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IPv4 and IPv6, In Brief
The world’s networks run the “Internet Protocol” – or “IP” protocol. IPv4 was put into service during 1983, and has been and continues to be extended, functionally, to provide communications services to billions of people worldwide.
While IPv4 has provided a foundation for deployment of global-scale networks – the Internet of course but also private enterprise and government networks – IPv4 is approaching the end of its useful lifetime. It simply will not “scale up” to support all the modern services required in the decades ahead.
IPv6 is the “new and improved” version of the IP protocol and has been designed to carry global networking to 2035 and beyond. It is significantly re-designed from IPv4 (indeed, IPv4 and IPv6 do not work together, but are independent of each other), with many new features, but retains much of the “flavor” of IPv4 – a real testament to the insights and talents of the IPv4 design team in the late 1970’s.
IPv4 and IPv6 will co-exist side-by-side for a “transition period”. Here in 2011, the world is on the front-edge of that transition, with more IPv4-based communications than IPv6-based communications. By 2014 or 2015 the situation will have flipped around, with more IPv6 than IPv4.
In fact, in early 2011, the top-level organization charged with allocating IPv4 address blocks to network service providers and enterprises (IANA) “ran out” – the only IPv4 addresses left to assign are now held by regional registries (example: ARIN) – and their “stock on the shelves” is rapidly drawing down. Within a year, all IPv4 addresses will have been allocated to user organizations.
This puts IPv4 into a “sunset period”, lasting for years, and a complementary “sunrise period” for IPv6, which organizations are implementing now – and with some haste.
If your organization does not have an IPv6 implementation project – beginning with an assessment of the current network and a plan for IPv6 deployment – your organization is in a dangerous position. Don’t fall too far behind – playing “catch-up” – racing to deploy IPv6 at the last minute – will cost more and cause many more issues than if you plan ahead. Launch an IPv6 “learning project” today – Salient can help.
Happily, this lengthy transition from IPv4 to IPv6 should be managed smoothly by your IT department (in an enterprise) or the Service Provider or ISP (for a home user) with no impact on network users. Today, some web-browser sessions on the Internet use IPv4, some use IPv6. In fact, one computer system may use IPv4 for some Internet destinations and IPv6 for others – all depending on a series of network deployment decisions made by the local ISP and the destination network.
The Salient Federal Solutions website provides an “IP Protocol Version Banner” to tell users if they are using IPv4 or IPv6 for this connection.
If you see a banner like the one below, then your system (your PC) or the network your system is attached to is probably only IPv4-capable. This is OK in the near term but will be limiting in the mid-term.
*) If you are an IT manager using an enterprise computer, consider launching an IPv6 “learning project”, to determine the best course to take now.
*) If you are a home Internet user, consider asking your ISP about their IPv6 plans, or simply wait for the ISP to make progress on their IPv6 implementation project – many ISPs are at work on this critical capability today.
If you see a banner like the one below, then your system and network are already IPv6-capable, and are actively using IPv6 – you are in great shape to experience the new-and-improved Internet.
