OSPF questions

tonydotigr

Single area OSPF networks must be configured in area 1? Saw this on study quide and it didn't make sense. Thought it had to be configured on area 0.

Also, OSPF areas can by assigned any number from 0-63535? Is this correct, my research makes me believe it is, but I haven't found a definitive answer.

TIA

kplab

If more than one area is configured, one of these areas must be configured as Area 0 (backbone area), and other areas need to be physically connected to it. For a single area network, it is also a good practice to start with Area 0, so that you can expand it into other areas later on. There is no restriction to use Area 1.

An Area ID is a 32-bit number (it can be written in the format of x.x.x.x, like an IP address). Therefore, the number of Area ID allowed is 2^32 - 1. Here is a reference link on the Cisco website:

http://www.cisco.com/en/US/products/ps6350/products_command_reference_chapter09186a0080446b1b.html#wp1090855