OSPF flooding process optimization

In this paper we study the optimization of the OSPF flooding process. When the topology of the network changes the OSPF adapts the routing to the new situation by calculating the forwarding tables that are used to forward the data traffic in the network. Before the routing table calculations the new state information needs to be disseminated throughout the network by the OSPF flooding procedure. By minimizing the time used in the flooding we can decrease the convergence time of the network. We study how configuring the current OSPF implementations can decrease the duration of convergence period. In order to study the flooding process in detail a simulation model is build. Network design guidelines that lead to a stable operation and to a fast routing convergence are received as a result.