---
name: vpc-drs-getting-started
title: Getting started with dynamic route servers (beta)
description: Dynamic Route Server for VPC is designed for complex network topologies that require scalable, resilient, and automated routing, reducing the need for manual route configuration.
last-updated: 2026-10-23
---

> ## Documentation Index
> The table of contents for this documentation set is at https://cloud.ibm.com/docs/vpc?format=markdown
> The index for all IBM Cloud docs is at: https://cloud.ibm.com/docs/llms.txt
> Use these files to discover more information as needed.

# Getting started with dynamic route servers (beta)
{: #about-drs}

[Dynamic Route Server for VPC](https://cloud.ibm.com/docs/vpc?topic=vpc-release-notes&format=markdown#vpc-oct2126) is a beta feature that is available for evaluation and testing purposes to select customers. Access is restricted to allowlisted accounts.
{: beta}

Dynamic Route Server for VPC is designed for complex network topologies that require scalable, resilient, and automated routing, reducing the need for manual route configuration.
{: shortdesc}

You can use a dynamic route server to dynamically manage routing between your Virtual Private Cloud (VPC) and connected networks, such as transit gateways, firewalls, SD-WAN devices, and overlay networks. A dynamic route server uses Border Gateway Protocol (BGP) to learn and advertise routes, and applies policy-driven routing logic to automatically update VPC routing tables and peer connections as network conditions change.

## Before you begin
{: #getting-started-drs-prerequisites}

Before you provision a dynamic route server:

- Make sure that you have the required level of access to create VPC services. For more information, see [Getting started with Virtual Private Cloud](https://cloud.ibm.com/docs/vpc?topic=vpc-getting-started&format=markdown) and [Managing IAM access for VPC Infrastructure Services](https://cloud.ibm.com/docs/vpc?topic=vpc-iam-getting-started&format=markdown).
- Review [Planning considerations for dynamic route servers](https://cloud.ibm.com/docs/vpc?topic=vpc-planning-drs&format=markdown) to understand BGP, ASN, and routing table requirements.
- [Create a VPC](https://cloud.ibm.com/docs/vpc?topic=vpc-getting-started&format=markdown) and provision one or more [virtual network interfaces](https://cloud.ibm.com/docs/vpc?topic=vpc-vni-about&format=markdown#vni-getting-started) (VNIs). The dynamic route server uses the VNIs to deploy routing appliances and establish BGP sessions with peers.

## Setting up a dynamic route server
{: #drs-configure}

To set up a dynamic route server, follow these general steps:

1. [Create a dynamic route server instance](https://cloud.ibm.com/docs/vpc?topic=vpc-drs-create&format=markdown) and add at least one member.
1. [Create a peer group](https://cloud.ibm.com/docs/vpc?topic=vpc-drs-create-peer-group&format=markdown) for the dynamic route server instance.
1. [Attach peers](https://cloud.ibm.com/docs/vpc?topic=vpc-drs-attach-peer-to-group&format=markdown), such as firewalls, routers, or transit gateways, to the peer groups.
1. [Create peer group policies](https://cloud.ibm.com/docs/vpc?topic=vpc-drs-create-peer-group-policy&format=markdown) to control how routes are learned, advertised, or added to VPC routing tables.
1. Optionally, [create static routes](https://cloud.ibm.com/docs/vpc?topic=vpc-drs-create-static-routes&format=markdown) to define fixed network paths that are managed by the dynamic route server. Static routes are health-aware and are automatically added to or removed from VPC routing tables based on the health of the associated next-hop peer group.

## Next steps
{: #getting-started-drs-next-steps}

After your dynamic route server is set up, consider these next steps:

- Explore [Dynamic route server use cases](https://cloud.ibm.com/docs/vpc?topic=vpc-drs-use-cases&format=markdown) for guidance on common topologies such as routing through a firewall, multi-zone deployments, and active and standby failover.
- Read [Dynamic route server architecture](https://cloud.ibm.com/docs/vpc?topic=vpc-drs-architecture&format=markdown) to understand how the service components, routing appliances, and Transit Gateway integration work together.