RIP Overview
RIP uses User Datagram Protocol (UDP) data packets to exchange routing information in small internetworks. RIPv2 supports IPv. RIPv2 uses an optional authentication feature supported by the RIPv2 protocol (see the RIPv2 Authentication section).
RIP uses the following two message types:
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Request—Sent to the multicast address 224.0.0.9 to request route updates from other RIP-enabled routers.
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Response—Sent every 30 seconds by default (see the Verifying the RIP Configuration section). The router also sends response messages after it receives a request message. The response message contains the entire RIP route table. RIP sends multiple response packets for a request if the RIP routing table cannot fit in one response packet.
RIP uses a hop count for the routing metric. The hop count is the number of routers that a packet can traverse before reaching its destination. A directly connected network has a metric of 1. An unreachable network has a metric of 16. This small range of metrics makes RIP an unsuitable routing protocol for large networks.