FICIX Route Servers
FICIX offers to its members the opportunity to peer with each other via its route servers. Normally, you need to maintain separate BGP sessions to each of your peers’ routers. With a route server you can replace all or a subset of these sessions with one session towards each route server.
The goal of the router server service is to facilitate the implementation of peering arrangements, and to lower the barrier of entry for new participants on the peering platform.
The route servers do not partake in the forwarding path, so they do not forward any traffic. Peering with route servers does not eliminate the possibility of maintaining your peering policy, because you can limit route visibility with BGP communities.
FICIX runs four route servers to facilitate the interconnection of members.
When peering with the route servers we mandate that routers are set up to connect to both route servers and advertise the same amount and length of prefixes for resilience.
| FICIX1 Route server details: | FICIX2 Route server details: |
| rs1.ficix1.ficix.fi | rs1.ficix2.ficix.fi |
| ASN: 41194 | ASN: 41194 |
| IPv4: 193.110.226.78 | IPv4: 193.110.224.47 |
| IPv6: 2001:7f8:7:a::4:1194:1 | IPv6: 2001:7f8:7:b::4:1194:1 |
| rs2.ficix1.ficix.fi | rs2.ficix2.ficix.fi |
| ASN: 41194 | ASN: 41194 |
| IPv4: 193.110.226.79 | IPv4: 193.110.224.51 |
| IPv6: 2001:7f8:7:a::4:1194:2 | IPv6: 2001:7f8:7:b::4:1194:2 |
The following BGP communities are supported:
| Action | BGP Standard Community Values (RFC 1997) | BGP Large Community Values (RFC 8092) |
| Redistribute to all (default) | 41194:41194 | 41194:1:0 |
| Do not redistribute by default | 0:41194 | 41194:0:0 |
| Redistribute to $PEERAS | 41194:$PEER-AS | 41194:1:$PEERAS |
| Do not Redistribute to $PEERAS | 0:$PEER-AS | 41194:0:$PEERAS |
Please note that if you use 32-bit ASN you have to use BGP Large Communities
Joining Route Server service
Send an email to <route-servers@ficix.fi> including the following information:
- Member name and IXP name (FICIX1 or FICIX2)
- AS number, AS-SET name and IRRDB name (RIPE db by default)
- IPv4 and IPv6 addresses of your routers
- Desired prefix-limit (default 1000 IPv4 and 200 IPv6)
Important BGP settings:
- BGP configuration to route server is similar than establishing other peering sessions. If you have Cisco routers then you will have to specify "no bgp enforce-first-as (IOS, IOS-XE) / bgp enforce-first-as disable (IOS-XR)" as the route server does not insert its own ASN into the AS_path of relayed prefix announcements.
- Timer setting for route server is keepalive 10 and hold 30.