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From: dls@mentor.cc.purdue.edu (David L Stevens)
Newsgroups: comp.protocols.tcp-ip
Subject: Re: default routes in IP gateways
Message-ID: <6111@mentor.cc.purdue.edu>
Date: 22 Dec 89 15:44:42 GMT
References: <8912211854.aa21721@Obelix.TWG.COM>
Reply-To: dls@mentor.cc.purdue.edu (David L Stevens)
Organization: PUCC UNIX Group
Lines: 24


	Default routes aren't bad-- it's just the way you're using them!

	The "gateway-to-the-world" (GWTTW) needs to know all of the Internet
routes, but nothing on the local side has to; they can all have a trivial
routing table of a single default route pointing to the next closer local hop
to the GWTTW along with any backside nets or the like.

	In your example:

                      |
   A -- B -- C -- D --| great big wide world
                      |

	Give A, B and C the tiny routing table (using default routes for
everything to the right) and give D a full routing table with no default
route.
	No Internet bouncing and no big routing tables. Default routes
don't harm internets; people harm internets.

	Convenient, disposable, premoistened.

-- 
					+-DLS  (dls@mentor.cc.purdue.edu)