680  Routing Fundamentals

ImportantChapter Reorganized

This chapter has been split into focused sections for better learning. Please visit the Routing Fundamentals Overview for the complete chapter guide and navigation.

680.1 Quick Navigation

This comprehensive routing guide is now organized into six focused chapters:

680.1.1 Core Concepts

  1. Routing Basics (~3,500 words)
    • What is routing and why it matters
    • How routers work as packet directors
    • Router forwarding decisions
    • Beginner-friendly explanations with analogies
  2. Time-To-Live (TTL) (~1,750 words)
    • Preventing routing loops with TTL
    • IPv4 vs IPv6 packet headers
    • Using traceroute to visualize paths
    • TTL implications for IoT networks
  3. Routing Tables (~2,600 words)
    • Routing table structure and entries
    • Three types of routes: connected, static, dynamic
    • Routing protocols (RIP, OSPF, BGP)
    • Longest prefix matching

680.1.2 Advanced Topics

  1. Packet Switching (~2,300 words)
    • Packet switching in action
    • Metric-based path selection
    • Real-world LoRaWAN sensor data journey
    • Calculating optimal routes
  2. IoT Routing (~2,100 words)
    • IoT-specific routing challenges
    • Failure scenarios and what-if analysis
    • Seven common routing mistakes
    • RPL for low-power networks
  3. End-to-End Connectivity (~1,600 words)
    • End-to-end connectivity requirements
    • Worked examples: static routes and loop diagnosis
    • Complete routing fundamentals summary

680.2 Learning Objectives

By completing this routing fundamentals series, you will be able to:

  • Understand Routing: Explain how routing implements packet switching
  • Describe Router Function: Understand how routers make forwarding decisions
  • Configure Routing Tables: Work with routing table entries and next hops
  • Differentiate Route Types: Distinguish between connected, static, and dynamic routes
  • Apply TTL Concept: Understand how Time-To-Live prevents routing loops
  • Implement IoT Routing: Design routing for constrained IoT networks

680.3 Prerequisites

Before diving into this series, you should be familiar with:

  • Networking Basics: Understanding fundamental networking concepts including IP addressing, packet switching, and the TCP/IP stack
  • Layered Network Models: Knowledge of the OSI and TCP/IP models helps you understand where routing operates (Network Layer)

680.5 What’s Next

Begin your journey: Routing Fundamentals Overview

After completing the routing series, explore: