Definition of Static Routing in the Network Encyclopedia.
What is Static Routing?
Static Routing is a routing mechanism that is handled by the Internet Protocol (IP) and that depends on manually configured routing tables. Routers that use static routing are called static routers.
Static routers are generally used in smaller networks that contain only a couple of routers or when security is an issue. Each static router must be configured and maintained separately because static routers do not exchange routing information with each other.
How It Works
For a static router to function properly, the routing table must contain a route for every network in the internetwork. Hosts on a network are configured so that their default gateway address matches the IP address of the local router interface. When a host needs to send a packet to another network, it forwards the packet to the local router, which checks its routing table and determines which route to use to forward the packet.
Static routers are more difficult to administer than dynamic routers, but they can be more secure because the administrator controls the configuration of the router. Static routers are generally immune from any attempt by hackers to spoof dynamic routing protocol packets to reconfigure the router and hijack network traffic.
Configuring static routing on Windows Server
You can configure a multihomed server as a static router in Microsoft Windows Server OS. In Windows NT, select Enable IP Forwarding on the Routing tab of the TCP/IP property sheet. In Windows 2000, click the Advanced button on the TCP/IP property sheet, select the Options tab, select TCP/IP Filtering and click Properties, then select Enable TCP/IP Filtering. You can then add static routers for each remote network by using the route command.
