Babel Router is a protocol which provides loop-free and distance-vector routing, allowing for efficient routing of data.
Babel is specifically designed for wireless networks, making it extremely robust in the presence of mobility. It generally does not cause a transient routing loop, unlike OLSR, which may cause the issue immediately after a mobility event before the new topology information floods the network. Babel's default operation employs a link quality measurement that suits networks using the IEEE 802.11 MAC. The featuring makes the paths chosen reasonable on any network but particularly suitable for 802.11 networks.
Additionally, Babel enjoys fast convergence, which makes it an ideal choice for networks with heavy packet loss. The protocol uses triggered updates and explicit requests for routing information, which means it usually converges almost immediately. It may take up to a minute or so to converge on optimal routes in the presence of heavy packet loss (with the default update interval of 30 seconds).
Babel works effectively on wired networks too. When operating on a wired network, the protocol uses a larger interval between hellos and performs split-horizon processing. In the absence of mobility, Babel generates between 1.2 and 2.4 times the traffic that RIPng would produce on a stable network with no link failures. However, since Babel never counts to infinity, its update interval can be set to much larger values.
Being a distance-vector protocol, Babel has very modest memory and CPU requirements, and it consumes very little network bandwidth in its routing traffic. The protocol has formal proofs of its critical correctness properties, including loop-freeness and convergence. This set it apart from most other routing protocols, whose correctness has to be taken on trust.
In conclusion, Babel is an excellent choice for users who want a highly efficient loop-free distance-vector routing protocol that works well on any network. Note that it currently works with IPv6 only, and there is no support for IPv4.
Version 0.97: N/A