Implementing Static Routes

Static routes are user-defined routes that cause packets moving between a source and a destination to take a
specified path. Static routes can be important if the software cannot build a route to a particular destination.
They are useful for specifying a gateway of last resort to which all unroutable packets are sent.
References for Static Routes, on page 7 provides additional conceptual information on static routes.
This module describes how to implement static routes.
• Restrictions for Implementing Static Routes, on page 1
• Configure Static Route, on page 1
• Floating Static Routes , on page 3
• Change Maximum Number of Allowable Static Routes, on page 5
• Default VRF, on page 6
• References for Static Routes, on page 7
• IPv4 Multicast Static Routes, on page 9

Restrictions for Implementing Static Routes

These restrictions apply while implementing Static Routes:
• Static routing to an indirect next hop, (any prefix learnt through the RIB and may be more specific over
the AIB), that is part of a local subnet requires configuring static routes in the global table indicating the
egress interfaces as next hop. To avoid forward drop, configure static routes in the global table indicating
the next-hop IP address to be the next hop.
• Generally, a route is learnt from the AIB in the global table and is installed in the FIB. However, this
behavior will not be replicated to leaked prefixes. This could lead to inconsistencies in forwarding
behavior.

Configure Static Route

Static routes are entirely user configurable and can point to a next-hop interface, next-hop IP address, or both.
In the software, if an interface was specified, then the static route is installed in the Routing Information Base
(RIB) if the interface is reachable. If an interface was not specified, the route is installed if the next-hop address
is reachable. The only exception to this configuration is when a static route is configured with the permanent
attribute, in which case it is installed in RIB regardless of reachability.

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Configure Static Route

This task explains how to configure a static route.

SUMMARY STEPS
1. configure
2. router static
3. vrf vrf-name
4. address-family { ipv4 | ipv6 } { unicast | multicast }
5. prefix mask [vrf vrf-name ] { ip-address | interface-type interface-instance } [ distance ] [ description
text ] [ tag tag ] [ permanent ]
6. Use the commit or end command.

DETAILED STEPS

Step 1 configure
Example:

RP/0/RP0/CPU0:router# configure

Enters mode.

Step 2 router static

Example:

RP/0/RP0/CPU0:router(config)# router static

Enters static route configuration mode.

Step 3 vrf vrf-name

Example:

RP/0/RP0/CPU0:router(config-static)# vrf vrf_A

(Optional) Enters VRF configuration mode.

If a VRF is not specified, the static route is configured under the default VRF.

Step 4 address-family { ipv4 | ipv6 } { unicast | multicast }

Example:

RP/0/RP0/CPU0:router(config-static-vrf)# address-family ipv4 unicast

Enters address family mode.

Step 5 prefix mask [vrf vrf-name ] { ip-address | interface-type interface-instance } [ distance ] [ description text ] [ tag
tag ] [ permanent ]
Example:

RP/0/RP0/CPU0:router(config-static-vrf-afi)# 10.0.0.0/8 172.20.16.6 110

Configures an administrative distance of 110.

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Floating Static Routes

• This example shows how to route packets for network 10.0.0.0 through to a next hop at 172.20.16.6 if dynamic
information with administrative distance less than 110 is not available.

Step 6 Use the commit or end command.

commit —Saves the configuration changes and remains within the configuration session.
end —Prompts user to take one of these actions:
• Yes — Saves configuration changes and exits the configuration session.
• No —Exits the configuration session without committing the configuration changes.
• Cancel —Remains in the configuration session, without committing the configuration changes.

A default static route is often used in simple router topologies. In the following example, a route is
configured with an administrative distance of 110.

configure
router static
address-family ipv4 unicast
0.0.0.0/0 2.6.0.1 110
end

Floating Static Routes

Floating static routes are static routes that are used to back up dynamic routes learned through configured
routing protocols. A floating static route is configured with a higher administrative distance than the dynamic
routing protocol it is backing up. As a result, the dynamic route learned through the routing protocol is always
preferred to the floating static route. If the dynamic route learned through the routing protocol is lost, the
floating static route is used in its place.

Note By default, static routes have smaller administrative distances than dynamic routes, so static routes are preferred
to dynamic routes.

Configure Floating Static Route

This task explains how to configure a floating static route.

SUMMARY STEPS
1. configure
2. router static
3. vrf vrf-name
4. address-family { ipv4 | ipv6 } { unicast | multicast }

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Configure Floating Static Route

5. prefix mask [vrf vrf-name ] { ip-address | interface-type interface-instance } [ distance ] [ description

text ] [ tag tag ] [ permanent ]
6. Use the commit or end command.

DETAILED STEPS

Step 1 configure
Example:

RP/0/RP0/CPU0:router# configure

Enters mode.

Step 2 router static

Example:

RP/0/RP0/CPU0:router(config)# router static

Enters static route configuration mode.

Step 3 vrf vrf-name

Example:

RP/0/RP0/CPU0:router(config-static)# vrf vrf_A

(Optional) Enters VRF configuration mode.

If a VRF is not specified, the static route is configured under the default VRF.

Step 4 address-family { ipv4 | ipv6 } { unicast | multicast }

Example:

RP/0/RP0/CPU0:router(config-static-vrf)# address-family ipv6 unicast

Enters address family mode.

Step 5 prefix mask [vrf vrf-name ] { ip-address | interface-type interface-instance } [ distance ] [ description text ] [ tag
tag ] [ permanent ]
Example:

RP/0/RP0/CPU0:router(config-static-vrf-afi)# 2001:0DB8::/32 2001:0DB8:3000::1 201

Configures an administrative distance of 201.

Step 6 Use the commit or end command.

commit —Saves the configuration changes and remains within the configuration session.
end —Prompts user to take one of these actions:
• Yes — Saves configuration changes and exits the configuration session.
• No —Exits the configuration session without committing the configuration changes.

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Change Maximum Number of Allowable Static Routes

• Cancel —Remains in the configuration session, without committing the configuration changes.

A floating static route is often used to provide a backup path if connectivity fails. In the following
example, a route is configured with an administrative distance of 201.

configure
router static
address-family ipv6 unicast
2001:0DB8::/32 2001:0DB8:3000::1 201
end

Change Maximum Number of Allowable Static Routes

This task explains how to change the maximum number of allowable static routes.

Before you begin

Note The number of static routes that can be configured on a router for a given address family is limited by default
to 4000. The limit can be raised or lowered using the maximum path command. Note that if you use the
maximum path command to reduce the configured maximum allowed number of static routes for a given
address family below the number of static routes currently configured, the change is rejected. In addition,
understand the following behavior: If you commit a batch of routes that would, when grouped, push the number
of static routes configured above the maximum allowed, the first n routes in the batch are accepted. The
number previously configured is accepted, and the remainder are rejected. The n argument is the difference
between the maximum number allowed and number previously configured.

SUMMARY STEPS
1. configure
2. router static
3. maximum path { ipv4 | ipv6 } value
4. Use the commit or end command.

DETAILED STEPS

Step 1 configure
Example:

RP/0/RP0/CPU0:router# configure

Enters mode.

Step 2 router static

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Default VRF

Example:

RP/0/RP0/CPU0:router(config)# router static

Enters static route configuration mode.

Step 3 maximum path { ipv4 | ipv6 } value

Example:

RP/0/RP0/CPU0:router(config-static)# maximum path ipv4 10000

Changes the maximum number of allowable static routes.

• Specify IPv4 or IPv6 address prefixes.
• Specify the maximum number of static routes for the given address family. The range is from 1 to 140000.
• This example sets the maximum number of static IPv4 routes to 10000.

Step 4 Use the commit or end command.

commit —Saves the configuration changes and remains within the configuration session.
end —Prompts user to take one of these actions:
• Yes — Saves configuration changes and exits the configuration session.
• No —Exits the configuration session without committing the configuration changes.
• Cancel —Remains in the configuration session, without committing the configuration changes.

Configuring a static route to point at interface null 0 may be used for discarding traffic to a particular
prefix. For example, if it is required to discard all traffic to prefix 2001:0DB8:42:1/64, the following
static route would be defined:

configure
router static
address-family ipv6 unicast
2001:0DB8:42:1::/64 null 0
end

Default VRF
A static route is always associated with a VPN routing and forwarding (VRF) instance. The VRF can be the
default VRF or a specified VRF. Specifying a VRF, using the vrf vrf-name command, allows you to enter
VRF configuration mode for a specific VRF where you can configure a static route. If a VRF is not specified,
a default VRF static route is configured.

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References for Static Routes

Note An IPv4 or IPv6 static VRF route is the same as a static route configured for the default VRF. The IPv4 and
IPV6 address families are supported in each VRF.

References for Static Routes

The following topics provide additional conceptual information on static routes:
• Static Route Functional Overview, on page 7

• Default Administrative Distance, on page 7

• Directly Connected Routes, on page 8

• Floating Static Routes , on page 3

• Fully Specified Static Routes , on page 8

• Recursive Static Routes , on page 8

Static Route Functional Overview

Networking devices forward packets using route information that is either manually configured or dynamically
learned using a routing protocol. Static routes are manually configured and define an explicit path between
two networking devices. Unlike a dynamic routing protocol, static routes are not automatically updated and
must be manually reconfigured if the network topology changes. The benefits of using static routes include
security and resource efficiency. Static routes use less bandwidth than dynamic routing protocols, and no CPU
cycles are used to calculate and communicate routes. The main disadvantage to using static routes is the lack
of automatic reconfiguration if the network topology changes.
Static routes can be redistributed into dynamic routing protocols, but routes generated by dynamic routing
protocols cannot be redistributed into the static routing table. No algorithm exists to prevent the configuration
of routing loops that use static routes.
Static routes are useful for smaller networks with only one path to an outside network and to provide security
for a larger network for certain types of traffic or links to other networks that need more control. In general,
most networks use dynamic routing protocols to communicate between networking devices but may have one
or two static routes configured for special cases.

Default Administrative Distance

Static routes have a default administrative distance of 1. A low number indicates a preferred route. By default,
static routes are preferred to routes learned by routing protocols. Therefore, you can configure an administrative
distance with a static route if you want the static route to be overridden by dynamic routes. For example, you
could have routes installed by the Open Shortest Path First (OSPF) protocol with an administrative distance
of 120. To have a static route that would be overridden by an OSPF dynamic route, specify an administrative
distance greater than 120.

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Directly Connected Routes

Directly Connected Routes

The routing table considers the static routes that point to an interface as “directly connected.” Directly connected
networks are advertised by IGP routing protocols if a corresponding interface command is contained under
the router configuration stanza of that protocol.
In directly attached static routes, only the output interface is specified. The destination is assumed to be directly
attached to this interface, so the packet destination is used as the next hop address. The following example
shows how to specify that all destinations with address prefix 2001:0DB8::/32 are directly reachable through
interface TenGigE 0/0/0/0:

RP/0/RP0/CPU0:router(config)# router static

RP/0/RP0/CPU0:router(config-static)# address-family ipv6 unicast
RP/0/RP0/CPU0:router(config-static-afi)# 2001:0DB8::/32 TenGigE 0/0/0/0

Directly attached static routes are candidates for insertion in the routing table only if they refer to a valid
interface; that is, an interface that is both up and has IPv4 or IPv6 enabled on it.

Floating Static Routes

Floating static routes are static routes that are used to back up dynamic routes learned through configured
routing protocols. A floating static route is configured with a higher administrative distance than the dynamic
routing protocol it is backing up. As a result, the dynamic route learned through the routing protocol is always
preferred to the floating static route. If the dynamic route learned through the routing protocol is lost, the
floating static route is used in its place.

Note By default, static routes have smaller administrative distances than dynamic routes, so static routes are preferred
to dynamic routes.

Fully Specified Static Routes

In a fully specified static route, both the output interface and next hop are specified. This form of static route
is used when the output interface is multiaccess and it is necessary to explicitly identify the next hop. The
next hop must be directly attached to the specified output interface. The following example shows a definition
of a fully specified static route:

RP/0/RP0/CPU0:router(config)# router static

RP/0/RP0/CPU0:router(config-static)# address-family ipv6 unicast
RP/0/RP0/CPU0:router(config-static-afi)# 2001:0DB8::/32 TenGigE 0/0/0/0 2001:0DB8:3000::1

A fully specified route is valid (that is, a candidate for insertion into the routing table) when the specified
interface, IPv4 or IPv6, is enabled and up.

Recursive Static Routes

In a recursive static route, only the next hop is specified. The output interface is derived from the next hop.
The following example shows how to specify that all destinations with address prefix 2001:0DB8::/32 are
reachable through the host with address 2001:0DB8:3000::1:

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Dynamic ECMP

RP/0/RP0/CPU0:router(config)# router static

RP/0/RP0/CPU0:router(config-static)# address-family ipv6 unicast
RP/0/RP0/CPU0:router(config-static-afi)# 2001:0DB8::/32 2001:0DB8:3000::1

A recursive static route is valid (that is, it is a candidate for insertion in the routing table) only when the
specified next hop resolves, either directly or indirectly, to a valid output interface, provided the route does
not self-recurse, and the recursion depth does not exceed the maximum IPv6 forwarding recursion depth.
A route self-recurses if it is itself used to resolve its own next hop. If a static route becomes self-recursive,
RIB sends a notification to static routes to withdraw the recursive route.
Assuming a BGP route 2001:0DB8:3000::0/16 with next hop of 2001:0DB8::0104, the following static route
would not be inserted into the IPv6 RIB because the BGP route next hop resolves through the static route and
the static route resolves through the BGP route making it self-recursive:

RP/0/RP0/CPU0:router(config)# router static

RP/0/RP0/CPU0:router(config-static)# address-family ipv6 unicast
RP/0/RP0/CPU0:router(config-static-afi)# 001:0DB8::/32 2001:0DB8:3000::1

This static route is not inserted into the IPv6 routing table because it is self-recursive. The next hop of the
static route, 2001:0DB8:3000:1, resolves through the BGP route 2001:0DB8:3000:0/16, which is itself a
recursive route (that is, it only specifies a next hop). The next hop of the BGP route, 2001:0DB8::0104,
resolves through the static route. Therefore, the static route would be used to resolve its own next hop.
It is not normally useful to manually configure a self-recursive static route, although it is not prohibited.
However, a recursive static route that has been inserted in the routing table may become self-recursive as a
result of some transient change in the network learned through a dynamic routing protocol. If this occurs, the
fact that the static route has become self-recursive will be detected and it will be removed from the routing
table, although not from the configuration. A subsequent network change may cause the static route to no
longer be self-recursive, in which case it is re-inserted in the routing table.

Dynamic ECMP
The dynamic ECMP (equal-cost multi-path) for IGP (Interior Gateway Protocol) prefixes feature supports
dynamic selection of ECMP paths ranging from 1 to 64 IGP paths. ECMP for non-recursive prefixes is
dynamic. This feature enables loadbalancing support in hardware among egress links.
The dynamic ECMP (equal-cost multi-path) for IGP (Interior Gateway Protocol) prefixes feature supports
dynamic selection of ECMP paths ranging from 1 to 64 IGP paths. ECMP for non-recursive prefixes is
dynamic.
This feature enables loadbalancing support in hardware among egress links.

IPv4 Multicast Static Routes

IP multicast static routes (mroutes) allow you to have multicast paths diverge from the unicast paths. When
using Protocol Independent Multicast (PIM), the router expects to receive packets on the same interface where
it sends unicast packets back to the source. This expectation is beneficial if your multicast and unicast topologies
are congruent. However, you might want unicast packets to take one path and multicast packets to take another.
The most common reason for using separate unicast and multicast paths is tunneling. When a path between
a source and a destination does not support multicast routing, configuring two routers with a GRE tunnel

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Configure Multicast Static Routes

between them is the solution. In the figure below, each unicast router (UR) supports unicast packets only;
each multicast router (MR) supports multicast packets.
Figure 1: Tunnel for Multicast Packets

In the figure, the source delivers multicast packets to destination by using MR 1 and MR 2. MR 2 accepts the
multicast packet only if it predicts it can reach source over the tunnel. If this situation is true, when the
destination sends unicast packets to the source, MR 2 sends them over the tunnel. The check that MR2 can
reach the source over the tunnel is a Reverse Path Forwarding (RPF) check, and the static mroute allows the
check to be successful when the interface, on which the multicast packet arrives, is not the unicast path back
to the source. Sending the packet over the tunnel could be slower than natively sending it through UR 2, UR
1, and MR 1.
A multicast static route allows you to use the configuration in the above figure by configuring a static multicast
source. The system uses the configuration information instead of the unicast routing table to route the traffic.
Therefore, multicast packets can use the tunnel without having the unicast packets use the tunnel. Static
mroutes are local to the router they are configured on and not advertised or redistributed in any way to any
other router.

Configure Multicast Static Routes

The following example shows how to configure multiple static routes in IPv4 and IPv6 address family
configuration modes:

/* Enables a static routing process */

Router(config)# router static

/* Configures the IPv4 address-family for the unicast topology with a destination prefix.
*/
Router(config-static)# address-family ipv4 unicast
Router(config-static-afi)# 10.1.1.0/24 198.51.100.1
Router(config-static-afi)# 223.255.254.254/32 203.0.113.1
Router(config-static-afi)# exit

/* Configures the IPv4 address-family for the multicast topology with a destination prefix.
*/
Router(config-static)# address-family ipv4 multicast
Router(config-static-afi)# 198.51.100.20/32 209.165.201.0
Router(config-static-afi)# 192.0.2.10/32 209.165.201.0
Router(config-static-afi)# exit

/* Enable the address family IPv4 and IPv6 multicast on the next hop interface. */
Router(config)# interface TenGigE 0/0/0/12
Router(config-if)# address-family ipv4 multicast
Router(config-if)# address-family ipv6 multicast

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Configure Multicast Static Routes

Running Configuration

router static
address-family ipv4 unicast
10.1.1.0/24 198.51.100.1
223.255.254.254/32 203.0.113.1
!
address-family ipv4 multicast
198.51.100.20/32 209.165.201.0
192.0.2.10/32 209.165.201.0
!
interface TenGigE 0/0/0/12
address-family ipv4 multicast
address-family ipv6 multicast

Verification
Verify the IPv4 multicast routes.
show route ipv4 multicast

Codes: C - connected, S - static, R - RIP, B - BGP, (>) - Diversion path

O - OSPF, IA - OSPF inter area
N1 - OSPF NSSA external type 1, N2 - OSPF NSSA external type 2
E1 - OSPF external type 1, E2 - OSPF external type 2, E - EGP
i - ISIS, L1 - IS-IS level-1, L2 - IS-IS level-2
ia - IS-IS inter area, su - IS-IS summary null, * - candidate default
U - per-user static route, o - ODR, L - local, G - DAGR, l - LISP
A - access/subscriber, a - Application route
M - mobile route, r - RPL, t - Traffic Engineering, (!) - FRR Backup path

Gateway of last resort is 10.1.1.20 to network 0.0.0.0

i*L1 0.0.0.0/0 [115/10] via 10.1.1.20, 00:41:12, TenGigE0/0/0/6

C 10.1.1.0/24 is directly connected, 00:41:12, TenGigE0/0/0/0
L 10.1.1.10/32 is directly connected, 00:41:12, TenGigE0/0/0/0
S 172.16.2.10/32 [1/0] via 198.51.100.20, 00:41:12
i L1 172.16.3.1/32 [115/20] via 198.51.100.20, 00:41:12, TenGigE0/0/0/12
i L1 192.0.2.1/24 [115/20] via 198.51.100.20, 00:41:12, TenGigE0/0/0/1

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Configure Multicast Static Routes

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