Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6) is not backwards compatible with IPv4, so networks must be changed in order to deploy IPv6.
This IPv6 Knowledge Base Initial Introduction provides an overview of the structure of the Defense Research and Engineering (DREN) IPv6 Knowledge Base. The IPv6 Knowledge Base consists of nine major sections, with links to those sections appearing in the column on the left side of every IPv6 Knowledge Base article.
- An overview of the General Information section.
- An overview of the Deployment section.
- An overview of the IP Transport section.
- An overview of the Infrastructure section.
- An overview of the Network Management section.
- An overview of the Security section.
- An overview of the Applications section.
- An overview of the Testing section.
- An overview of the IPv6 and IoT Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) section
1. The General Information section contains articles covering a wide variety of information about IPv6, from policy and standards to what to do if an organization is not going to deploy IPv6, as follows:
- The IPv6 Knowledge Base Initial Introduction article you are currently reading provides an overview of the structure and scope of the IPv6 Knowledge Base.
- An IPv6 Not Needed Here!?! article briefly describing the actions that should be taken by organizations that have decided not to deploy IPv6.
- A United States (US) IPv6 and IoT Policy, Guidance, and Best Practices article providing a list of policy, guidance and best practices documents issued by organizations inside the United States.
- A Non-United States IPv6 and IoT Policy, Guidance, and Best Practices article providing a list of policy, guidance and best practices documents issued by organizations outside the United States.
- An Overview of Lessons Learned Deploying IPv6 article providing high-level summaries and discussions from multiple points of view of lessons learned deploying IPv6 by various United States (US) Department of Defense and other US Federal government departments and agencies, private organizations, and academia (both in the US and around the world), as well as for the home and Small Office/Home Office (SOHO) user.
- An IPv6 and IoT Networking Standards article providing a general overview of the documents that define networking standards and the organizations that develop and publish them.
- An IPv6 and IoT Points of Contact article listing communities and public forums involved in IPv6 and IoT planning and deployment efforts.
2. The Deployment section contains articles discussing various aspects of deploying IPv6, including:
- A Before you Begin article about things to consider before planning an IPv6 deployment.
- An Overview of Process which provides planning material, information about the approaches used to deploy IPv6 by organizations of all types (US Federal government departments and agencies, Internet Service Providers, businesses, and academic institutions), all sizes (from international enterprises to small businesses and individual users), and locations (in the US and around the world), and in-depth information on management, planning, and deployment processes.
- An IPv6 “Boiler Plate” Acquisitions Language article providing an overview of US and European regulations governing the acquisition process and examples of language developed by various organizations to be used in solicitations and acquisition documents.
- An IPv6 Training and Learning article providing information on training available at no cost or from commercial entities and free sources for learning about IPv6, and a limited amount of tutorial information.
- An IPv6 Transition Mechanisms article providing a quick overview of the various IPv6 transition mechanisms that are available.
- An IPv6 Software article that identifies many software products that either support IPv6 or are IP-protocol neutral.
- An IPv6 in the Home and Small Office/Home Office (SOHO) article about the IPv6 deployment process in the Home and SOHO.
3. The IP Transport section contains articles about the specifics of enabling and (when required) disabling IPv6 in many different computer operating systems (several versions of Linux, Apple macOS and OS X, Microsoft Windows, and UNIX, as well as others) and router firmware (Nokia [formerly Alcatel-Lucent], Extreme Networks, Cisco, and Juniper).
4. The Infrastructure section contains articles about the specifics of installing and configuring software that supports IPv6 infrastructure services, such as web, email, DNS, and DHCP servers. It also contains articles about selected infrastructure topics, such as cloud, VPN, and Microsoft Windows services/servers.
5. The Network Management section contains articles about planning for and deploying wide-area, enterprise, and site networks that support IPv6, guidance and examples for obtaining IPv6 address allocations, guidance and examples for Address Plans, recommended management practices, and troubleshooting tips and techniques.
6. The Security section contains articles about best practices, general and specific (Check Point, Cisco, Juniper, and several versions of software based) router and firewall firmware configuration guides, Internet Protocol Security, Trusted Internet Connection, and Windows Internet Connection Sharing.
7. The Applications section contains articles providing guidance for and examples of developing, enabling, and testing applications software to support IPv6, specifics of configuring and using IPv6 web browsers, and describing IPv6 support in selected applications such as Java and Kerberos.
8. The Testing section contains articles about IPv6 product and network test techniques in general, formal IPv6 product test programs and the testing results they provide, and IPv6 network testing results.
9. The IPv6 and IoT Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) section provides information about topics of interest to people new to IPv6 and IoT, including information about this IPv6 Knowledge Base and other websites that provide general information about IPv6 and IoT, information about the deployment status of IPv6, and information about developing or enabling applications to support IPv6.