Operation Manual – IPv4 RoutingH3C S5500-EI Series Ethernet Switches Chapter 2 RIP Configuration2-1Chapter 2 RIP ConfigurationNote:z The term “router” in this document refers to a router in a generic sense or a Layer 3switch.z The S5500-EI series only support single RIP process.When configuring RIP, go to these sections for information you are interested in:z RIP Overviewz Configuring RIP Basic Functionsz Configuring RIP Route Controlz Configuring RIP Network Optimizationz Displaying and Maintaining RIPz RIP Configuration Examplesz Troubleshooting RIP2.1 RIP OverviewRIP is a simple Interior Gateway Protocol (IGP), mainly used in small-sized networks,such as academic networks and simple LANs. RIP is not applicable to complexnetworks.RIP is still widely used in practical networking due to easier implementation,configuration and maintenance than OSPF and IS-IS.2.1.1 RIP Working MechanismI. Basic conceptsRIP is a distance vector routing protocol, using UDP packets for exchanginginformation through port 520.RIP uses a hop count to measure the distance to a destination. The hop count is knownas the metric. The hop count from a router to a directly connected network is 0. The hopcount from one router to a directly connected router is 1. To limit convergence time, therange of RIP metric value is from 0 to 15. A metric value of 16 (or bigger) is consideredinfinite, which means the destination network is unreachable. That is why RIP is notsuitable for large-scaled networks.
