Internet Protocols and IPv6

Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6) is a new generation of the Internet Protocol that is beginning to be adopted by the Internet community. IPv6 is also referred to as “IPng” (IP next generation). It provides the infrastructure for the next wave of Internet devices, such as personal digital assistants (PDAs), mobile phones, and appliances. It also provides increased connectivity for existing devices such as laptop computers.

The most visible difference between today's commonly used version of IP (IP version 4) and IPv6 is the larger address space supported by IPv6. IPv6 supports 128-bit internet addresses, compared to the 32-bit internet address supported by IP version 4. Additionally, IPv6 offers greater ease of configuration and manageability as well as increased security.

Beginning with HP-UX 11i version 2, IPv6 software is installed on the server. Once the IPv4 and IPv6 interface(s) are configured, the server is considered to be an IPv6/IPv4 “dual stack” implementation. This implies that IPv4 and IPv6 both run concurrently and independently. The server can communicate with both IPv4 and IPv6 nodes and can identify packets from other servers and clients as being IPv4 or IPv6.

IPv6 Information

For more information, see the following documents, available at http://docs.hp.com.

• HP-UX 11i IPv6 Transport Administrator’s Guide

• HP-UX IPv6 Porting Guide