IPv6

What is IPv6?

A proposed new IP addressing scheme for TCP/IP networks to replace the current IPv4 scheme. Proposed features of IPv6 include the following:

• 128-bit IP addresses to solve the problem of the available IP address pool being depleted
• A simplified header format to reduce network overhead and improve performance
• Support for preallocation of network resources to enable time-dependent services such as voice and video to receive guaranteed bandwidth and quality of service (QoS)
• Extensibility to account for future growth and evolution of Internet technologies and standards

IPv6 is also sometimes referred to as IPng, which stands for “IP Next Generation.” A network called the 6Bone was set up in 1995 as a testbed for IPv6 and to investigate how the Internet can be migrated from IPv4 to IPv6.