IP Routing: OSPF Configuration Guide, Cisco IOS Release 15S
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The OSPF Shortest Path First Throttling feature makes it possible to configure SPF scheduling in millisecond intervals and
to potentially delay shortest path first (SPF) calculations during network instability. SPF is scheduled to calculate the
Shortest Path Tree (SPT) when there is a change in topology. One SPF run may include multiple topology change events.
The interval at which the SPF calculations occur is chosen dynamically and is based on the frequency of topology changes in
the network. The chosen interval is within the boundary of the user-specified value ranges. If network topology is unstable,
SPF throttling calculates SPF scheduling intervals to be longer until topology becomes stable.
Feature Specifications for OSPF Shortest Path First Throttling
Feature History
Release
Modification
12.2(14)S
This feature was introduced.
12.0(23)S
This feature was integrated into Cisco Release 12.0(23)S.
12.2(15)T
This feature was integrated into Cisco IOS Release 12.2(15)T.
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Information About OSPF SPF Throttling
Shortest Path First Calculations
SPF calculations occur at the interval set by the
timers throttle spf command. The wait interval indicates the amount of time to wait until the next SPF calculation occurs. Each wait interval
after that calculation is twice as long as the previous one until the wait interval reaches the maximum wait time specified.
The SPF timing can be better explained using an example. In this example the start interval is set at 5 milliseconds (ms),
the wait interval at 1000 milliseconds, and the maximum wait time is set at 90,000 milliseconds.
timers throttle spf 5 1000 90000
The figure below shows the intervals at which the SPF calculations occur so long as at least one topology change event is
received in a given wait interval.
Figure 1. SPF Calculation Intervals Set by the timers throttle spf Command
Notice that the wait interval between SPF calculations doubles when at least one topology change event is received during
the previous wait interval. Once the maximum wait time is reached, the wait interval remains the same until the topology stabilizes
and no event is received in that interval.
If the first topology change event is received after the current wait interval, the SPF calculation is delayed by the amount
of time specified as the start interval. The subsequent wait intervals continue to follow the dynamic pattern.
If the first topology change event occurs after the maximum wait interval begins, the SPF calculation is again scheduled
at the start interval and subsequent wait intervals are reset according the parameters specified in thetimers throttle spf command. Notice in the figure below that a topology change event was received after the start of the maximum wait time interval
and that the SPF intervals have been reset.
Figure 2. Timer Intervals Reset after Topology Change Event
How to Configure OSPF SPF Throttling
Configuring OSPF SPF Throttling
SUMMARY STEPS
enable
configure terminal
interface typeslot/ port
ip address ip-addressmask [secondary]
exit
router ospf process-id
network network-number [mask | prefix-length]
timers throttle spf spf-startspf-holdspf-max-wait
end
DETAILED STEPS
Command or Action
Purpose
Step 1
enable
Example:
Router> enable
Enables higher privilege levels, such as privileged EXEC mode.
Enter your password if prompted.
Step 2
configure terminal
Example:
Router# configure terminal
Enters global configuration mode.
Step 3
interface typeslot/ port
Example:
Router(config)# interface ethernet 1/1/1
Enters interface configuration mode for the interface specified.
Step 4
ip address ip-addressmask [secondary]
Example:
Router(config-if)# ip address 192.168.0.2 255.255.255.0
Sets a primary or secondary IP address for an interface.
Step 5
exit
Example:
router# exit
Exits interface configuration mode.
Step 6
router ospf process-id
Example:
Router(config)# router ospf 1
Configures an OSPF routing process.
Step 7
network network-number [mask | prefix-length]
Example:
Router(config-router)# network 192.168.0.0 0.0.255.255 area 0
Configures the subnet number and mask for a Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) address pool on a Cisco IOS DHCP Server.
To verify SPF throttle timer values, use the
show ip ospf command. The values are displayed in the lines that begin, "Initial SPF schedule delay...," "Minimum hold time between two
consecutive SPFs...," and "Maximum wait time between two consecutive SPFs...."
Router# show ip ospf
Routing Process "ospf 1" with ID 10.10.10.2 and Domain ID 0.0.0.1
Supports only single TOS(TOS0) routes
Supports opaque LSA
It is an autonomous system boundary router
Redistributing External Routes from,
static, includes subnets in redistribution
Initial SPF schedule delay 5 msecs
Minimum hold time between two consecutive SPFs 1000 msecs
Maximum wait time between two consecutive SPFs 90000 msecs
Minimum LSA interval 5 secs. Minimum LSA arrival 1 secs
LSA group pacing timer 240 secs
Interface flood pacing timer 33 msecs
Retransmission pacing timer 66 msecs
Number of external LSA 4. Checksum Sum 0x17445
Number of opaque AS LSA 0. Checksum Sum 0x0
Number of DCbitless external and opaque AS LSA 0
Number of DoNotAge external and opaque AS LSA 0
Number of areas in this router is 1. 1 normal 0 stub 0 nssa
External flood list length 0
Area BACKBONE(0)
Number of interfaces in this area is 2
Area has no authentication
SPF algorithm last executed 19:11:15.140 ago
SPF algorithm executed 28 times
Area ranges are
Number of LSA 4. Checksum Sum 0x2C1D4
Number of opaque link LSA 0. Checksum Sum 0x0
Number of DCbitless LSA 0
Number of indication LSA 0
Number of DoNotAge LSA 0
Flood list length 0
The table below describes the
show ip ospf display fields and their descriptions.
Table 1. show ip ospf Field Descriptions
Field
Description
Routing process "ospf 201" with ID 192.42.110.200
Process ID and OSPF router ID.
Supports ...
Number of types of service supported (Type 0 only).
It is ...
Possible types are internal, area border, or autonomous system boundary.
Summary Link update interval
Specifies summary update interval in hours:minutes:seconds, and time until next update.
External Link update interval
Specifies external update interval in hours:minutes:seconds, and time until next update.
Redistributing External Routes from
Lists of redistributed routes, by protocol.
SPF calculations
Lists start, hold, and maximum wait interval values in milliseconds.
Number of areas
Number of areas in router, area addresses, and so on.
SPF algorithm last executed
Shows the last time an SPF calculation was performed in response to topology change event records.
Link State Update Interval
Specifies router and network link-state update interval in hours:minutes:seconds, and time until next update.
Link State Age Interval
Specifies max-aged update deletion interval, and time until next database cleanup, in hours:minutes:seconds.
Configuration Examples for OSPF SPF Throttling
Throttle Timers Example
This example shows a router configured with the start, hold, and maximum interval values for the timers throttle spf command set at 5, 1,000, and 90,000 milliseconds, respectively.
No new or modified standards are supported by this feature, and support for existing standards has not been modified by this
feature.
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