An efficient algorithm to enable path diversity in link state routing networks

Multipath routing allows for load balancing and fast re-routing in order to improve the reliability and the efficiency of the network. Current IP routers only support Equal Cost MultiPath (ECMP) which guarantees that the forwarding paths do not contain loops. However, ECMP provides limited path diversity. In this paper, we present an efficient algorithm that allows routers to enable more path diversity: our algorithm let all routers compute at least the two best first hop distinct paths towards each destination and achieves a good tradeoff between path diversity and overhead.