IPv6 stands for Internet Protocol version 6. IPv6 is the
most recent version of Internet Protocol (IP). IPv6 belongs to Internet Layer
and responsible for end-to-end communication. IPv6 was developed by the IETF
(Internet Engineering Task Force). IPv6 was developed to remove the pitfalls of
IPv4 (Internet Protocol version 4).
Each and every device on the Internet needs a unique IP
address for identification and with the fast growth of the Internet and limited
address space of IPv4, there was need to develop IPv6 to provide address space
to all device on the Internet. IPv6 has 128-bit address and provides
approximately 3.4×1038 address space.
IPv6 provides more benefits in comparison IPv4. Device
mobility, security and easy configuration have been mentioned in the design of
IPv6. IPv6 provides hierarchical address allocation methods which limits the
expansion of routing tables. IPv6 does not provide interoperability functions
with IPv4. Direct communication between the IPv4 and IPv6 is not possible
therefore IPv6 creates a parallel and independent network and by the help of
translator gateways, exchanges traffic between the two networks i.e. IPv6 and
IPv4.
IPv6 addresses are written
in eight groups of hexadecimal digits which are separated by colons. Example of
IPv6 address is 2013:0ab8:a5a4:0000:8dbc:8450:4aa5:891c.
IPv6 uses a new packet format and minimize packet header
processing by the routers. IPv6 provides more benefit in comparison with IPv4,
are given below –
1. Network security
2. Stateless address which automatically configured when
connected to IPv6 network
3. Large address space
4. Multicast a packet to multiple destinations in a single
send command
5. Provides Privacy using globally unique IP addresses
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