When an OSPF router is initially connected to a network, it attempts to:
- Create adjacencies with neighbors
 
- Exchange routing information
 
- Calculate the best routes
 
- Reach convergence
 
OSPF progresses through several states while attempting to reach convergence:
- Down state
 
- Init state
 
- Two-Way state
 
- ExStart state
 
- Exchange state
 
- Loading state
 
- Full state
 
Click the blue boxes in the figure for more information.