FOCUS NETWORKS UPDATE
Issue 15, April/May
FOCUS UPDATE: NETWORKS
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Pv6 has been making headlines, but few so far have related specifi cally to the data center. This doesn’t mean IPv6 is not an important shift for the industry. Behind
the scenes, data center staff have a lot of work to do managing the shift from the current Internet Protocol (IP) to next-generation IPv6.
IPv6 is the latest incarnation of the IP address standard that changes the addressing from 4 blocks of four numbers (IPv4) to a group of eight numbers, each with four hexadecimal digits. IPv4 addresses are running out, and given that each device which connects to the Internet needs an IP address, it is easy to see why so many vendors and Internet providers today are making moves to become IPv6- compliant.
It is not as easy as fl icking a switch. We spoke to a number of data center professionals who said that while little is being addressed now, operators will need to ensure, in the near future, that teams are able and ready to make the data center IPv6-ready.
THE IPV6 WORKHORSE
Much of this work is likely to be left to the IT administration team (in small operations) and network teams in medium- to large-size data centers. It could require the rollout of some new technologies, transitional translating technologies (linking IPv4 packets to IPv6) and strong oversight, along with an overhaul of IP address lists altogether.
DatacenterDynamics senior technologist Mike Foskett said he believes the changes could even create issues with fi rmware, meaning older routers could need to be upgraded, which in turn could bring about some new processor requirements in older data centers.
At present, most of this change will have been carried out in the telecommunications sector, but as more IP addresses move towards v6, colocation and hosting environments, business data centers and even smaller operations will have to make the switch. How much effort is required will be dependent on how future- proof data center infrastructure and software already is in regards to IPv6.
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IPV6 – NOWHERE TO RUN How ready is your data center for IPv6 asks Penny Jones
“It could be massive for data centers that have web sites hosted inhouse and links to small but important remote offi ces in other countries” Foskett said. “Data center teams will have to ensure that their websites implement dual stacks so people can access via both IPv4 or 6. There are also issues with DNS lookup tables in different countries. In some cases staff will have to be trained to carry these changes out.”
Juniper head of service provider solutions David Noguer Bau said most changes in the data center will be seen at the data center gateway, traditionally designed for IPv4 traffi c. This causes the need for changes to servers, network security and routers, which will all need to be able to read IPv6 traffi c. “For those network providers wanting the same amount of security, for example, fi rewalls will need to be changed,” Noguer Bau said.
Juniper is participating in IPv6 Day, organized by The Internet Society, which will take place on 8 June this year. Here participants including Yahoo!, Google and other technology vendors pushing towards the new Internet capabilities offered by IPv6 are testing how it will roll out and effect service delivery. Cloud service providers such as Akamai and Limelight are also taking part.
IT’S A PUSH MORE THAN A LEAP
Mike Rowe, CTO of borderless networks at Cisco, said he has already seen a lot of activity in the service provider market in regards to IPv6, some of which has been spurred on by government directives for the readiness of its own infrastructure for IPv6.
“There is a federal mandate [in the US] for the Department of Defence, for example, for infrastructure purchases that say they need to be IPv6-compatible. The federal government does a lot of business with enterprises,” Rowe said.
“Some of the federal government’s customers act as an extra interface into government as a supplier or provider of equipment, so we are seeing cases now where government providers believe they are going to have to meet the government interface with a v6 interface, which is pushing v6 into the enterprise.”
Now a need to adjust to the change is upon us. In the words of Latif Ladid, IPv6 Forum president and senior researcher at the University of Luxembourg’s security and trust center, quoted in reference to IPv6: “The time is now. Resistance is futile.”
If you need more swaying, Yanick Pouffary, NAv6TF technology director and IPv6 Forum fellow, said: “If you think you can ignore IPv6, think again. As new IPv4 addresses cannot be acquired, the industry will be faced with customers, partners and suppliers who can only be reached via IPv6. Our industry will need to face the ‘balkanization’ of the Internet. It is time to deploy IPv6.” So, what are you waiting for? n
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Rowe said the academic community is much the same. But looking at takeup on a global scale it could be the emerging nations where new appliances are coming online at an unprecedented rate, where IPv6 readiness will be even more crucial.
China is already taking the lead on IPv6 adoption. Asia-Pacifi c Network Information Center director general Paul Wilson was recently quoted as saying: “China has a huge manufacturing base, and its potential to explore IPv6 technology has already been seen.”
The Chinese government has already laid out its plans for IPv6 as part of its China Next Generation Internet initiative, and government- owned China Telecom, one of the largest colocation players in the nation, already has a fi rm IPv6 schedule in place. Phase one this year involves reforming its platform to support IPv6; phase two (2012 to 2015) is about setting up plans for commercialization of this; phase three covers the actual commercial activity.
A STEP WE NEED TO TAKE
The move to IPv6 has not come out the blue. The Internet Engineering Task Force warned of this challenge 20 years ago. The good news is, the Internet’s forefather Vincent Cerf has said there should not be a need for IPv7.
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