Learning Log 6 (Weeks 11 & 12)

It's been a while since we have started the first term as strangers to this new place we call 'Networking'. Days, weeks, even months have passed and so are the things we used to do. We started from the very bottom, and now, we are at the verge of concluding this subject with only one lecture remaining on hand. After thirteen weeks, we have learn several networking concepts from topologies, network architecture components, domains, network devices, protocols etc. For the final round, here comes RIP (Routing Information Protocol) to close in the regulation. Basically, it is a protocol that exchanges information between network devices within a network. It uses hop count as a routing metric. This refers to the number of devices that the information will travel through before it reaches its final destination. Generally, higher hop count results to slower performance. Also, RIP uses different timers namely: Update, Hold-down, Flush and Timeout. By default, update timers lasts for 30 seconds. Invalid or timeout timers indicates how long the information can be retained in the routing table without being updated. It is set to 180 seconds or 3 minutes by default. The flush timer on the other hand specifies the time between when the information is marked as invalidated or unreachable and when it will be subjected to removal. It is set to 240 seconds or 4 minutes which is 1 minute longer than the invalid timers. Lastly, for Hold-down timers, it blocks any updating in order to give way towards stabilizing the router. Normally, it is set to 180 seconds or 3 minutes.

Learning Log 5 (Weeks 9 & 10)

Everything that was recently discussed has been all about routing, its basic concepts, principles and its classifications. As far as we have learned and understand from the lecture, there are mainly two type of routing: the static routing and the dynamic routing. If you were to know the meaning of static and dynamic, then the concpet should be much easier to grasp because it is actually self-explanatory. Static means some sort of stationary, still, constant or to be simple; not changing. Static routing is highly implemented and recommended if a network uses only one ISP (Internet Service Provider) to be able to connect to the internet. On the other hand, dynamic means not still, inconsistent, changing.
Dynamic routing lives up to its name by discovering networks, updating (can also be referred to as changing) and maintaining routing tables.  See how it is easy to comprehend, am I right with that? I really hope that each and every one of these would be easy as the word itself. However, the latter parts would prove as one of the greatest calamities of the second age. Stay tuned and stay alive for the next chapters of ROUTING.