IPv6 Unicast Routing Protocols
The next two major sections of this chapter explore the details of the two IPv6 unicast routing
protocols covered in the CCIE Routing and Switching qualification exam blueprint: OSPFv3 and
EIGRP for IPv6. These routing protocols have a lot in common in terms of their Cisco IOS
configuration. It is worth mention here that RIPng, which was removed from the CCIE Routing
and Switching qualification exam blueprint at version 3, also shares many of these common
configuration concepts.
Although OSPFv3 and IPv6 EIGRP operate quite differently, here are a few key aspects of
configuring them that are helpful to understand as you study how these protocols work:
■ In each of these IPv6 unicast routing protocols, enabling the protocol for a particular network
in Cisco IOS is performed by issuing the appropriate ipv6 interface configuration command.
The command format, detailed in the “Foundation Summary” section at the end of the
chapter, is ipv6 {eigrp | ospf | rip} followed by the necessary keywords and arguments.
■ In router configuration mode, where the bulk of configuration is done for IPv4 routing
protocols, IPv6 routing protocols require less configuration. The global configuration is also
more intuitive because most of the configuration that is interface- or network-specific is done
in interface configuration mode.
The next two major sections build heavily on the corresponding IPv4 protocol concepts, so it is
important to study the EIGRP and OSPFv2 routing protocols in Chapters 8, “EIGRP,” and 9,
“OSPF,” respectively, before working through the following sections of this chapter.