Recently, the Internet Society launched IPv6 (Internet
Protocol version 6) to allow the internet keep on growing. The internet is
basically running out of IPv4 addresses and this is why the IPv6 is necessary.
The earlier IPv4 (Internet Protocol version 4) allows 32-bits for IPv4 address
and therefor has 232 (4 294 967 296) possible addresses. Whereas IPv6 which was developed by the ‘Internet
Engineering Task Force (IETF)’ uses 128-bit addresses allowing 2128 (approximately 3.4×1038) addresses.
This expansion can
accommodate vastly more devices and users on the internet as well as providing
greater flexibility in allocating addresses and efficiency for routing traffic.
IPv6 will also bring an enhanced quality
of service for gaming, video/audio and IP telephony.
