Any internet capable device needs a unique machine-readable address, to share the information. But, as humans cannot remember these strings of numbers, websites are also labeled with domain names, like www.yahoo.com. When these addresses are typed into browsers, special servers translate them into IP addresses for the benefit of the computers. These addresses are assigned based on a standard of internet protocols and are called IP Address.
IPv4 standard of assigning IP addresses is still in use. As the supply of the usable addresses governed by the IPv4 (Internet Protocol Version 4) protocol has been being exhausted, new internet protocol IPv6 (Internet Protocol Version 6) standards are introduced in 1995 and standardized as RFC 2460 in 1998 and is being deployed world-wide since the mid-2000s.
In IPv4, the addresses are assigned in blocks of four numbers with up to three numerals each: 198.72.59.254. But in IPv6, there will be eight blocks of 16-bit hexadecimal numbers like 3FFE:085B:1F1F:0000:0000:0000:00A9:1234. The new IPv6 standard won't convert the numbers into the decimal system, rather a hexadecimal system, recognized by its combination of numbers and letters. The leading zeroes can be removed and if one or more group contains all zeroes, then it could be left without any zero. For example, the above address could be represented as 3FFE:85B:1F1F::::A9:1234.
The addresses in IPv4 standard are 32-bit supporting a maximum of 2pow32 (4,294,967,296) addresses. On the other hand, the addresses in the IPv6 standard are 128-bit and the header architecture is greatly improved in it.
It also has
• Larger Address Space
• Efficient and Extensible IP datagram
• Security
• Mobility
• Aggregation-based address hierarchy – Efficient backbone routing
• Stateless Address Auto configuration
Any windows OS, post Vista, will support IPv6 standard and there are some mechanisms to introduce this standard in systems using XP operating systems also and Mac systems starting at 10.2 and Linux, in general, can support IPv6.
In most cases, DSL (Digital Subscriber Line) access does not support the new standard but in some cases, IPv6 can be added with a firmware update. When purchasing a new router, we have to make sure it supports IPv6.
Generally, Internet use shouldn't be affected after the switch. The providers have modified their network so that data packets reach all users whether they are using IPv4 or IPv6 standards, a method called dual-stack application. Alternatively, software solutions, like those based on tunnel technology, can be used.
