Computers and devices attached to the Internet send Internet Protocol (IP) packets to each other when communicating. But how do these packets find their way across the myriad of possible paths, wires, fibers, and radio channels to successfully arrive at their intended destination?

This course focuses on the functions that Routers perform in an Internet, and the protocols they use, such as RIP, OSPF and BGP, in the control plane to make Shortest Path First decisions and deliver packets to their intended destinations as quickly and efficiently as possible. Understanding this process is critical in understanding how the Internet actually works.