Packets and routing
Packets and routing is an interactive experiment in Networks & the Internet, a free simulation from StudyFi Lab that runs right in your browser.
Routers find the cheapest path with Dijkstra’s algorithm: they always settle the router with the smallest known distance and try to improve its neighbours through it (d(v) = min(d(v), d(u) + cost)). A message is split into numbered packets that may take different equal-cost paths and arrive out of order. The receiver puts them back in order in its buffer.
Try this: Send a message from A to G and watch which packet arrives first. Then break the links D–E and D–F — which path and what cost now?
Frequently asked questions
What does the “Packets and routing” experiment show?
Routers find the cheapest path with Dijkstra’s algorithm: they always settle the router with the smallest known distance and try to improve its neighbours through it (d(v) = min(d(v), d(u) + cost)). A message is split into numbered packets that may take different equal-cost paths and arrive out of order. The receiver puts them back in order in its buffer.
How do I try “Packets and routing”?
Send a message from A to G and watch which packet arrives first. Then break the links D–E and D–F — which path and what cost now?
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