¿Qué es el enrutamiento por segmentos?

What is Segment Routing?

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Segment routing is a solution that provides complete control over forwarding routes by combining simple network instructions without any additional protocols.

Today, companies require a robust IT infrastructure that can meet operational demands. This has driven the growing adoption of infrastructure and software as a service. According to IDC data, this type of service has grown in Mexico by 30%.

Although there is a great need for IT solutions, these need to offer flexibility, responsiveness, and integration of new business processes.

Here, we will explain everything about segment routing.

How Does It Work?

Segment routing emerged in 2013 as a disruptive technology for service providers, web providers, and large companies. It emerged as an enabler for the transformation that every network must go through. In simple terms, it is a technology that simplifies network traffic engineering and management. In addition to this, it removes network state information from routers, and network nodes and places route state information in packet headers at the ingress node. Thus, it simplifies data transfer, creating an agile and flexible traffic engineering solution.

The main components of segment routing include:

  • Segment routing domain: A collection of nodes participating in the protocols. A node can run input, transit, or output procedures.
  • Routing route by segments: It is a list of ordered segments. It connects an ingress node of the segment router to an egress node of the segment router. It usually follows the least cost path from ingress to egress.
  • Segment routing: A forwarding instruction that allows a packet to pass through a section of the network topology.

Segment Routing Process

Here is how the service works: When a packet reaches the Segment Routing ingress node, it is subjected to policy. If the packet complies with the policies for a Segment Routing path, the routing ingress node encapsulates the packet in a Segment Routing tunnel. When a packet reaches the routing egress node, that node determines whether the packet is at the end of its route. If that is the case, the node removes the Segment Routing header information and forwards the packet based on its destination IP address.

This simplifies the network and reduces resource utilization, making it easier to manage and operate.

One important consideration is that Segment Routing uses MPLS or IPv6. At NGIN Services, we offer solutions for IPv6 with the development of the SRm6 solution. This reduces the size of SIDs in the SR header by using a smaller, compressed routing header, which mitigates the resource constraint issues seen in most IPv6 implementations.

Want to learn more about this solution? Contact us. We will be happy to help you.