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Routing & Switching · Intermediate

Routing Information Base (RIB)

The control-plane table holding the best routes chosen from all routing sources, used to build the forwarding table.

Definition

The RIB is populated by connected interfaces, static routes and routing protocols, each of which may offer candidate routes. The router selects one best route per prefix using administrative distance (or preference on Junos) and metric. The RIB is then used to program the FIB in the data plane.

Example

OSPF and EIGRP both offer 10.1.0.0/16; the RIB installs the EIGRP route because its AD of 90 beats OSPF's 110.

Exam tip

The RIB is control plane; the FIB is data plane. Questions often test which table is consulted when forwarding a packet (the FIB).

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