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What's Your Timeline for IPv6 Migration?
SgtChaireBourne asks: "IPv4 has, over the last 20 years, seen unexpectedly wide adoption. During this time it's proven to be both flexible and robust, but also several problems, though once small, have grown. IPv6 looks to solve some scalability problems, add needed privacy and authentication mechanisms, address quality of service, and provide better routing and addressing capabilities. What kind of timeline does your site/institution/business have for rolling out IPv6 and how?" Those interested in IPv6 migration may also be interested in this article, from a year ago.
It's seen an unexpectedly wide adoption since 1983? If it takes that long to get unexpected adoption. how long does a slow rollout take?
I am still using IPv2, if it is not broken don't fix it. I hate these IP guys, always trying to make you buy a new version every 20 years.
I'm still trying to figure out the mess that is IPv4! Once I get our internal networks configured as perfect as I can get them, I'll start researching IPv6. Until then, I'll continue to figure out all the problems with the older protocol.
"Nobody else is, so why should we?"
That's basically the position we've taken for some reason where I work. Sure, we've been toying with grabbing a block and deploying it on some of our core routers across North America, but...there's no real need per se to do a serious deployment. Nobody's been asking for IPv6 either.
Maybe if there was a way to have mandatory conversion, things would move along a lot quicker.
In today's business climate, we can't imagine migrating without a financial incentive to do so.
IPv6 is like BetaMax tapes back in the 80's: sure, the format is technically better, but we've already got a ton of IPv4 gear and software. Even if you only use free software, there's still man-hours involved for implementation and planning. I pity the fella who walks into his boss's office and says, "Yeah, I'll be spending the next week on the IPv6 migration, getting all the desktops working, upgrading our router firmware, getting an IPv6 address from our ISP, etc."
IPv4 will work just like VHS tapes did: it'll be fine until the next dramatic quantum-leap comes along, like Tivos and DVD recorders will cut down on VHS recorder sales. IPv6 has some neat features, but nothing that a typical small business can't live without.
In the go-go-90's, you'd have been able to pull it off, but these days, if it ain't broke...
What's your damage, Heather?
Here are some helpful links:
IPv4 Policies
IPv6 Policies
Ya but does it have an evil bit?
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Go canucks, habs, and sens!
I've already switched, but isn't it more important whether all the really huge backbone servers switch? I mean, the majority of them are using IPv4, so are they willing to shut down for a few moments to upgrade (assuming it takes that long)? If they switch, could that entail major loses in their companies income?
but the Parallel nature that I am proposing would fix things like Security, Spam, Porn,
Baby, if IPv4 porn is wrong, I don't want to be right.
What's your damage, Heather?
I'm thinking that it'll really start to get to the point where I will start using it in 2008. This is me speaking about my small hosting business as well as a member of the local Internet Cooperative. I'm sure I'll be playing with IPV6 in the next year or two to get up to speed on it.
At the moment you can't get IPV6 service from any of the large providers. And really only people on ipv6 can take advantage of it, so... Until a significant portion of the end-users have IPV6, I can't see that we'll have any real need to start using it in any real way...
It's, obviously, a chicken-and-egg thing. It was really pushed because of the "sky is falling" shouts about running out of IP space. Todays world seems like there's plenty of IP space, if you're not super wastful with it, and we have other problems to face like router table space and ASNs.
The other problem I don't think we really have ironed out right now is that the routers are really underpowered and optimized for ipv4 routing. I expect that having significant traffic on IPV6 is going to stress many of the bigger routers on the net to the point that they can no longer function. Lots of "big router" admins are already working hard getting the routers to handle current traffic.
Sean
I'll expect to see IPv6 in wide deployment about the same time as the release of Duke Nukem Forever.
My company and I will give up IPv4 when you pry it from our cold dead hands.
A large number of providers offer IPv6 support today. NTT/Verio has been offering this as a Commercial Service for quite some time, as well as through the domestic provider OCN and the OCN DSL services. As the 6bone tunneled networks go away, there is ongoing native support being added to networks. IETF and other conferences have been supporting providers that offer native IPv6 services. Aside from the always behind the ball DSL/Cable providers in the edge provider space of multicast, IPv6, etc.. you can contact any of the Tier-1 networks to obtain IPv6 services. Likely for free and not out of the 3FFE space. Build IPv6 into your kernels, ask your service providers for IPv6 and encourage them to provide these to you for little/no additional cost. Juniper and Cisco routers currently offer IPv6 in their current software releases. Now that Cisco has acquired Linksys, hopefully they will assist in providing support for these services in the edge-router space.
Microsoft is well ahead there. They have been doing IPv6 stuff for years. Of course you still can't do anything with it and there is no DNS support and nobody seems to have a transition plan worth a damn, but you cannot blame Microsoft.
The real blame for IPv6, DNSSEC and IPSEC being nowhere is the IETF. And before ACs come back telling me that IPSEC is widely used for VPNs, yes I know, but a VPN is not what IPSEC is designed for. IPSEC was intended to be INTERNET security.
Rough Consensus and running code may have been fine when the IETF bigwigs were in their 20s and 30s. These days they are in their 50s and 60s and it really shows. The place has been a talking shop for has beens for years.
What is interesting is the number of folk who are NOT involved with IETF anymore. I have not seen Vint Cerf there for years, nor David Clark or Ron Rivest. Tim Berners-Lee has not been there for at least eight years and it is four years since I saw any W3C staff there. The hip venue these days is OASIS, you can get a spec finished in less than 2 years in OASIS - and when it is done it does not look like some shite that came off a teletype.
The folk in charge at the IETF these days are the second stringers, not the visionaries. They simply do not have what it takes to deploy IPv6 and they are scared of making a bad choice so they make no choices at all which is usually the worst choice.
The only major companies still involved in IETF in a big way are CISCO and Microsoft. And Microsoft is only there because they feel they need the cover. There are some Sun engineers still attending, but that seems to be as much as anything to keep their visibility up and their resume looking fresh.
Looking for an Information Security student project suggestion?
Try http://dotcrimeManifesto.com/
I think we'll do this right after we're done with Dvorak conversion...
"Flyin' in just a sweet place,
Never been known to fail..."
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