Port 179: BGP
Port 179 is BGP, the Border Gateway Protocol that exchanges routing information between the autonomous systems that make up the internet. It is the protocol that decides how traffic actually gets from one network to another.
| Port number | 179 |
|---|---|
| Service | Border Gateway Protocol |
| Protocol | TCP |
| Category | Routing |
| Default encryption | No |
How do I check whether port 179 is open?
Port 179 carries TCP, so a connection either completes its handshake or it does not, which makes the check definitive.
| Question | Command | What to know |
|---|---|---|
| Is it open on a remote host? | nc -vz example.com 179 | A TCP handshake either completes or it does not, so netcat gives a definitive answer in one line. |
| Same check on Windows | Test-NetConnection example.com -Port 179 | Built into PowerShell. TcpTestSucceeded in the output is the answer; telnet is not installed by default on modern Windows. |
| What is listening locally? | ss -tlnp | grep ':179 ' | Lists the process bound to port 179 on Linux. On macOS use lsof -nP -iTCP:179 -sTCP:LISTEN, on Windows netstat -ano | findstr :179 |
Replace example.com with the host you are testing. A blocked port and a port with nothing listening on it look identical from the outside, so if a service should be running, check locally before blaming the firewall.
Frequently asked questions
What is port 179 used for?
Port 179 is BGP, the Border Gateway Protocol that exchanges routing information between the autonomous systems that make up the internet. It is the protocol that decides how traffic actually gets from one network to another.
Is port 179 TCP or UDP?
Port 179 (BGP) uses TCP.
Is port 179 secure?
Port 179 is not encrypted by default. Where possible, use an encrypted alternative or tunnel it over TLS or a VPN.
Should I open port 179 on my firewall?
Only if you specifically need BGP. Expose it to the smallest set of trusted sources, and never open database or Windows-service ports to the whole internet.