BGP Configuration Guide for Cisco 8000 Series Routers, Cisco IOS XR Releases

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Enhanced monitoring of version-rate statistics

Updated: February 28, 2026

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Overview

Explains enhanced monitoring for version-rate statistics and presents procedures to access and evaluate version-rate metrics for BGP operations.

The enhanced monitoring of version-rate statistics is a BGP monitoring feature that

  • identifies sources of BGP churn by tracking and categorizing version bumps,

  • calculates version rates over fixed time intervals, and

  • generates detailed reports at both and neighbor AFI levels.

This feature also maintains a cumulative churn count and classifies version bumps by their origin, such as reachable, unreachable, import, redistribution, or label-related sources.

Table 1. Feature History Table

Feature Name

Release Information

Feature Description

Enhanced monitoring of version-rate statistics

 Release 25.4.1

Introduced in this release on: Fixed Systems (8010 [ASIC: A100])(select variants only*)

*This feature is now supported on:

  • 8011-32Y8L2H2FH

  • 8011-12G12X4Y-A

  • 8011-12G12X4Y-D

Enhanced monitoring of version-rate statistics

 Release 25.1.1

Introduced in this release on: Fixed Systems (8010 [ASIC: A100])(select variants only*)

*This feature is supported on Cisco 8011-4G24Y4H-I routers.
Enhanced monitoring of version-rate statistics

Release 24.4.1

Introduced in this release on: Fixed Systems (8200 [ASIC: P100], 8700 [ASIC: P100, K100])(select variants only); Modular Systems (8800 [LC ASIC: P100])(select variants only*)

Enhanced monitoring of version-rate statistics helps quickly pinpoint the causes of frequent BGP route changes, aiding in identifying network instability and maintaining optimal routing performance. It tracks and categorizes version bumps by calculating version rates over fixed time intervals. Detailed reports are generated at both Address-Family Identifier (AFI) and neighbor AFI levels, facilitating efficient troubleshooting.

*This feature is supported on:

  • 8212-48FH-M

  • 8711-32FH-M

  • 8712-MOD-M

  • 88-LC1-36EH

  • 88-LC1-12TH24FH-E

  • 88-LC1-52Y8H-EM

Additional details of enhanced monitoring of version-rate statistics

The following details provide additional information about how version-rate statistic monitoring features operate:

  • Interval mechanism: Version bumps are monitored using fixed time intervals rather than sliding windows. For example, if an interval runs from 12:00 pm to 12:30 pm, data updates occur exactly at 12:30 pm; the next interval starts immediately after.

  • NSR synchronization: Both active and standby routers independently record version bumps. Therefore, statistics may differ between active and standby routers.

  • Reporting parameters: Reports are generated at both AFI and neighbor AFI levels. These reports include totals and interval-specific rates, categorized into buckets such as reachable, unreachable, import, redistribute, and label. Additional version bumps from other sources are also displayed, based on the main table’s version number.

Enhanced monitoring of version-rate statistics

Enable monitoring and analysis of BGP version changes over specified fixed intervals for diagnostic and troubleshooting purposes.

This task helps you analyze BGP version changes over fixed time intervals, categorizing them by neighbor IP, VRF, and address family (AFI). Use these steps to gain visibility into the frequency and source of version changes, which may indicate network events, configuration changes, or route instabilities.

Before you begin

Ensure you have appropriate access rights to run the show bgp memory history command on the device.

Follow these steps to monitor BGP version-rate statistics:

Procedure

1.

Use the show bgp sessions version-rate command to o obtain a detailed analysis of BGP version changes across specified intervals;

Example:

Router# show bgp sessions version-rate
Thu Nov  2 11:40:41.107 IST
Interval definition(s):
  Interval   Duration (min)  Start time            End time
  Live                    5  Nov  2 11:37:22.029   Nov  2 11:40:41.413
  1                       5  Nov  2 11:32:22.029   Nov  2 11:37:22.029
  2                      15  Nov  2 11:22:22.029   Nov  2 11:37:22.029
  3                      30  Nov  2 10:52:22.027   Nov  2 11:22:22.027

Neighbor    VRF        AFI                  Total           Live              
                                                      Total  Reach  UnReach  
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
10.10.10.1     default    All                     5    0      0        0        
10.10.10.1                IPv4 Unicast            5    0      0        0       
192.168.0.5    default    All                   606    0      0        0      
192.168.0.5               IPv4 Unicast           63    0      0        0      
192.168.0.5               VPNv4 Unicast         240    0      0        0      
192.168.0.5               IPv6 Labeled-unicast   63    0      0        0      
192.168.0.5               VPNv6 Unicast         240    0      0        0      
192.168.0.5               RT Constraint           0    0      0        0        
10:10:10::1    default    All                     5    0      0        0        
10:10:10::1               IPv6 Unicast            5    0      0        0       
10.0.1.1       1          All                     5    0      0        0       
10.0.1.1                  IPv4 Unicast            5    0      0        0      
10:0:1::1      1          All                     5    0      0        0       


/* The output was too wide, so it was segmented; the below segment continues from above.
 */
 Interval 1              Interval 2            Interval 3  Spk AS  
Total  Reach UnReach Total Reach UnReach Total Reach  UnReach
---------------------------------------------------------------------
  5      5       0     5     5     0       0     0     0      0   200  
  5      5       0     5     5     0       0     0     0
282    282       0   282   282     0       0     0     0      0   100  
 31     31       0    31    31     0       0     0     0
110    110       0   110   110     0       0     0     0
 31     31       0    31    31     0       0     0     0  
110    110       0   110   110     0       0     0     0
  0      0       0     0     0     0       0     0     0
  5      5       0     5     5     0       0     0     0      0    200  
  5      5       0     5     5     0       0     0     0
  0      0       0     0     0     0       0     0     0      0    200  
  0      0       0     0     0     0       0     0     0
  0      0       0     0     0     0       0     0     0      0    200  

/* The output was too wide, so it was segmented; the below segment continues from above.
 */

InQ OutQ NBRState     NSRState
-----------------------------
0   0    Established  NSRReady

0   0    Established  NSRReady

0   0    Established  NSRReady

0   0    Established  NSRReady

0   0    Established  NSRReady

The output displays interval definitions, neighbor information (IP, VRF, AFI), and version change statistics categorized by interval (e.g., 5, 15, 30 minutes). It includes detailed breakdowns by traffic type and source.

The show command output categorizes changes by neighbor IP addresses, VRFs, and AFIs, such as IPv4 Unicast and VPNv4 Unicast, facilitating the analysis of traffic types and identification of version number fluctuation origins.
2.

Use the show bgp sessions version-rate live command to view the real-time BGP session version-rate statistics, capturing changes within the most recent 5-minute interval across all BGP neighbors and address families.

Example:

Router# show bgp sessions version-rate live
Thu Nov  2 11:40:48.314 IST
Interval definition(s):
  Interval   Duration (min)  Start time            End time
  Live                    5  Nov  2 11:37:22.029   Nov  2 11:40:48.610

Neighbor   VRF       AFI                   Total        Live           Spk  
                                                     Total Reach Unreach       
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
10.10.10.1    default   All                    5      0     0     0        0   
10.10.10.1              IPv4 Unicast           5      0     0     0
192.168.0.5   default   All                  606      0     0     0        0   
192.168.0.5             IPv4 Unicast          63      0     0     0
192.168.0.5             VPNv4 Unicast        240      0     0     0
192.168.0.5             IPv6 Labeled-unicast  63      0     0     0
192.168.0.5             VPNv6 Unicast        240      0     0     0
192.168.0.5             RT Constraint          0      0     0     0
10:10:10::1    default  All                    5      0     0     0        0   
10:10:10::1             IPv6 Unicast           5      0     0     0
10.0.1.1       1        All                    5      0     0     0        0   
10.0.1.1                IPv4 Unicast           5      0     0     0
10:0:1::1      1        All                    5      0     0     0        0   

/* The output was too wide, so it was segmented; the below segment continues from above.
 */
AS  InQ  OutQ  BRState    NSRState
---------------------------------------
200  0   0    Established  NSRReady

100  0   0    Established  NSRReady     

200  0   0    Established  NSRReady


200  0   0    Established  NSRReady

200  0   0    Established  NSRReady

The command reports current version changes and session metrics, including total version changes, reachability, speaker ID, AS number, queue sizes, and session states.

This provides a concise snapshot of BGP session activity and health.

3.

Use the show bgp sessions version-rate brief command to view concise information only for the "Live" interval, which is typically the most recent 5-minute window.

Example:

Router# show bgp sessions version-rate brief live

Thu Nov  2 11:40:55.743 IST
Interval definition(s):
  Interval   Duration (min)  Start time            End time
  Live                    5  Nov  2 11:37:22.029   Nov  2 11:40:56.059

Neighbor      VRF         Spk    AS   InQ  OutQ  NBRState     NSRState  Total       Live
10.10.10.1    default      0   200     0     0  Established  NSRReady     5          0
192.168.0.5   default      0   100     0     0  Established  NSRReady    606         0
10:10:10::1   default      0   200     0     0  Established  NSRReady     5          0
10.0.1.1        1          0   200     0     0  Established  NSRReady     5          0
10:0:1::1       1          0   200     0

The output focuses exclusively on real-time or near real-time BGP version rate statistics, showing only the "Live" interval column next to the "Total," without historical interval details.
You can monitor and analyze BGP version changes in detail using both historical intervals and real-time snapshots, categorized by neighbor, VRF, and AFI. This facilitates early detection of route instability, excessive churn, or underlying network issues.

What to do next

Review the output for any unexpected spikes or patterns in version changes. Investigate specific neighbors or intervals as needed for further troubleshooting or optimization.