The Configuration Partitioning feature is the latest in a series of Configuration Generation Performance Enhancement Features
for Cisco IOS software. (See the “Related Documents” section for related features.) This feature improves the system’s response
time by providing a method for querying only the system component you wish to review when issuing the
show running-config command.
When the Configuration Partitioning feature is enabled, the system groups the configuration state of the device into parts
(called “partitions”) for the purpose of generating the virtual running configuration file (the list of configuration commands).
A new command,
show running-config partition , allows you to display only the part of the running configuration that you want to examine, rather than having to display
the entire running configuration at once, or displaying only lines that match a certain string.
The key benefit of this feature is that it increases system performance by allowing the system to run the NVGEN process for
only the collection of system components (such as specific interfaces) that you need to display. This is in contrast to other
existing extensions to the
show running-config command, which only filter the generated list after all system components have been processed.
The selective processing of the system’s configuration state for the purpose of generating a partial running configuration
is called “configuration partitioning.”
More granular access to configuration information offers important performance benefits for high-end routing platforms with
very large configuration files, while also enhancing configuration management by allowing advanced configuration features
to be implemented at a more granular level. Advanced configuration options include Cisco IOS software support for provisioning
of customer services, Config Rollback, Config Locking, and configuration access control.