To simulate internal protocols (frequently referred to as Interior Gateway Protocols, or IGPs) using OPNET (Riverbed Modeler) has needs to contain setting up a network in an autonomous system (AS) in which protocols such as OSPF (Open Shortest Path First), RIP (Routing Information Protocol), and EIGRP (Enhanced Interior Gateway Routing Protocol) handle the routing. These protocols are enhanced for intra-domain routing that intending they are utilized in a single network or AS, not over several ASs. Following is a general procedure to replicate the internal protocols in OPNET:
Steps to Simulate Internal Protocols Projects in OPNET
- Define Project Objectives and Scope
- Specify the objectives: Find out what we target to learn like protocol convergence, routing efficiency, scalability, response to failures, or comparing diverse IGPs.
- Set performance metrics: Parameters comprise of convergence time, packet delivery ratio, routing overhead, end-to-end delay, and stability.
- Design the Network Topology
- Set up the network layout: Model a network along with routers, switches, servers, and end devices in a single AS using OPNET’s graphical interface. Associate the devices to mimic a realistic internal network.
- Define network segments: Allot IP address ranges to diverse subnets in the network making areas or segments, which routers will interrelate.
- Enable and Configure an IGP on Routers
- Select and configure the IGP:
- Select one or more IGP protocols like RIP, OSPF, or EIGRP. Set up each router within the network using the chosen protocol.
- Protocol-specific settings:
- RIP:
- Update Interval: Configure the update interval for periodic updates (default is 30 seconds).
- Hop Count Limit: RIP includes a maximum hop count of 15, outside which routes are deliberated inaccessible.
- Timers: Set up invalidation, hold-down, and garbage collection timers to manage the updates and route aging.
- OSPF:
- Area Designation: Describe the areas like backbone area 0 and other areas and then allocate the routers to areas to replicate OSPF’s hierarchical structure.
- Hello and Dead Intervals: For Hello packets and dead timers, set intervals to handle the neighbor discovery and link status.
- Link Cost: Change link cost values to replicate the preferred paths for routing.
- EIGRP:
- AS Number: Set the autonomous system (AS) number, which every EIGRP router in the network should be utilized.
- Hello and Hold Timers: Set up Hello intervals and hold timers to handle the neighbor relationships and link failure detection.
- K-Values: Modify K-values to manage the EIGRP’s composite parameter calculation according to the factors such as bandwidth, delay, load, and reliability.
- RIP:
- Simulate Application Traffic
- Generate application-specific traffic: Make numerous data flows such as HTTP, FTP, VoIP over the network, which replicating the real-world traffic utilizing OPNET’s traffic generators.
- Define communication pairs: Set up source-destination pairs in diverse subnets to analyze on how the IGP protocol manages the routing over the network.
- Monitor Routing Table Updates and Protocol Behavior
- Observe routing updates:
- For RIP, observe the periodic routing updates as routers distribute its routing tables.
- For OSPF, monitor the exchange of Hello, Link State Advertisement (LSA), and Database Description (DBD) packets to sustain the link-state data over areas.
- Observe Hello packets for neighbor discovery and the Diffusing Update Algorithm (DUAL) process for route computation and convergence for EIGRP.
- Track routing table stability:
- Observe the routing table entries for each router to monitor the stability and responsiveness to modify within network topology.
- Simulate Network Events and Observe Protocol Response
- Simulate link failures:
- Detach certain links replicating the failures. Monitor how each protocol manages the route recalculation and convergence.
- For OSPF, observe LSAs generated within response to a link failure, then for EIGRP, monitor DUAL’s route recomputation.
- Router failures:
- Temporarily inactivate particular routers replicating router failures. Assess the convergence time as the remaining routers modify its tables.
- Increase network load:
- Add more traffic flows to test protocol resilience under high load, observing the effects on routing stability and protocol overhead.
- Network scalability:
- Enlarge the network with additional routers and subnets to experiment the protocol scalability, observing effects on convergence time and routing overhead.
- Collect and Analyze Performance Metrics
- Packet Delivery Ratio: Compute the percentage of packets effectively delivered that shows routing reliability.
- End-to-End Delay: Assesse the duration for packets to attain its destination, which indicating the efficiency of the protocol in path selection.
- Routing Overhead: Monitor the bandwidth used by control messages like updates, Hello packets, LSAs, which displaying the protocol efficiency.
- Convergence Time: Calculate the duration for every router to stabilize its routing tables after a topology change.
- Hop Count and Path Efficiency: Estimate the selected paths to observe if routes are optimal such as hop count and link cost.
- Optimize Protocol Parameters and Experiment with Configurations (Optional)
- Modify protocol timers:
- Change the Hello and Dead intervals, or set up diverse area designs to learn its influence on convergence and overhead for OSPF.
- For EIGRP, alter K-values and Hello intervals monitoring how path selection and responsiveness modify.
- Experiment with network density:
- Maximizes the amount of nodes or routers in each subnet to estimate the scalability and how each protocol handles larger routing tables.
- Adjust link costs (OSPF and EIGRP): Test with distinct link costs to observe how paths are impacted which mimicking traffic engineering situations.
- Generate Reports and Document Findings
- Visualization: Generate graphs and charts are indicating parameters such as convergence time, packet delivery ratio, routing overhead, and delay using OPNET’s data analysis tools.
- Summarize Observations: Record the protocol behavior under diverse conditions, observing how protocols manage the dynamic topology changes, scalability, and efficiency.
We’ve outlined stepwise methods for replicating and examining the Internal Protocols projects using OPNET. We will add further details relevant to this subject, if required.
Our knowledge encompasses OSPF (Open Shortest Path First), RIP (Routing Information Protocol), and EIGRP (Enhanced Interior Gateway Routing Protocol). Connect with phdprime.com, where our committed team is ready to help you reach the best results. We also provide a variety of project topics customized to your interests. Our focus is on Internal Protocols Projects utilizing the OPNET tool; just share your project details with us, and we will make sure you get top-notch support.
