Protocol
Chapter 8: A Router’s Got to Learn Its Routing Table …
Chapter 9: “Hello” Greetings from a Router
Chapter 10: Hello Again, Neighbor!
Chapter 11: The Master Table
Chapter 12: An Organizational Network
Chapter 13: The Secret of Routing Powers
Chapter 14: The Enterprise Network—Recognizing the Neighbors
Chapter 15: Splitting the Autonomous System into Areas
Chapter 16: Link State Advertisements
Chapter 17: The Enterprise Network–Neighborhood Activity
Chapter 18: OSPF Messages
Chapter 19: An Enterprise Network — Convergence of Data
Chapter 20: Dijkstra’s Algorithm — The First Look
Chapter 21: Dijkstra’s Algorithm — The Closest Look
Chapter 22: Bibliography