What is the difference between IPv4 and IPv6?
The main differences are that IPv6 uses 128-bit addresses instead
of the 32-bit addresses of IPv4. This provides enough capacity
for an estimated 340 undecillion IP addresses, one for every
grain of sand on the planet. So, IPv6 can accommodate a much
larger number of devices and includes features such as authentication
and multi-casting, which have been bolted on to IPv4 over the
years. In general, however, IPv6 has retained as much as possible
of IPv4 without compromising on the goal of extending the life
and improving the usability of the Internet.
How much progress has been made towards
ratifying IPv6?
Work on IPv6 has been underway since the early 1990s, and
much progress has been made. The core set of IPv6 protocols
became an IETF draft standard in 1998. Minor changes are likely,
but no major ones.
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