Which of the following is an advantage of OSPF?

• A. Hierarchical Routing Supports Very Large Networks
• B. Shortest Path First Algorithm Allows for Fast Convergence
• C. Does Not Suffer From Routing Loop Issues
• D. Smaller Routing Updates And They Only Occur When There Is A Topology Change

Answer: (B)

The key idea here is how OSPF uses the Shortest Path First approach to react quickly to changes in the network. OSPF builds a complete map of the network as a graph of routers and link costs, and each router runs the SPF calculation (a version of Dijkstra’s algorithm) to determine the best path to every destination. When a link state changes, LSAs circulate to all routers, triggering SPF re-calculation. Because each router recomputes the optimal paths and only the affected routes are updated, the network converges to a stable state rapidly, reducing routing instability and loops during the transition. This rapid convergence is the main advantage highlighted. While OSPF does support hierarchical areas and manages updates efficiently, the standout benefit in this context is the fast convergence enabled by the Shortest Path First algorithm.