MikroTik RouterOS, the operating system used on MikroTik devices, does not have its own exclusive routing protocol such as a protocol developed solely and specifically by MikroTik.

Instead, MikroTik RouterOS supports a wide variety of standard and widely used routing protocols in the industry. These include:

1. Border Gateway Protocol (BGP)

• Description: BGP is one of the most important routing protocols used on the Internet, designed for routing between autonomous systems (AS). MikroTik provides robust support for BGP, enabling complex and tight configurations for large and small networks.
• Features: MikroTik supports BGP with features such as policy-based routing, multiple instances, and support for IPv6.

2. Open Shortest Path First (OSPF)

• Description: OSPF is an internal routing protocol (IGP) based on link state. It is widely used within a single autonomous system in enterprise networks and ISPs.
• Features- OSPF in MikroTik allows multi-area configuration and traffic optimization by choosing shortest routes based on the current state of network links.

3. Routing Information Protocol (RIP)

• Description: RIP is one of the oldest and simplest routing protocols. It is less common today but still supported by MikroTik for compatibility with older systems or for simple setups.
• Features: RIP in MikroTik supports both RIP v1 and RIP v2 and is easy to configure for small networks.

4. Intermediate System to Intermediate System (IS-IS)

• Description: IS-IS is another link state-based routing protocol, similar to OSPF, but traditionally used in service provider environments.
• Features: MikroTik RouterOS supports IS-IS, allowing it to be used in larger, more complex networks, particularly where scalability is crucial.

5. Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS)

• Description: Although not a routing protocol per se, MPLS is a routing technique that MikroTik supports to enable efficient and versatile data flows over networks.
• Features: MikroTik supports several MPLS features, including LDP, VPLS, and engineering traffic.

Summary

While MikroTik does not offer a “proprietary” routing protocol as such, its strength lies in the versatile and efficient implementation of standard and widely adopted routing protocols, allowing MikroTik RouterOS users to take full advantage of these technologies to optimize and scale their networks as needed.

This makes MikroTik devices extremely flexible and powerful in a variety of network scenarios, from small offices to large ISPs.