bgpgrep

Filter and search BGP routing data in MRT format

TLDR

Filter routes matching a specific subnet from MRT dumps

$ bgpgrep [path/to/rib.mrt.gz] -subnet [192.0.2.0/24]

Filter routes by AS path pattern

$ bgpgrep [path/to/rib.mrt.gz] -aspath "[64496 64497]"

List routes from a specific peer

$ bgpgrep [path/to/rib.mrt.gz] -peer [198.51.100.1]

Find routes that lead to a specific address

$ bgpgrep [path/to/rib.mrt.gz] -supernet [8.8.8.8/32]

Detect bogon ASNs in routing data

$ bgpgrep [path/to/rib.mrt.gz] -bogon-asn

Combine filters with logical operators

$ bgpgrep [path/to/rib.mrt.gz] -bogon-asn -or -subnet [fullbogons.txt]

Filter by timestamp range

$ bgpgrep [path/to/updates.mrt.gz] -timestamp "[>=2021-07-01]" -and -timestamp "[<2021-07-08]"

SYNOPSIS

bgpgrep [file ...] [filter expressions]

bgpgrep is part of the Micro BGP Suite, a set of shell tools for filtering and analyzing BGP routing data stored in MRT (Multi-threaded Routing Toolkit) format. It processes BGP table dumps and update files from route collectors like RIPE RIS and RouteViews.Each line of output is prefixed with a character indicating the message type: `=` for RIB snapshot, `+` for announcement, `-` for withdrawal, and `#` for BGP state change. The output uses a pipe-delimited format where the 9th field contains the peer address and ASN, enabling easy integration with standard command-line tools like `cut` and `awk`.The tool supports filtering by prefix, AS path patterns, peer, communities, and timestamp. Multiple filters can be combined using boolean operators (`-and`, `-or`, `-not`) with parentheses for grouping. It handles both IPv4 and IPv6 prefixes and supports compressed MRT files (gzip, bzip2).

PARAMETERS

-peer address|asn

Match routes received from a specific peer, identified by IP address or AS number.

-aspath pattern

Match routes whose AS path matches the given pattern. Supports AS number sequences and regular expression-like syntax.

-supernet prefix

Match routes that are supernets of (or equal to) the specified prefix.

-subnet prefix|file

Match routes that are subnets of the specified prefix, or match against a prefix list from a file.

-communities expression

Match routes with specific BGP community values. Supports wildcard patterns.

-bogon-asn

Match routes containing bogon (reserved/unallocated) AS numbers in the AS path.

-loops

Detect AS path loops.

-timestamp condition

Filter by timestamp using comparison operators (e.g., ">=2021-07-01").

-and

Logical AND between filter conditions (default when combining filters).

-or

Logical OR between filter conditions.

-not

Negate the following filter condition.

CAVEATS

Input must be in MRT format (common BGP dump format). Filter option names use single-dash long form (e.g., `-peer`, not `--peer`). AS path matching patterns use bgpgrep-specific syntax that differs from standard regular expressions.