Cisco APIC Layer 3 Networking Configuration Guide, Release 6.2(x)

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Cisco APIC Layer 3 Networking Configuration Guide, Release 6.2(x)

EIGRP external routed networks

Updated: April 17, 2026

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Configuration procedures for establishing routing connectivity between Enhanced Interior Gateway Routing Protocol (EIGRP) domains and external networks.

Use these procedures to configure EIGRP external routed networks.

EIGRP Layer 3 Outside connections

An EIGRP Layer 3 Outside (L3Out) connection provides routing between the Cisco APIC fabric and an external EIGRP network.

  • Create the tenant, virtual routing and forwarding (VRF) instance, and bridge domain before you configure the EIGRP L3Out connection.

  • Configure the Layer 3 Outside tenant network.

  • Configure the route-control profile under the routed outside.

EIGRP configuration guidelines

The following requirements and behaviors apply to EIGRP configurations:

  • The EIGRP VRF policy is the same as the EIGRP address-family context policy.

  • EIGRP supports only export route-control profiles. Route-control configuration is common across all routing protocols.

You can configure EIGRP to automatically summarize subnet routes into network-level routes. Automatic summarization occurs when the EIGRP process contains two or more network router configuration commands. This feature is enabled by default.

EIGRP protocol support

EIGRP is implemented consistently with other routing protocols in the Cisco ACI fabric.

  • Supports IPv4 and IPv6 routing.

  • Provides virtual routing and forwarding (VRF) and interface controls for each address family.

  • Supports route redistribution with Open Shortest Path First (OSPF) across nodes.

Supported features

The following EIGRP features are supported:

  • IPv4 and IPv6 routing

  • VRF and interface controls for each address family

  • Route redistribution with OSPF across nodes

  • Default route leak policy for each VRF

  • Passive-interface and split-horizon support

  • Route map control for setting a tag on exported routes

  • Bandwidth and delay settings in an EIGRP interface policy

  • Authentication

Unsupported features

The following EIGRP features are not supported:

  • Stub routing

  • EIGRP for Border Gateway Protocol (BGP) connectivity

  • Multiple EIGRP L3extOut objects on the same node

  • Per-interface summarization. An EIGRP summary policy applies to all interfaces configured under an L3Out.

  • Per-interface distribute lists for import and export

EIGRP function categories

EIGRP functions are grouped into the following categories:

  • Protocol policies

  • L3extOut configurations

  • Interface configurations

  • Route map support

  • Default route support

  • Transit support

Primary managed objects that support EIGRP

The following primary managed objects support EIGRP:

  • EIGRP Address Family Context Policy (eigrpCtxAfPol): Defines the address-family context policy under fvTenant in Tenant Protocol Policies.

  • fvRsCtxToEigrpCtxAfPol: Defines the relation between a VRF and an eigrpCtxAfPol for an IPv4 or IPv6 address family. Only one relation can exist for each address family.

  • eigrpIfPol: Defines an EIGRP interface policy under fvTenant.

  • eigrpExtP: Enables EIGRP in an L3extOut.

  • eigrpIfP: Defines an EIGRP interface profile that is attached to an l3extLIfP.

  • eigrpRsIfPol: Defines the relation between an EIGRP interface profile and an eigrpIfPol.

  • Defrtleak: Defines the default route leak policy under an l3extOut.

EIGRP protocol policies supported under a tenant

The following EIGRP protocol policies are supported under a tenant:

  • EIGRP Interface policy (eigrpIfPol): Contains the configuration that is applied to an interface for a specific address family. The interface policy supports the following settings:

    • Hello interval in seconds

    • Hold interval in seconds

    • One or more of the following interface control flags:

      • split horizon

      • passive

      • next hop self

  • EIGRP Address Family Context Policy (eigrpCtxAfPol): Contains the configuration for a specific address family in a VRF. An eigrpCtxAfPol is configured under the tenant protocol policies and can be applied to one or more VRFs in the tenant. Associate an eigrpCtxAfPol with a VRF by configuring a VRF-per-address-family relation. If no relation exists for an address family, or the eigrpCtxAfPol specified in the relation does not exist, the system uses the default VRF policy under the common tenant for that address family.

    The eigrpCtxAfPol supports the following settings:

    • Administrative distance for internal routes

    • Administrative distance for external routes

    • Maximum number of equal-cost multipath (ECMP) paths

    • Active timer interval

    • Metric version for 32-bit or 64-bit metrics

EIGRP configuration guidelines and limitations

EIGRP configurations have specific requirements for protocol coexistence and metric management.

  • Protocol-coexistence restrictions apply to Layer 3 Outside interfaces.

  • Layer 3 Outside deployment requirements apply per node and per virtual routing and forwarding (VRF) instance.

  • Specific value ranges apply to metric styles and VRF transit tags.

EIGRP configuration guidelines

Follow these guidelines when you configure EIGRP:

  • Configuring EIGRP and Border Gateway Protocol (BGP) for the same Layer 3 Outside (L3Out) is not supported.

  • Configuring EIGRP and Open Shortest Path First (OSPF) for the same L3Out is not supported.

  • You can configure one EIGRP L3Out per node for each VRF instance. If a node contains multiple VRF instances, each VRF instance can have its own EIGRP L3Out.

  • Multiple EIGRP peers from a single L3Out are supported. This configuration enables a node to connect to multiple EIGRP devices through one L3Out.

  • When you enable EIGRP on an L3Out, change the VRF transit tag from its default value to a value from 1 to 255. If you require a larger transit tag value, configure the wide metric style in the EIGRP address-family context. The default narrow metric style supports internal tag values only from 1 to 255.

  • For IPv6 redistribution, the Route Policy Manager (RPM) cannot filter BGP route updates based on the BGP community attribute by using community lists in a route map. This functionality is supported only for IPv4 redistribution.

The following configuration changes cause EIGRP neighbors to flap:

  • Changing the administrative distances or the metric style between wide and narrow in the EIGRP address-family context for the VRF instance.

  • Configuring multiple EIGRP summary routes for an external endpoint group (EPG) at the same time. Configuring a single EIGRP summary route does not cause the EIGRP neighbors to flap.

  • Making the following configuration changes, which update a table map that is used internally:

    • Changing the route tag for the VRF instance.

    • Configuring import route control for an OSPF L3Out in the same VRF instance and on the same border leaf switch as an EIGRP L3Out. Import route control is not supported for an EIGRP L3Out and cannot be configured directly on it. However, configuring import route control on the OSPF L3Out affects EIGRP L3Outs in the same VRF instance and on the same border leaf switch because OSPF import route control uses a table map that EIGRP also uses for other purposes.

Configure EIGRP by using the GUI

Procedure

  1. On the menu bar, choose Tenants > All Tenants .

  2. In the Work pane, double-click the tenant.

  3. In the Navigation pane, expand tenant_name > Policies > Protocol > EIGRP .

  4. Right-click EIGRP Address Family Context and choose Create EIGRP Address Family Context Policy .

  5. In the Create EIGRP Address Family Context Policy dialog box, configure the address-family context policy:

    1. In the Name field, enter a name for the context policy.
    2. In the Active Interval (min) field, choose the active interval.
    3. In the External Distance and Internal Distance fields, choose the appropriate administrative-distance values.
    4. In the Maximum Path Limit field, choose the maximum number of interfaces to use for load balancing on each node.
    5. In the Metric Style field, choose the appropriate metric style.
    6. Click Submit .
    The context policy details appear in the Work pane.

  6. To apply the context policy to a virtual routing and forwarding (VRF) instance, expand Networking > VRFs in the Navigation pane.

  7. Choose the appropriate VRF instance, click the Policy tab in the Work pane, and expand EIGRP Context Per Address Family .

  8. From the EIGRP Address Family Type drop-down list, choose the IP version.

  9. From the EIGRP Address Family Context drop-down list, choose the context policy, click Update , and then click Submit .

  10. To enable EIGRP on the Layer 3 Outside (L3Out), expand Networking > L3Outs in the Navigation pane, and choose the appropriate L3Out.

  11. On the Policy tab in the Work pane, check the EIGRP check box, enter the EIGRP autonomous system number, and click Submit .

  12. To create an EIGRP interface policy, expand tenant_name > Policies > Protocol > EIGRP in the Navigation pane, and complete the following substeps:

    1. Right-click EIGRP Interface and choose Create EIGRP Interface Policy .
    2. In the Create EIGRP Interface Policy dialog box, enter a name for the policy in the Name field.
    3. In the Control State field, check the check boxes for the controls that you want to enable.
    4. In the Hello Interval (sec) field, choose the hello interval.
    5. In the Hold Interval (sec) field, choose the hold interval.
    6. In the Bandwidth field, choose the bandwidth.
    7. In the Delay field, choose the delay in tens of microseconds or picoseconds.
    8. Click Submit .
    The EIGRP interface policy details appear in the Work pane.

  13. In the Navigation pane, choose the L3Out on which you enabled EIGRP, expand Logical Node Profiles , and complete the following substeps:

    1. Expand the appropriate logical node profile and an interface under that profile.
    2. Right-click the interface and choose Create EIGRP Interface Profile .
    3. In the Create EIGRP Interface Profile dialog box, choose the EIGRP interface policy from the EIGRP Policy field, and click Submit .
    Note

    The EIGRP VRF and interface policies define the properties that EIGRP uses. Default EIGRP VRF and interface policies are available. If you do not explicitly choose a policy, the system automatically uses the corresponding default policy when you enable EIGRP.

    The EIGRP configuration is complete.