It is possible to use a maximum of 16 IPv6 addresses per Cloud Server. If you exceed this number of IPv6 addresses, your Cloud Server will be disconnected from the network. Should you need to use a greater amount of IPv6 per Cloud Server, please contact our
technical staff.
IPv6 is a new Internet Protocol developed to overcome the shortage of IPv4 addresses.
The growing and constant increase of devices connected to the Internet (PCs, Laptops, Smartphones, Tablets, SmartTVs, VoIPs, home automation-enabled devices, ...) has saturated the available Public IP addresses, the latest blocks of IPv4 were distributed to the 5 RIR (
Regional Internet Registry - the organizations that manage the allocation of internet number resources in a specific geographic region) on 3 February 2011.
| |
IPv4 |
IPv6 |
| bit |
32 bit |
128 bit |
| format |
4 groups of 3 decimal numbers
separated by a dot |
8 groups of 4 numbers (2 hexadecimal)
separated by 2 dots |
| |
62.149.188.210 |
2001:0db8:85a3:0000:1319:8a2e:0370:7344 |
| |
28 . 28 . 28 . 28 |
2828 : 2828 : 2828 : 2828 : 2828 : 2828 : 2828 : 2828 |
| |
28 in decimal = 256
a number between 0 and 255 |
28 in esadecimai = ff
a number between 00 and ff |
| n. IP addresses |
28x28x28x28 |
216x216x216x216x216x216x216x216 |
| |
232 approximately 4,3x109 |
2128 = 1632 approximately 3,4x1038 |
| |
4,3 billion
4.300.000.000 |
340 undecillion
340.000.000.000.000.000.000
.000 000.000.000.000.000 |
The billion new addresses that IPv6 provides, allow users to have, not just one IPv6 address (like with IPv4), but blocks of IP addresses in a 64 bit address space range (around 1.8x108 therefore 18 billion-billion combinations), making the NAT (Network Address Translation) unnecessary assigning unique addresses to each single device.
Another advantage is security: IPv6 includes IPsec technology (Internet Protocol Security), considered optional for IPv4.
There are rules on how to write IPv6 addresses:
- use only lowercase letters
- any four-digit group of zeros can be reduced to a single zero
2001:0db8:85a3:0000:0000:8a2e:0370:7344 = 2001:0db8:85a3:0:0:8a2e:0370:7344
- a sequence of two or more groups of zeros can be reduced to ::
2001:0db8:85a3:0000:0000:8a2e:0370:7344 = 2001:0db8:85a3::8a2e:0370:7344
- IPv6 can only include one : therefore this address would not be valid 2001::85a3::0370:7344
- it is not necessary to write the initial zeros of each block
2001:0db8:85a3:70aa:0101:1000:8a2e:0370:7344 = 2001:db8:85a3:70aa:101:1000:8a2e:370:7344
- the last 32 bit can be written in decimal format, e.g.
| 2001:0db8 |
: |
85a3:0000 |
: |
0000:8a2e |
: |
0370:7344 |
| |
32 bit |
0370 = 03 and 70 in hexadecimal = 3 and 112 in decimal
7344 = 73 and 44 in hexadecimal = 115 and 68 in decimal
therefore
2001:0db8:85a3:0000:0000:8a2e:0370:7344 = 2001:0db8:85a3:0000:0000:8a2e:3.112.115.68
Our Cloud infrastructure uses Dual-Stack technology to manage the transition phase from IPv4 to IPv6 and these will operate side by side ensuring compatibility of both protocols.
Converting an IPv4 address to an IPv6 address consists in representing the decimal format of the IPv4 in the hexadecimal format of the IPv6.
If, for example your IPv4 is 62.149.188.210 you would proceed by converting the 4 decimal groups in hexadecimal groups:
62 in decimal = 3e in hexadecimal
149 in decimal = 95 in hexadecimal
188 in decimal = bc in hexadecimal
210 in decimal = d2 in hexadecimal
therefore this address 62.149.188.210 can be represented like so 3e95:bcd2 and so
62.149.188.210 = 0000:0000:0000:0000:0000:ffff:3e95:bcd2 = ::ffff:3e95:bcd2