Article

2006-07-16 Science & Technology

New web addresses created by internet chiefs

TO THE lay observer it seems like an infinite network of computers, servers and cables stretching around the globe. But the worldwide web is filling up. So quickly, it turns out, that programmers have had to devise a new one. Of the internet addresses available, more than three quarters are already in use, and the remainder are expected to be assigned by 2009. So, what will happen as more people in developing countries come online? The answer is IPv6, a new internet protocol that has more spaces than the old one: 340,282,366,920,938,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 spaces, in fact. Currently theres four billion addresses available and there are six billion humans on Earth, so theres obviously an issue there, said David Kessens, chairman of the IPv6 working group at RIPE, one of five regional internet registries in charge of rolling it out.

Every device that is connected to the internet websites, computers and mobile phones needs an internet address to locate it on the network. When the internet was developed in the 1980s, programmers had no idea how big it would become. They gave each address a 16-bit number, which meant that the total number of available addresses worked out at about four billion (2 to the power of 32). But as use grew, it became clear that the old protocol, IPv4, wasnt big enough, so a new one was written based on 32-bit numbers. That increased the number of available addresses to 340 undecillion, 282 decillion, 366 nonillion, 920 octillion, 938 septillion enough for the foreseeable future, Mr Kessens said.

IPv6 does not involve any new cables being laid, nor will there be any burden on customers, for whom the change will appear seamless. It will, however, greatly improve the quality of certain internet services, in particular phone calls, which are not suited to IPv4. The big change is going to be in peer-to-peer services like gaming and file-sharing, which are going to become much easier to use, Mr Kessens said.

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Several service providers, including AOL and Yahoo!, have applied for space on the new network, and IPv6 is in use in some countries, including the Netherlands. But the big driver is likely to be the release next year of the new version of Microsoft Windows, Vista, which is understood to contain some IPv6-only applications. The US Government has told departments to make their systems IPv6-ready by 2008. The Department of Trade and Industry said it was aware of the changeover, but that it was up to large providers to take the lead when it occurred. Both protocols can work on the same network and IPv4 will not be decommissioned.

Posted by Fred 2006-07-16 00:00|| || Front Page|| [11137 views since 2007-05-07] Top

#1 Somebody can't do binary arithmetic.

Posted by ed 2006-07-16 01:39|| 2006-07-16 01:39|| Front Page Top

#2 I would prefer GPS coord type ips
IP-Carrier, Lat, Long, Alt. (random #)
Then one would not need DNS just a GPS on each network card and a carrier id. Local nets would be 192 type IP-Carrier code.

Wireless could do hopping and anealing really well.

Posted by 3dc 2006-07-16 02:02|| 2006-07-16 02:02|| Front Page Top

#3 128 vs. 32, not 32 vs. 16. This is 4 billion times 4 billion times 4 billion (2^^96) times the size of the IPv4 address space (2^^32). This works out to be:
340,282,366,920,938,463,463,374,607,431,768,211,456

Posted by twobyfour 2006-07-16 03:38|| 2006-07-16 03:38|| Front Page Top

#4 IP-Carrier, Lat, Long, Alt. (random #)

Would help with the WoT! :-)

Posted by gorb 2006-07-16 04:34|| 2006-07-16 04:34|| Front Page Top

#5 My understanding is that IPv6 will be notated as a sixteen bit hexadecimal number to six numbers. So that would be 65536 to the sixth power, all written in hex.

9.7 and 23 zeros. A large number to be sure.

IPv4 was based on 8 bit numbers in four octals, 256 to the fourth power, or 4.2+ billion addresses, expressed in decimal form.

Posted by badanov 2006-07-16 05:41|| http://www.freefirezone.org]">[http://www.freefirezone.org] 2006-07-16 05:41|| Front Page Top

#6 Isn there a ARE in these hexynumbers? my family wonts to claim addresser space BR549

Posted by J Sample 2006-07-16 07:09|| 2006-07-16 07:09|| Front Page Top

#7 I think it might be easier to get rid of the 2 billion extra people than to add 340,282,366,920,937,999,999,999,999,998,000,000,000 extra addresses. I've got a little list they'll none of them be missed.

Posted by Nimble Spemble 2006-07-16 07:31|| 2006-07-16 07:31|| Front Page Top

#8 IPv6 has been in the works for over a decade. A lot of software in client machines and servers will need upgrading to use it. A bigger issue will be who allocates the space - look for more fighting about IANA and who "runs the internet".

Posted by lotp 2006-07-16 08:08|| 2006-07-16 08:08|| Front Page Top

#9 Guess I overlooked something here...

Posted by Al Gore 2006-07-16 08:12|| 2006-07-16 08:12|| Front Page Top

#10 9 Guess I overlooked something here...

Hot coffee alert in future Mr Gore! LOL!

Posted by Thinemp Whimble2412 2006-07-16 09:07|| 2006-07-16 09:07|| Front Page Top

#11
"My understanding is that IPv6 will be notated as a sixteen bit hexadecimal number to six numbers."

Your understanding is incorrect. IPv6 addresses are 128 bits in length and are expressed in a 16 byte hexadecimal format with colons delineating the individual bytes.

A good starting POINT for anyone interested in educating themselves on IPv6.

-M

Posted by Manolo 2006-07-16 10:04|| 2006-07-16 10:04|| Front Page Top

#12 The 6 is a version number, not a number of bytes. Has anyone tried explaining IPv6 to Ted Stevens yet?

Posted by Eric Jablow">Eric Jablow 2006-07-16 22:37|| 2006-07-16 22:37|| Front Page Top

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