V6ops Workgroup RFCs

Browse V6ops Workgroup RFCs by Number

RFC3574 - Transition Scenarios for 3GPP Networks: This document describes different scenarios in Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) defined packet network, i.e., General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) that would need IP version 6 and IP version 4 transition. The focus of this document is on the scenarios where the User Equipment (UE) connects to nodes in other networks, e.g., in the Internet. GPRS network internal transition scenarios, i.e., between different GPRS elements in the network, are out of scope. The purpose of the document is to list the scenarios for further discussion and study. This memo provides information for the Internet community.
RFC3750 - Unmanaged Networks IPv6 Transition Scenarios: This document defines the scenarios in which IPv6 transition mechanisms are to be used in unmanaged networks. In order to evaluate the suitability of these mechanisms, we need to define the scenarios in which these mechanisms have to be used. One specific scope is the "unmanaged network", which typically corresponds to a home or small office network. The scenarios are specific to a single subnet, and are defined in terms of IP connectivity supported by the gateway and the Internet Service Provider (ISP). We first examine the generic requirements of four classes of applications: local, client, peer to peer and server. Then, for each scenario, we infer transition requirements by analyzing the needs for smooth migration of applications from IPv4 to IPv6. This memo provides information for the Internet community.
RFC3789 - Introduction to the Survey of IPv4 Addresses in Currently Deployed IETF Standards Track and Experimental Documents: This document is a general overview and introduction to the v6ops IETF workgroup project of documenting all usage of IPv4 addresses in IETF standards track and experimental RFCs. It is broken into seven documents conforming to the current IETF areas. It also describes the methodology used during documentation, which types of RFCs have been documented, and provides a concatenated summary of results. This memo provides information for the Internet community.
RFC3790 - Survey of IPv4 Addresses in Currently Deployed IETF Internet Area Standards Track and Experimental Documents: This document seeks to document all usage of IPv4 addresses in currently deployed IETF Internet Area documented standards. In order to successfully transition from an all IPv4 Internet to an all IPv6 Internet, many interim steps will be taken. One of these steps is the evolution of current protocols that have IPv4 dependencies. It is hoped that these protocols (and their implementations) will be redesigned to be network address independent, but failing that will at least dually support IPv4 and IPv6. To this end, all Standards (Full, Draft, and Proposed) as well as Experimental RFCs will be surveyed and any dependencies will be documented. This memo provides information for the Internet community.
RFC3791 - Survey of IPv4 Addresses in Currently Deployed IETF Routing Area Standards Track and Experimental Documents: This investigation work seeks to document all usage of IPv4 addresses in currently deployed IETF Routing Area documented standards. In order to successfully transition from an all IPv4 Internet to an all IPv6 Internet, many interim steps will be taken. One of these steps is the evolution of current protocols that have IPv4 dependencies. It is hoped that these protocols (and their implementations) will be redesigned to be network address independent, but failing that will at least dually support IPv4 and IPv6. To this end, all Standards (Full, Draft, and Proposed) as well as Experimental RFCs will be surveyed and any dependencies will be documented. This memo provides information for the Internet community.
RFC3792 - Survey of IPv4 Addresses in Currently Deployed IETF Security Area Standards Track and Experimental Documents: This document seeks to document all usage of IPv4 addresses in currently deployed IETF Security Area documented standards. In order to successfully transition from an all IPv4 Internet to an all IPv6 Internet, many interim steps will be taken. One of these steps is the evolution of current protocols that have IPv4 dependencies. It is hoped that these protocols (and their implementations) will be redesigned to be network address independent, but failing that will at least dually support IPv4 and IPv6. To this end, all Standards (Full, Draft, and Proposed) as well as Experimental RFCs will be surveyed and any dependencies will be documented. This memo provides information for the Internet community.
RFC3793 - Survey of IPv4 Addresses in Currently Deployed IETF Sub-IP Area Standards Track and Experimental Documents: This document seeks to document all usage of IPv4 addresses in currently deployed IETF Sub-IP Area documented standards. In order to successfully transition from an all IPv4 Internet to an all IPv6 Internet, many interim steps will be taken. One of these steps is the evolution of current protocols that have IPv4 dependencies. It is hoped that these protocols (and their implementations) will be redesigned to be network address independent, but failing that will at least dually support IPv4 and IPv6. To this end, all Standards (Full, Draft, and Proposed) as well as Experimental RFCs will be surveyed and any dependencies will be documented. This memo provides information for the Internet community.
RFC3794 - Survey of IPv4 Addresses in Currently Deployed IETF Transport Area Standards Track and Experimental Documents: This document seeks to document all usage of IPv4 addresses in currently deployed IETF Transport Area documented standards. In order to successfully transition from an all IPv4 Internet to an all IPv6 Internet, many interim steps will be taken. One of these steps is the evolution of current protocols that have IPv4 dependencies. It is hoped that these protocols (and their implementations) will be redesigned to be network address independent, but failing that will at least dually support IPv4 and IPv6. To this end, all Standards (Full, Draft, and Proposed) as well as Experimental RFCs will be surveyed and any dependencies will be documented. This memo provides information for the Internet community.
RFC3795 - Survey of IPv4 Addresses in Currently Deployed IETF Application Area Standards Track and Experimental Documents: This document describes IPv4 addressing dependencies in an attempt to clarify the necessary steps in re-designing and re-implementing specifications to become network address independent, or at least, to dually support IPv4 and IPv6. This transition requires several interim steps, one of them being the evolution of current IPv4 dependent specifications to a format independent of the type of IP addressing schema used. Hence, it is hoped that specifications will be re-designed and re-implemented to become network address independent, or at least to dually support IPv4 and IPv6. To achieve that step, it is necessary to survey and document all IPv4 dependencies experienced by current standards (Full, Draft, and Proposed) as well as Experimental RFCs. Hence, this document describes IPv4 addressing dependencies that deployed IETF Application Area documented Standards may experience. This memo provides information for the Internet community.
RFC3796 - Survey of IPv4 Addresses in Currently Deployed IETF Operations & Management Area Standards Track and Experimental Documents: This document seeks to record all usage of IPv4 addresses in currently deployed IETF Operations & Management Area accepted standards. In order to successfully transition from an all IPv4 Internet to an all IPv6 Internet, many interim steps will be taken. One of these steps is the evolution of current protocols that have IPv4 dependencies. It is hoped that these protocols (and their implementations) will be redesigned to be network address independent, but failing that will at least dually support IPv4 and IPv6. To this end, all Standards (Full, Draft, and Proposed), as well as Experimental RFCs, will be surveyed and any dependencies will be documented. This memo provides information for the Internet community.
RFC3904 - Evaluation of IPv6 Transition Mechanisms for Unmanaged Networks: This document analyzes issues involved in the transition of "unmanaged networks" from IPv4 to IPv6. Unmanaged networks typically correspond to home networks or small office networks. A companion paper analyzes out the requirements for mechanisms needed in various transition scenarios of these networks to IPv6. Starting from this analysis, we evaluate the suitability of mechanisms that have already been specified, proposed, or deployed. This memo provides information for the Internet community.
RFC3964 - Security Considerations for 6to4: The IPv6 interim mechanism 6to4 (RFC3056) uses automatic IPv6-over-IPv4 tunneling to interconnect IPv6 networks. The architecture includes 6to4 routers and 6to4 relay routers, which accept and decapsulate IPv4 protocol-41 ("IPv6-in-IPv4") traffic from any node in the IPv4 internet. This characteristic enables a number of security threats, mainly Denial of Service. It also makes it easier for nodes to spoof IPv6 addresses. This document discusses these issues in more detail and suggests enhancements to alleviate the problems. This memo provides information for the Internet community.
RFC4029 - Scenarios and Analysis for Introducing IPv6 into ISP Networks: This document describes different scenarios for the introduction of IPv6 into an ISP's existing IPv4 network without disrupting the IPv4 service. The scenarios for introducing IPv6 are analyzed, and the relevance of already defined transition mechanisms are evaluated. Known challenges are also identified. This memo provides information for the Internet community.
RFC4038 - Application Aspects of IPv6 Transition: As IPv6 networks are deployed and the network transition is discussed, one should also consider how to enable IPv6 support in applications running on IPv6 hosts, and the best strategy to develop IP protocol support in applications. This document specifies scenarios and aspects of application transition. It also proposes guidelines on how to develop IP version-independent applications during the transition period. This memo provides information for the Internet community.
RFC4057 - IPv6 Enterprise Network Scenarios: This document describes the scenarios for IPv6 deployment within enterprise networks. It defines a small set of basic enterprise scenarios and includes pertinent questions to allow enterprise administrators to further refine their deployment scenarios. Enterprise deployment requirements are discussed in terms of coexistence with IPv4 nodes, networks and applications, and in terms of basic network infrastructure requirements for IPv6 deployment. The scenarios and requirements described in this document will be the basis for further analysis to determine what coexistence techniques and mechanisms are needed for enterprise IPv6 deployment. The results of that analysis will be published in a separate document. This memo provides information for the Internet community.
RFC4192 - Procedures for Renumbering an IPv6 Network without a Flag Day: This document describes a procedure that can be used to renumber a network from one prefix to another. It uses IPv6's intrinsic ability to assign multiple addresses to a network interface to provide continuity of network service through a "make-before-break" transition, as well as addresses naming and configuration management issues. It also uses other IPv6 features to minimize the effort and time required to complete the transition from the old prefix to the new prefix. This memo provides information for the Internet community.
RFC4213 - Basic Transition Mechanisms for IPv6 Hosts and Routers: This document specifies IPv4 compatibility mechanisms that can be implemented by IPv6 hosts and routers. Two mechanisms are specified, dual stack and configured tunneling. Dual stack implies providing complete implementations of both versions of the Internet Protocol (IPv4 and IPv6), and configured tunneling provides a means to carry IPv6 packets over unmodified IPv4 routing infrastructures.; This document obsoletes RFC 2893. [STANDARDS-TRACK]
RFC4215 - Analysis on IPv6 Transition in Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) Networks: This document analyzes the transition to IPv6 in Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) packet networks. These networks are based on General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) technology, and the radio network architecture is based on Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) or Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS)/Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA) technology.; The focus is on analyzing different transition scenarios and applicable transition mechanisms and finding solutions for those transition scenarios. In these scenarios, the User Equipment (UE) connects to other nodes, e.g., in the Internet, and IPv6/IPv4 transition mechanisms are needed. This memo provides information for the Internet community.
RFC4554 - Use of VLANs for IPv4-IPv6 Coexistence in Enterprise Networks: Ethernet VLANs are quite commonly used in enterprise networks for the purposes of traffic segregation. This document describes how such VLANs can be readily used to deploy IPv6 networking in an enterprise, which focuses on the scenario of early deployment prior to availability of IPv6-capable switch-router equipment. In this method, IPv6 may be routed in parallel with the existing IPv4 in the enterprise and delivered at Layer 2 via VLAN technology. The IPv6 connectivity to the enterprise may or may not enter the site via the same physical link. This memo provides information for the Internet community.
RFC4779 - ISP IPv6 Deployment Scenarios in Broadband Access Networks: This document provides a detailed description of IPv6 deployment and integration methods and scenarios in today\'s Service Provider (SP) Broadband (BB) networks in coexistence with deployed IPv4 services. Cable/HFC, BB Ethernet, xDSL, and WLAN are the main BB technologies that are currently deployed, and discussed in this document. The emerging Broadband Power Line Communications (PLC/BPL) access technology is also discussed for completeness. In this document we will discuss main components of IPv6 BB networks, their differences from IPv4 BB networks, and how IPv6 is deployed and integrated in each of these networks using tunneling mechanisms and native IPv6. This memo provides information for the Internet community.
RFC4852 - IPv6 Enterprise Network Analysis - IP Layer 3 Focus: This document analyzes the transition to IPv6 in enterprise networks focusing on IP Layer 3. These networks are characterized as having multiple internal links and one or more router connections to one or more Providers, and as being managed by a network operations entity. The analysis focuses on a base set of transition notational networks and requirements expanded from a previous document on enterprise scenarios. Discussion is provided on a focused set of transition analysis required for the enterprise to transition to IPv6, assuming a Dual-IP layer (IPv4 and IPv6) network and node environment within the enterprise. Then, a set of transition mechanisms are recommended for each notational network. This memo provides information for the Internet community.
RFC4864 - Local Network Protection for IPv6: Although there are many perceived benefits to Network Address Translation (NAT), its primary benefit of "amplifying" available address space is not needed in IPv6. In addition to NAT's many serious disadvantages, there is a perception that other benefits exist, such as a variety of management and security attributes that could be useful for an Internet Protocol site. IPv6 was designed with the intention of making NAT unnecessary, and this document shows how Local Network Protection (LNP) using IPv6 can provide the same or more benefits without the need for address translation. This memo provides information for the Internet community.
RFC4890 - Recommendations for Filtering ICMPv6 Messages in Firewalls: In networks supporting IPv6, the Internet Control Message Protocol version 6 (ICMPv6) plays a fundamental role with a large number of functions, and a correspondingly large number of message types and options. ICMPv6 is essential to the functioning of IPv6, but there are a number of security risks associated with uncontrolled forwarding of ICMPv6 messages. Filtering strategies designed for the corresponding protocol, ICMP, in IPv4 networks are not directly applicable, because these strategies are intended to accommodate a useful auxiliary protocol that may not be required for correct functioning.; This document provides some recommendations for ICMPv6 firewall filter configuration that will allow propagation of ICMPv6 messages that are needed to maintain the functioning of the network but drop messages that are potential security risks. This memo provides information for the Internet community.
RFC4891 - Using IPsec to Secure IPv6-in-IPv4 Tunnels: This document gives guidance on securing manually configured IPv6-in- IPv4 tunnels using IPsec in transport mode. No additional protocol extensions are described beyond those available with the IPsec framework. This memo provides information for the Internet community.
RFC4942 - IPv6 Transition/Co-existence Security Considerations: The transition from a pure IPv4 network to a network where IPv4 and IPv6 coexist brings a number of extra security considerations that need to be taken into account when deploying IPv6 and operating the dual-protocol network and the associated transition mechanisms. This document attempts to give an overview of the various issues grouped into three categories:; o issues due to the IPv6 protocol itself, o issues due to transition mechanisms, and o issues due to IPv6 deployment.; This memo provides information for the Internet community.
RFC4943 - IPv6 Neighbor Discovery On-Link Assumption Considered Harmful: This document describes the historical and background information behind the removal of the "on-link assumption" from the conceptual host sending algorithm defined in Neighbor Discovery for IP Version 6 (IPv6). According to the algorithm as originally described, when a host's default router list is empty, the host assumes that all destinations are on-link. This is particularly problematic with IPv6-capable nodes that do not have off-link IPv6 connectivity (e.g., no default router). This document describes how making this assumption causes problems and how these problems outweigh the benefits of this part of the conceptual sending algorithm. This memo provides information for the Internet community.
RFC4966 - Reasons to Move the Network Address Translator - Protocol Translator (NAT-PT) to Historic Status: This document discusses issues with the specific form of IPv6-IPv4 protocol translation mechanism implemented by the Network Address Translator - Protocol Translator (NAT-PT) defined in RFC 2766. These issues are sufficiently serious that recommending RFC 2766 as a general purpose transition mechanism is no longer desirable, and this document recommends that the IETF should reclassify RFC 2766 from Proposed Standard to Historic status. This memo provides information for the Internet community.
RFC5156 - Special-Use IPv6 Addresses: This document is a compilation of special IPv6 addresses defined in other RFCs. It can be used as a checklist of invalid routing prefixes for developing filtering policies for routes and IP packets. It does not discuss addresses that are assigned to operators and users through the Regional Internet Registries. This memo provides information for the Internet community.
RFC5157 - IPv6 Implications for Network Scanning: The much larger default 64-bit subnet address space of IPv6 should in principle make traditional network (port) scanning techniques used by certain network worms or scanning tools less effective. While traditional network scanning probes (whether by individuals or automated via network worms) may become less common, administrators should be aware that attackers may use other techniques to discover IPv6 addresses on a target network, and thus they should also be aware of measures that are available to mitigate them. This informational document discusses approaches that administrators could take when planning their site address allocation and management strategies as part of a defence-in-depth approach to network security. This memo provides information for the Internet community.
RFC5181 - IPv6 Deployment Scenarios in 802.16 Networks: This document provides a detailed description of IPv6 deployment and integration methods and scenarios in wireless broadband access networks in coexistence with deployed IPv4 services. In this document, we will discuss the main components of IPv6 IEEE 802.16 access networks and their differences from IPv4 IEEE 802.16 networks and how IPv6 is deployed and integrated in each of the IEEE 802.16 technologies. This memo provides information for the Internet community.
RFC5220 - Problem Statement for Default Address Selection in Multi-Prefix Environments: Operational Issues of RFC 3484 Default Rules: A single physical link can have multiple prefixes assigned to it. In that environment, end hosts might have multiple IP addresses and be required to use them selectively. RFC 3484 defines default source and destination address selection rules and is implemented in a variety of OSs. But, it has been too difficult to use operationally for several reasons. In some environments where multiple prefixes are assigned on a single physical link, the host using the default address selection rules will experience some trouble in communication. This document describes the possible problems that end hosts could encounter in an environment with multiple prefixes. This memo provides information for the Internet community.
RFC5221 - Requirements for Address Selection Mechanisms: There are some problematic cases when using the default address selection mechanism that RFC 3484 defines. This document describes additional requirements that operate with RFC 3484 to solve the problems. This memo provides information for the Internet community.
RFC5375 - IPv6 Unicast Address Assignment Considerations: One fundamental aspect of any IP communications infrastructure is its addressing plan. With its new address architecture and allocation policies, the introduction of IPv6 into a network means that network designers and operators need to reconsider their existing approaches to network addressing. Lack of guidelines on handling this aspect of network design could slow down the deployment and integration of IPv6. This document aims to provide the information and recommendations relevant to planning the addressing aspects of IPv6 deployments. The document also provides IPv6 addressing case studies for both an enterprise and an ISP network. This memo provides information for the Internet community.
RFC5963 - IPv6 Deployment in Internet Exchange Points (IXPs): This document provides guidance on IPv6 deployment in Internet Exchange Points (IXPs). It includes information regarding the switch fabric configuration, the addressing plan and general organizational tasks that need to be performed. IXPs are mainly a Layer 2 infrastructure, and, in many cases, the best recommendations suggest that the IPv6 data, control, and management plane should not be handled differently than in IPv4. This document is not an Internet Standards Track specification; it is published for informational purposes.
RFC6036 - Emerging Service Provider Scenarios for IPv6 Deployment: This document describes practices and plans that are emerging among Internet Service Providers for the deployment of IPv6 services. They are based on practical experience so far, as well as current plans and requirements, reported in a survey of a number of ISPs carried out in early 2010. This document identifies a number of technology gaps, but it does not make recommendations. This document is not an Internet Standards Track specification; it is published for informational purposes.
RFC6092 - Recommended Simple Security Capabilities in Customer Premises Equipment (CPE) for Providing Residential IPv6 Internet Service: This document identifies a set of recommendations for the makers of devices and describes how to provide for "simple security" capabilities at the perimeter of local-area IPv6 networks in Internet-enabled homes and small offices. This document is not an Internet Standards Track specification; it is published for informational purposes.
RFC6104 - Rogue IPv6 Router Advertisement Problem Statement: When deploying IPv6, whether IPv6-only or dual-stack, routers are configured to send IPv6 Router Advertisements (RAs) to convey information to nodes that enable them to autoconfigure on the network. This information includes the implied default router address taken from the observed source address of the RA message, as well as on-link prefix information. However, unintended misconfigurations by users or administrators, or possibly malicious attacks on the network, may lead to bogus RAs being present, which in turn can cause operational problems for hosts on the network. In this document, we summarise the scenarios in which rogue RAs may be observed and present a list of possible solutions to the problem. We focus on the unintended causes of rogue RAs in the text. The goal of this text is to be Informational, and as such to present a framework around which solutions can be proposed and discussed. This document is not an Internet Standards Track specification; it is published for informational purposes.
RFC6105 - IPv6 Router Advertisement Guard: Routed protocols are often susceptible to spoof attacks. The canonical solution for IPv6 is Secure Neighbor Discovery (SEND), a solution that is non-trivial to deploy. This document proposes a light-weight alternative and complement to SEND based on filtering in the layer-2 network fabric, using a variety of filtering criteria, including, for example, SEND status. This document is not an Internet Standards Track specification; it is published for informational purposes.
RFC6169 - Security Concerns with IP Tunneling: A number of security concerns with IP tunnels are documented in this memo. The intended audience of this document includes network administrators and future protocol developers. The primary intent of this document is to raise the awareness level regarding the security issues with IP tunnels as deployed and propose strategies for the mitigation of those issues. [STANDARDS-TRACK]
RFC6177 - IPv6 Address Assignment to End Sites: RFC 3177 argued that in IPv6, end sites should be assigned /48 blocks in most cases. The Regional Internet Registries (RIRs) adopted that recommendation in 2002, but began reconsidering the policy in 2005. This document obsoletes the RFC 3177 recommendations on the assignment of IPv6 address space to end sites. The exact choice of how much address space to assign end sites is an issue for the operational community. The IETF's role in this case is limited to providing guidance on IPv6 architectural and operational considerations. This document reviews the architectural and operational considerations of end site assignments as well as the motivations behind the original recommendations in RFC 3177. Moreover, this document clarifies that a one-size-fits-all recommendation of /48 is not nuanced enough for the broad range of end sites and is no longer recommended as a single default.; This document obsoletes RFC 3177. [STANDARDS-TRACK]
RFC6204 - Basic Requirements for IPv6 Customer Edge Routers: This document specifies requirements for an IPv6 Customer Edge (CE) router. Specifically, the current version of this document focuses on the basic provisioning of an IPv6 CE router and the provisioning of IPv6 hosts attached to it. This document is not an Internet Standards Track specification; it is published for informational purposes.
RFC6264 - An Incremental Carrier-Grade NAT (CGN) for IPv6 Transition: Global IPv6 deployment was slower than originally expected. As IPv4 address exhaustion approaches, IPv4 to IPv6 transition issues become more critical and less tractable. Host-based transition mechanisms used in dual-stack environments cannot meet all transition requirements. Most end users are not sufficiently expert to configure or maintain host-based transition mechanisms. Carrier-Grade NAT (CGN) devices with integrated transition mechanisms can reduce the operational changes required during the IPv4 to IPv6 migration or coexistence period.; This document proposes an incremental CGN approach for IPv6 transition. It can provide IPv6 access services for IPv6 hosts and IPv4 access services for IPv4 hosts while leaving much of a legacy ISP network unchanged during the initial stage of IPv4 to IPv6 migration. Unlike CGN alone, incremental CGN also supports and encourages smooth transition towards dual-stack or IPv6-only ISP networks. An integrated configurable CGN device and an adaptive home gateway (HG) device are described. Both are reusable during different transition phases, avoiding multiple upgrades. This enables IPv6 migration to be incrementally achieved according to real user requirements. This document is not an Internet Standards Track specification; it is published for informational purposes.
RFC6312 - Mobile Networks Considerations for IPv6 Deployment: Mobile Internet access from smartphones and other mobile devices is accelerating the exhaustion of IPv4 addresses. IPv6 is widely seen as crucial for the continued operation and growth of the Internet, and in particular, it is critical in mobile networks. This document discusses the issues that arise when deploying IPv6 in mobile networks. Hence, this document can be a useful reference for service providers and network designers. This document is not an Internet Standards Track specification; it is published for informational purposes.
RFC6324 - Routing Loop Attack Using IPv6 Automatic Tunnels: Problem Statement and Proposed Mitigations: This document is concerned with security vulnerabilities in IPv6-in- IPv4 automatic tunnels. These vulnerabilities allow an attacker to take advantage of inconsistencies between the IPv4 routing state and the IPv6 routing state. The attack forms a routing loop that can be abused as a vehicle for traffic amplification to facilitate denial- of-service (DoS) attacks. The first aim of this document is to inform on this attack and its root causes. The second aim is to present some possible mitigation measures. It should be noted that at the time of this writing there are no known reports of malicious attacks exploiting these vulnerabilities. Nonetheless, these vulnerabilities can be activated by accidental misconfiguration. This document is not an Internet Standards Track specification; it is published for informational purposes.
RFC6342 - Mobile Networks Considerations for IPv6 Deployment: Mobile Internet access from smartphones and other mobile devices is accelerating the exhaustion of IPv4 addresses. IPv6 is widely seen as crucial for the continued operation and growth of the Internet, and in particular, it is critical in mobile networks. This document discusses the issues that arise when deploying IPv6 in mobile networks. Hence, this document can be a useful reference for service providers and network designers. This document is not an Internet Standards Track specification; it is published for informational purposes.
RFC6343 - Advisory Guidelines for 6to4 Deployment: This document provides advice to network operators about deployment of the 6to4 technique for automatic tunneling of IPv6 over IPv4. It is principally addressed to Internet Service Providers (ISPs), including those that do not yet support IPv6, and to Content Providers. Some advice to implementers is also included. The intention of the advice is to minimize both user dissatisfaction and help-desk calls. This document is not an Internet Standards Track specification; it is published for informational purposes.
RFC6459 - IPv6 in 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) Evolved Packet System (EPS): The use of cellular broadband for accessing the Internet and other data services via smartphones, tablets, and notebook/netbook computers has increased rapidly as a result of high-speed packet data networks such as HSPA, HSPA+, and now Long-Term Evolution (LTE) being deployed. Operators that have deployed networks based on 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) network architectures are facing IPv4 address shortages at the Internet registries and are feeling pressure to migrate to IPv6. This document describes the support for IPv6 in 3GPP network architectures. This document is not an Internet Standards Track specification; it is published for informational purposes.
RFC6555 - Happy Eyeballs: Success with Dual-Stack Hosts: When a server's IPv4 path and protocol are working, but the server's IPv6 path and protocol are not working, a dual-stack client application experiences significant connection delay compared to an IPv4-only client. This is undesirable because it causes the dual- stack client to have a worse user experience. This document specifies requirements for algorithms that reduce this user-visible delay and provides an algorithm. [STANDARDS-TRACK]
RFC6583 - Operational Neighbor Discovery Problems: In IPv4, subnets are generally small, made just large enough to cover the actual number of machines on the subnet. In contrast, the default IPv6 subnet size is a /64, a number so large it covers trillions of addresses, the overwhelming number of which will be unassigned. Consequently, simplistic implementations of Neighbor Discovery (ND) can be vulnerable to deliberate or accidental denial of service (DoS), whereby they attempt to perform address resolution for large numbers of unassigned addresses. Such denial-of-service attacks can be launched intentionally (by an attacker) or result from legitimate operational tools or accident conditions. As a result of these vulnerabilities, new devices may not be able to "join" a network, it may be impossible to establish new IPv6 flows, and existing IPv6 transported flows may be interrupted.; This document describes the potential for DoS in detail and suggests possible implementation improvements as well as operational mitigation techniques that can, in some cases, be used to protect against or at least alleviate the impact of such attacks. [STANDARDS-TRACK]
RFC6589 - Considerations for Transitioning Content to IPv6: This document describes considerations for the transition of end-user content on the Internet to IPv6. While this is tailored to address end-user content, which is typically web-based, many aspects of this document may be more broadly applicable to the transition to IPv6 of other applications and services. This document explores the challenges involved in the transition to IPv6, potential migration tactics, possible migration phases, and other considerations. The audience for this document is the Internet community generally, particularly IPv6 implementers. This document is not an Internet Standards Track specification; it is published for informational purposes.
RFC6666 - A Discard Prefix for IPv6: Remote triggered black hole filtering describes a method of mitigating the effects of denial-of-service attacks by selectively discarding traffic based on source or destination address. Remote triggered black hole routing describes a method of selectively re- routing traffic into a sinkhole router (for further analysis) based on destination address. This document updates the "IPv6 Special Purpose Address Registry" by explaining why a unique IPv6 prefix should be formally assigned by IANA for the purpose of facilitating IPv6 remote triggered black hole filtering and routing. This document is not an Internet Standards Track specification; it is published for informational purposes.
RFC6782 - Wireline Incremental IPv6: Operators worldwide are in various stages of preparing for or deploying IPv6 in their networks. These operators often face difficult challenges related to IPv6 introduction, along with those related to IPv4 run-out. Operators will need to meet the simultaneous needs of IPv6 connectivity and continue support for IPv4 connectivity for legacy devices with a stagnant supply of IPv4 addresses. The IPv6 transition will take most networks from an IPv4- only environment to an IPv6-dominant environment with long transition periods varying by operator. This document helps provide a framework for wireline providers who are faced with the challenges of introducing IPv6 along with meeting the legacy needs of IPv4 connectivity, utilizing well-defined and commercially available IPv6 transition technologies. This document is not an Internet Standards Track specification; it is published for informational purposes.
RFC6791 - Stateless Source Address Mapping for ICMPv6 Packets: A stateless IPv4/IPv6 translator may receive ICMPv6 packets containing non-IPv4-translatable addresses as the source. These packets should be passed across the translator as ICMP packets directed to the IPv4 destination. This document presents recommendations for source address translation in ICMPv6 headers to handle such cases. [STANDARDS-TRACK]
RFC6877 - 464XLAT: Combination of Stateful and Stateless Translation: This document describes an architecture (464XLAT) for providing limited IPv4 connectivity across an IPv6-only network by combining existing and well-known stateful protocol translation (as described in RFC 6146) in the core and stateless protocol translation (as described in RFC 6145) at the edge. 464XLAT is a simple and scalable technique to quickly deploy limited IPv4 access service to IPv6-only edge networks without encapsulation.
RFC6883 - IPv6 Guidance for Internet Content Providers and Application Service Providers: This document provides guidance and suggestions for Internet Content Providers and Application Service Providers who wish to offer their service to both IPv6 and IPv4 customers. Many of the points will also apply to hosting providers or to any enterprise network preparing for IPv6 users.
RFC7066 - IPv6 for Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) Cellular Hosts: As the deployment of third and fourth generation cellular networks progresses, a large number of cellular hosts are being connected to the Internet. Standardization organizations have made the Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6) mandatory in their specifications. However, the concept of IPv6 covers many aspects and numerous specifications. In addition, the characteristics of cellular links in terms of bandwidth, cost, and delay put special requirements on how IPv6 is used. This document considers IPv6 for cellular hosts that attach to the General Packet Radio Service (GPRS), Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS), or Evolved Packet System (EPS) networks (hereafter collectively referred to as Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) networks). This document also lists specific IPv6 functionalities that need to be implemented in addition to what is already prescribed in the IPv6 Node Requirements document (RFC 6434). It also discusses some issues related to the use of these components when operating in these networks. This document obsoletes RFC 3316.
RFC7084 - Basic Requirements for IPv6 Customer Edge Routers: This document specifies requirements for an IPv6 Customer Edge (CE) router. Specifically, the current version of this document focuses on the basic provisioning of an IPv6 CE router and the provisioning of IPv6 hosts attached to it. The document also covers IP transition technologies. Two transition technologies in RFC 5969's IPv6 Rapid Deployment on IPv4 Infrastructures (6rd) and RFC 6333's Dual-Stack Lite (DS-Lite) are covered in the document. The document obsoletes RFC 6204.
RFC7113 - Implementation Advice for IPv6 Router Advertisement Guard (RA-Guard): The IPv6 Router Advertisement Guard (RA-Guard) mechanism is commonly employed to mitigate attack vectors based on forged ICMPv6 Router Advertisement messages. Many existing IPv6 deployments rely on RA-Guard as the first line of defense against the aforementioned attack vectors. However, some implementations of RA-Guard have been found to be prone to circumvention by employing IPv6 Extension Headers. This document describes the evasion techniques that affect the aforementioned implementations and formally updates RFC 6105, such that the aforementioned RA-Guard evasion vectors are eliminated.
RFC7157 - IPv6 Multihoming without Network Address Translation: Network Address and Port Translation (NAPT) works well for conserving global addresses and addressing multihoming requirements because an IPv4 NAPT router implements three functions: source address selection, next-hop resolution, and (optionally) DNS resolution. For IPv6 hosts, one approach could be the use of IPv6-to-IPv6 Network Prefix Translation (NPTv6). However, NAT and NPTv6 should be avoided, if at all possible, to permit transparent end-to-end connectivity. In this document, we analyze the use cases of multihoming. We also describe functional requirements and possible solutions for multihoming without the use of NAT in IPv6 for hosts and small IPv6 networks that would otherwise be unable to meet minimum IPv6-allocation criteria. We conclude that DHCPv6-based solutions are suitable to solve the multihoming issues described in this document, but NPTv6 may be required as an intermediate solution.
RFC7269 - NAT64 Deployment Options and Experience: This document summarizes NAT64 function deployment scenarios and operational experience. Both NAT64 Carrier-Grade NAT (NAT64-CGN) and NAT64 server Front End (NAT64-FE) are considered in this document.
RFC7278 - Extending an IPv6 /64 Prefix from a Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) Mobile Interface to a LAN Link: This document describes requirements for extending an IPv6 /64 prefix from a User Equipment Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) radio interface to a LAN link and describes two implementation examples.
RFC7335 - IPv4 Service Continuity Prefix: Dual-Stack Lite (DS-Lite), defined in RFC 6333, directs IANA to reserve 192.0.0.0/29 for the Basic Bridging BroadBand (B4) element. Per this memo, IANA has generalized that reservation to include other cases where a non-routed IPv4 interface must be numbered as part of an IPv6 transition solution.
RFC7381 - Enterprise IPv6 Deployment Guidelines: Enterprise network administrators worldwide are in various stages of preparing for or deploying IPv6 into their networks. The administrators face different challenges than operators of Internet access providers and have reasons for different priorities. The overall problem for many administrators will be to offer Internet- facing services over IPv6 while continuing to support IPv4, and while introducing IPv6 access within the enterprise IT network. The overall transition will take most networks from an IPv4-only environment to a dual-stack network environment and eventually an IPv6-only operating mode. This document helps provide a framework for enterprise network architects or administrators who may be faced with many of these challenges as they consider their IPv6 support strategies.
RFC7445 - Analysis of Failure Cases in IPv6 Roaming Scenarios: This document identifies a set of failure cases that may be encountered by IPv6-enabled mobile customers in roaming scenarios. The analysis reveals that the failure causes include improper configurations, incomplete functionality support in equipment, and inconsistent IPv6 deployment strategies between the home and the visited networks.
RFC7526 - Deprecating the Anycast Prefix for 6to4 Relay Routers: Experience with the 6to4 transition mechanism defined in RFC 3056 ("Connection of IPv6 Domains via IPv4 Clouds") has shown that the mechanism is unsuitable for widespread deployment and use in the Internet when used in its anycast mode. Therefore, this document requests that RFC 3068 ("An Anycast Prefix for 6to4 Relay Routers") and RFC 6732 ("6to4 Provider Managed Tunnels") be made obsolete and moved to Historic status. It recommends that future products should not support 6to4 anycast and that existing deployments should be reviewed. This complements the guidelines in RFC 6343.
RFC7608 - IPv6 Prefix Length Recommendation for Forwarding: IPv6 prefix length, as in IPv4, is a parameter conveyed and used in IPv6 routing and forwarding processes in accordance with the Classless Inter-domain Routing (CIDR) architecture. The length of an IPv6 prefix may be any number from zero to 128, although subnets using stateless address autoconfiguration (SLAAC) for address allocation conventionally use a /64 prefix. Hardware and software implementations of routing and forwarding should therefore impose no rules on prefix length, but implement longest-match-first on prefixes of any valid length.
RFC7690 - Close Encounters of the ICMP Type 2 Kind (Near Misses with ICMPv6 Packet Too Big (PTB)): This document calls attention to the problem of delivering ICMPv6 type 2 "Packet Too Big" (PTB) messages to the intended destination (typically the server) in ECMP load-balanced or anycast network architectures. It discusses operational mitigations that can be employed to address this class of failures.
RFC7755 - SIIT-DC: Stateless IP/ICMP Translation for IPv6 Data Center Environments: This document describes the use of the Stateless IP/ICMP Translation Algorithm (SIIT) in an IPv6 Internet Data Center (IDC). In this deployment model, traffic from legacy IPv4-only clients on the Internet is translated to IPv6 upon reaching the IDC operator's network infrastructure. From that point on, it may be treated the same as traffic from native IPv6 end users. The IPv6 endpoints may be numbered using arbitrary (non-IPv4-translatable) IPv6 addresses. This facilitates a single-stack IPv6-only network infrastructure, as well as efficient utilization of public IPv4 addresses.; The primary audience is IDC operators who are deploying IPv6, running out of available IPv4 addresses, and/or feeling that dual stack causes undesirable operational complexity.
RFC7756 - Stateless IP/ICMP Translation for IPv6 Internet Data Center Environments (SIIT-DC): Dual Translation Mode: This document describes an extension of the Stateless IP/ICMP Translation for IPv6 Internet Data Center Environments (SIIT-DC) architecture, which allows applications, protocols, or nodes that are incompatible with IPv6 and/or Network Address Translation to operate correctly with SIIT-DC. This is accomplished by introducing a new component called an SIIT-DC Edge Relay, which reverses the translations made by an SIIT-DC Border Relay. The application and/or node is thus provided with seemingly native IPv4 connectivity that provides end-to-end address transparency.; The reader is expected to be familiar with the SIIT-DC architecture described in RFC 7755.
RFC7757 - Explicit Address Mappings for Stateless IP/ICMP Translation: This document extends the Stateless IP/ICMP Translation Algorithm (SIIT) with an Explicit Address Mapping (EAM) algorithm and formally updates RFC 6145. The EAM algorithm facilitates stateless IP/ICMP translation between arbitrary (non-IPv4-translatable) IPv6 endpoints and IPv4.
RFC7772 - Reducing Energy Consumption of Router Advertisements: Frequent Router Advertisement messages can severely impact host power consumption. This document recommends operational practices to avoid such impact.
RFC7872 - Observations on the Dropping of Packets with IPv6 Extension Headers in the Real World: This document presents real-world data regarding the extent to which packets with IPv6 Extension Headers (EHs) are dropped in the Internet (as originally measured in August 2014 and later in June 2015, with similar results) and where in the network such dropping occurs. The aforementioned results serve as a problem statement that is expected to trigger operational advice on the filtering of IPv6 packets carrying IPv6 EHs so that the situation improves over time. This document also explains how the results were obtained, such that the corresponding measurements can be reproduced by other members of the community and repeated over time to observe changes in the handling of packets with IPv6 EHs.
RFC7934 - Host Address Availability Recommendations: This document recommends that networks provide general-purpose end hosts with multiple global IPv6 addresses when they attach, and it describes the benefits of and the options for doing so.
RFC8215 - Local-Use IPv4/IPv6 Translation Prefix: This document reserves the IPv6 prefix 64:ff9b:1::/48 for local use within domains that enable IPv4/IPv6 translation mechanisms.
RFC8273 - Unique IPv6 Prefix per Host: This document outlines an approach utilizing existing IPv6 protocols to allow hosts to be assigned a unique IPv6 prefix (instead of a unique IPv6 address from a shared IPv6 prefix). Benefits of using a unique IPv6 prefix over a unique service-provider IPv6 address include improved host isolation and enhanced subscriber management on shared network segments.
RFC8305 - Happy Eyeballs Version 2: Better Connectivity Using Concurrency: Many communication protocols operating over the modern Internet use hostnames. These often resolve to multiple IP addresses, each of which may have different performance and connectivity characteristics. Since specific addresses or address families (IPv4 or IPv6) may be blocked, broken, or sub-optimal on a network, clients that attempt multiple connections in parallel have a chance of establishing a connection more quickly. This document specifies requirements for algorithms that reduce this user-visible delay and provides an example algorithm, referred to as "Happy Eyeballs". This document obsoletes the original algorithm description in RFC 6555.
RFC8475 - Using Conditional Router Advertisements for Enterprise Multihoming: This document discusses the most common scenarios of connecting an enterprise network to multiple ISPs using an address space assigned by an ISP and how the approach proposed in "Enterprise Multihoming using Provider-Assigned Addresses without Network Prefix Translation: Requirements and Solution" could be applied in those scenarios. The problem of enterprise multihoming without address translation of any form has not been solved yet as it requires both the network to select the correct egress ISP based on the packet source address and hosts to select the correct source address based on the desired egress ISP for that traffic. The aforementioned document proposes a solution to this problem by introducing a new routing functionality (Source Address Dependent Routing) to solve the uplink selection issue. It also proposes using Router Advertisements to influence the host source address selection. It focuses on solving the general problem and covering various complex use cases, and this document adopts its proposed approach to provide a solution for a limited number of common use cases. In particular, the focus of this document is on scenarios in which an enterprise network has two Internet uplinks used either in primary/backup mode or simultaneously and hosts in that network might not yet properly support multihoming as described in RFC 8028.
RFC8585 - Requirements for IPv6 Customer Edge Routers to Support IPv4-as-a-Service: This document specifies the IPv4 service continuity requirements for IPv6 Customer Edge (CE) routers that are provided either by the service provider or by vendors who sell through the retail market.; Specifically, this document extends the basic requirements for IPv6 CE routers as described in RFC 7084 to allow the provisioning of IPv6 transition services for the support of IPv4-as-a-Service (IPv4aaS) by means of new transition mechanisms. The document only covers IPv4aaS, i.e., transition technologies for delivering IPv4 in IPv6-only access networks. IPv4aaS is necessary because there aren't sufficient IPv4 addresses available for every possible customer/ device. However, devices or applications in the customer Local Area Networks (LANs) may be IPv4-only or IPv6-only and still need to communicate with IPv4-only services on the Internet.
RFC8683 - Additional Deployment Guidelines for NAT64/464XLAT in Operator and Enterprise Networks: This document describes how Network Address and Protocol Translation from IPv6 Clients to IPv4 Servers (NAT64) (including 464XLAT) can be deployed in an IPv6 network -- whether it's cellular ISP, broadband ISP, or enterprise -- and the possible optimizations. This document also discusses issues to be considered when having IPv6-only connectivity, such as: a) DNS64, b) applications or devices that use literal IPv4 addresses or non-IPv6-compliant APIs, and c) IPv4-only hosts or applications.
RFC8978 - Reaction of IPv6 Stateless Address Autoconfiguration (SLAAC) to Flash-Renumbering Events: In scenarios where network configuration information related to IPv6 prefixes becomes invalid without any explicit and reliable signaling of that condition (such as when a Customer Edge router crashes and reboots without knowledge of the previously employed prefixes), hosts on the local network may continue using stale prefixes for an unacceptably long time (on the order of several days), thus resulting in connectivity problems. This document describes this issue and discusses operational workarounds that may help to improve network robustness. Additionally, it highlights areas where further work may be needed.
RFC9096 - Improving the Reaction of Customer Edge Routers to IPv6 Renumbering Events: This document specifies improvements to Customer Edge routers that help mitigate the problems that may arise when network configuration information becomes invalid without any explicit signaling of that condition to the local nodes. This document updates RFC 7084.
RFC9098 - Operational Implications of IPv6 Packets with Extension Headers: This document summarizes the operational implications of IPv6 extension headers specified in the IPv6 protocol specification (RFC 8200) and attempts to analyze reasons why packets with IPv6 extension headers are often dropped in the public Internet.
RFC9313 - Pros and Cons of IPv6 Transition Technologies for IPv4-as-a-Service (IPv4aaS): Several IPv6 transition technologies have been developed to provide customers with IPv4-as-a-Service (IPv4aaS) for ISPs with an IPv6-only access and/or core network. These technologies have their advantages and disadvantages. Depending on existing topology, skills, strategy, and other preferences, one of these technologies may be the most appropriate solution for a network operator.; This document examines the five most prominent IPv4aaS technologies and considers a number of different aspects to provide network operators with an easy-to-use reference to assist in selecting the technology that best suits their needs.
RFC9386 - IPv6 Deployment Status: This document provides an overview of the status of IPv6 deployment in 2022. Specifically, it looks at the degree of adoption of IPv6 in the industry, analyzes the remaining challenges, and proposes further investigations in areas where the industry has not yet taken a clear and unified approach in the transition to IPv6. It obsoletes RFC 6036.