RouteViews list

RouteViews is a renowned internet routing monitoring project originally created by the University of Oregon’s Network Applications and Analysis Group.

It aims to provide researchers, network engineers and others interested in internet routing with a global view of routing information. Through RouteViews, network engineers and researchers can better understand the dynamic behavior of the internet, optimize network performance and enhance security.


  • Data Archives
  • Note: MRT RIB and UPDATE files have internal timestamps in the standard Unix format, however the file names are constructed based on the time zone setting of the collector. The collectors had their time zones set to Pacific Time prior to Feb 3, 2003 at approximately 19:00 UTC. At that time all but one of the existing collectors had their time zones reset to UTC. The one exception was routeviews.eqix which was not reset to UTC until Feb 1, 2006 at approximately 21:00 UTC.

  • CLI
  • Note: collection timestamps on the original Cisco router route-views.routeviews.org were changed from PDT to UTC on Mar 4, 2003 at ~1:00 PDT.

    RouteViews Beginner's guide

    1. Accessing Real-Time BGP Route Data

    Using Telnet to Connect to RouteViews

    • Objective: View global BGP routes in real time from different locations.
    • Steps:
      1. Open a terminal.
      2. Enter the following command to connect to RouteViews:
        telnet route-views.routeviews.org
      3. Log in without a username or password; simply press Enter.
      4. Use BGP query commands (e.g., show ip bgp) to view data. For example:
        show ip bgp 8.8.8.8
        This displays routing information for IP 8.8.8.8, including AS path and next-hop details.

    Common Telnet Nodes

    • route-views2.routeviews.org: Oregon University
    • route-views.eqix: Equinix Exchange
    • route-views.sg: Singapore

    2. Querying Historical BGP Data

    Downloading BGP Route Snapshots

    • Objective: Analyze historical routing tables and routing changes.
    • Steps:
      1. Visit the RouteViews data archive.
      2. Select the desired node (e.g., route-views2).
      3. Download the BGP data file for the desired date (MRT format).
      4. Parse the file using the bgpdump tool:
        bgpdump -m rib.20241103.1200.bz2 > output.txt
      5. Search the parsed data for specific prefixes or AS information.

    3. Using Web Tools

    • If you are not familiar with command-line tools, access RouteViews data through web interfaces:
      • RIPEstat or Looking Glass tools integrate RouteViews data and provide visual query interfaces.
      • Enter an IP prefix or AS number to quickly retrieve route information.

    4. Common Commands

    Command Function
    show ip bgp View all prefixes in the routing table.
    show ip bgp <prefix> View route information for a specific prefix.
    show ip bgp neighbors Display the state and statistics of BGP neighbors.
    show ip bgp summary Display a summary of BGP sessions.
    show ip as-path access-list View all learned AS paths.

    5. Analysis Tips

    Analyzing AS Paths for a Specific IP

    1. Use the command show ip bgp <IP> to obtain the AS path for the IP.
    2. Check the path for unusual hops or incorrect AS numbers.

    Verifying Route Consistency

    1. Query BGP data from multiple nodes (e.g., route-views.eqix and route-views.sg).
    2. Compare the results to determine global route consistency.

    Observing Route Convergence

    Repeatedly query the BGP data for the same prefix to observe changes in AS paths and next-hop details, tracking network dynamics.

    Beginner Recommendations

    • Start with simple commands: focus on show ip bgp and show ip bgp <prefix>.
    • Understand BGP data formats: learn about AS paths, prefixes, and next-hop attributes.
    • Practice analyzing real-world problems: e.g., verify global propagation of a specific IP prefix.