Computer Networking Questions and Understandings

Question

(a) Suppose you connect two unconnected nodes with a new link. Does the link cost between the

two nodes increase or decrease?

(b) Will the count-to-infinity problem occur if we decrease the cost of a link?

Answer 1

(a) When you connect two unconnected nodes with a new link, the cost between them decreases. Initially, the nodes had no direct connection, so the price was infinite. Adding a link provides a direct path between them, reducing the cost of communication.

(b) The count-to-infinity problem occurs in distance-vector routing protocols when there's a routing loop, and routers keep updating their distance estimates to infinity and back. Decreasing the cost of a link could exacerbate this problem if it leads to a routing loop. However, simply reducing the cost of a link may not directly trigger the count-to-infinity problem. It's more about how the change in price affects the routing table updates and whether it leads to incorrect distance estimations that perpetuate routing loops.