UNIT I -IPv6 STRUCTURE AND ADDRESSING 9

IPv4 Address Depletion- IPv6 Transition Issues-IPv6 Structure: IPv6 Header,

Extension Headers: Hop-by-Hop Options Header, Destination Options Header, Routing
Header, Fragment Header, AH, ESP- IPv6 Addresses: Unicast, Anycast, Multicast –
Address
Autoconfiguration

IP:
An IP stands for internet protocol. An IP address is assigned to each device connected to a
network. Each device uses an IP address for communication. It also behaves as an identifier as
this address is used to identify the device on a network.

It defines the technical format of the packets. Mainly, both the networks, i.e., IP and TCP, are
combined together, so together, they are referred to as a TCP/IP. It creates a virtual
connection between the source and the destination.

We can also define an IP address as a numeric address assigned to each device on a network. An
IP address is assigned to each device so that the device on a network can be identified uniquely.
To facilitate the routing of packets, TCP/IP protocol uses a 32-bit logical address known as
IPv4.

An IP address consists of two parts, i.e., the first one is a network address, and the other one is a
host address.
There are two types of IP addresses:
o IPv4
o IPv6

IPv4:

● IP stands for Internet Protocol and v4 stands for Version Four (IPv4). IPv4 was the
primary version brought into action for production within the ARPANET in 1983.
● IP version four addresses are 32-bit integers which will be expressed in decimalnotation.

● Example- 192.0.2.126 could be an IPv4 address.

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Parts of IPv4
● Network part:
The network part indicates the distinctive variety that’s appointed to the network.
The network part conjointly identifies the category of the network that’s assigned.
● Host Part:

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The host part uniquely identifies the machine on your network. This part of the IPv4 address
is assigned to every host.
For each host on the network, the network part is the same, however, the host half must vary.

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● Subnet number:
This is the nonobligatory part of IPv4. Local networks that have massive numbers of hosts
are divided into subnets and subnet numbers are appointed to that.

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Characteristics of IPv4
● IPv4 could be a 32-Bit IP Address.
● IPv4 could be a numeric address, and its bits are separated by a dot.

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● The number of header fields is twelve and the length of the header field is twenty.
● It has Unicast, broadcast, and multicast style of addresses.
● IPv4 supports VLSM (Virtual Length Subnet Mask).
● Networks ought to be designed either manually or with DHCP.
● Packet fragmentation permits from routers and causing host.

Advantages of IPv4
● IPv4 security permits encryption to keep up privacy and security.
● IPV4 network allocation is significant and presently has quite 85000 practical routers.
● It becomes easy to attach multiple devices across an outsized network while not NAT.

IPv4 Structure:

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IP header includes many relevant information including Version Number, which, in this context,
is 4. Other details are as follows −

● Version − Version no. of Internet Protocol used (e.g. IPv4).

● IHL − Internet Header Length; Length of entire IP header.
● DSCP − Differentiated Services Code Point; this is Type of Service.
● ECN − Explicit Congestion Notification; It carries information about the congestion seen
in the route.
● Total Length − Length of entire IP Packet (including IP header and IP Payload).
● Identification − If IP packet is fragmented during the transmission, all the fragments
contain same identification number. to identify original IP packet they belong to.
● Flags − As required by the network resources, if IP Packet is too large to handle, these
‘flags’ tells if they can be fragmented or not. In this 3-bit flag, the MSB is always set to
‘0’.
● Fragment Offset − This offset tells the exact position of the fragment in the original IP
Packet.
● Time to Live − To avoid looping in the network, every packet is sent with some TTL
value set, which tells the network how many routers (hops) this packet can cross. At each
hop, its value is decremented by one and when the value reaches zero, the packet is
discarded.
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 ● Protocol − Tells the Network layer at the destination host, to which Protocol this packet
belongs to, i.e. the next level Protocol. For example protocol number of ICMP is 1, TCP
is 6 and UDP is 17.
● Header Checksum − This field is used to keep checksum value of entire header which is
then used to check if the packet is received error-free.
● Source Address − 32-bit address of the Sender (or source) of the packet.
● Destination Address − 32-bit address of the Receiver (or destination) of the packet.
● Options − This is optional field, which is used if the value of IHL is greater than 5. These
options may contain values for options such as Security, Record Route, Time Stamp, etc.

IPv4 Classes:

The class system defined which class a network belongs in based on its first octet.

● Class A network’s first octet begins with 0. The first octet identifies the network. Class
A supports 127 networks, each with 16 million hosts.
● Class B network’s first octet begins with 10. The first and second octets identify
the network. Class B upports 16,000 networks, each with 65,000 hosts.
● Class C network’s first octet begins with 110. The first three octets identify the
network. Class C supports 2 million networks, each with 254 hosts.
● Class D network’s first octet begins with 1110. Class D is reserved for multicast groups.
● Class E network’s first octet begins with 1111. Class E is reserved for future use.

Differences between IPv4 and IPv6:

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Address length IPv4 is a 32-bit address. IPv6 is a 128-bit address.

Fields IPv4 is a numeric address that consists IPv6 is an alphanumeric address

of 4 fields which are separated by dot that consists of 8 fields, which
(.). are separated by colon.
Classes IPv4 has 5 different classes of IP IPv6 does not contain classes
address that includes Class A, Class of IP addresses.
B, Class C, Class D, and Class E.
Number of IP IPv4 has a limited number of IP IPv6 has a large of IP
address addresses. number addresses.

VLSM It supports VLSM (Virtual Length It does not support VLSM.

Subnet Mask). Here, VLSM means
that Ipv4 converts IP addresses into
a subnet of different sizes.
Address It manual and DHCP It supports DHCP,
configuration manual, auto- and
supports configuration,
configuratio renumbering.
n.
Address space It generates 4 billion unique addresses It generates 340 undecillion
unique addresses.
End-to-end In IPv4, end-to-end connection In the case of IPv6, end-to-end
connection integrity integrity is unachievable. connection integrity is
achievable.
Security features In IPv4, security depends on the In IPv6, IPSEC is developed for
application. This IP address is not security purposes.
developed in keeping the security
feature in mind.
Address In IPv4, the IP address is In IPv6, the representation of
representation represented in decimal. the IP address in hexadecimal.

Fragmentation Fragmentation is done by the Fragmentation is done

senders and the forwarding routers. by the senders
only.
Packet flow It does not provide any It uses flow label field in the
identification mechanism for packet flow header for the packet flow
identification. identification.
Checksum field The checksum field is available in IPv4. The checksum field is not
available in IPv6.

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Transmission IPv4 is broadcasting. On the other hand, IPv6 is
scheme multicasting, which provides
efficient network operations.

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Encryption and It does not provide encryption It provides encryption
Authentication and authentication. and authentication.

Number of octets It consists of 4 octets. It consists of 8 fields, and each

field contains 2 octets.
Therefore, the total number of
octets in IPv6 is 16.

IPv4 Depletion:
● IPv4 address exhaustion is the depletion of the pool of unallocated IPv4 addresses.

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Because the original Internet architecture had fewer than 4.3 billion addresses available,
depletion has been anticipated since the late 1980s, when the Internet started
experiencing dramatic growth. This depletion is one of the reasons for the development
and , .IPv4 and IPv6 coexist on the Internet.

● The IP address space is managed globally by the Internet Assigned Numbers

Authority (IANA), and by five regional Internet registries (RIRs) responsible in their
designated territories for assignment to end users and local Internet registries, such
as Internet service providers. The main market forces that accelerated IPv4 address
depletion included the rapidly growing number of Internet users, always-on devices, and
mobile devices.

IP Address Depletion:

While the primary reason for IPv4 address exhaustion is insufficient capacity in the design of the
original Internet infrastructure, several additional driving factors have aggravated the
shortcomings. Each of them increased the demand on the limited supply of addresses, often in
ways unanticipated by the original designers of the network.

Mobile devices
As IPv4 increasingly became the de facto standard for networked digital communication
and the cost of embedding substantial computing power into hand-held devices dropped,
mobile phones have become viable Internet hosts. New specifications of 4G devices
require IPv6 addressing.
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Always-on connections
Throughout the 1990s, the predominant mode of consumer Internet access was telephone
modem dial-up. The rapid increase in the number of the dial-up networks increased
address consumption rates, although it was common that the modem pools, and as a
result, the pool of assigned IP addresses, were shared amongst a large customer base. By

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2007, however, broadband Internet access had begun to exceed 50% penetration in many
markets.[14] Broadband connections are always active, as the gateway devices (routers,
broadband modems) are rarely turned off, so that the address uptake by Internet service

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providers continued at an accelerating pace.
Internet demographics
The developed world consists of hundreds of millions of households. In 1990, only a

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small fraction of these had Internet access. Just 15 years later, almost half of them had
persistent broadband connections.[15] The many new Internet users in countries such as
China and India are also driving address exhaustion.

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Inefficient address use
Organizations that obtained IP addresses in the 1980s were often allocated far more
addresses than they actually required, because the initial classful network allocation
method was inadequate to reflect reasonable usage. For example, large companies or
universities were assigned class A address blocks with over 16 million IPv4 addresses
each, because the next smaller allocation unit, a class B block with 65,536 addresses, was
too small for their intended deployments.
Many organizations continue to utilize public IP addresses for devices not accessible
outside their local network. From a global address allocation viewpoint, this is inefficient
in many cases, but scenarios exist where this is preferred in the organizational network
implementation strategies.[citation needed]
Due to inefficiencies caused by subnetting, it is difficult to use all addresses in a block.
The host-density ratio, as defined in RFC 3194, is a metric for utilization of IP address
blocks, that is used in allocation policies.

IPv6 Transition Issues:

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 The exhaustion of IPv4 addresses on November 2011 has made the future of the internet
in the IPv6 and raised new challenges for IPV4-IPV6 transition in the network research. One of
the challenges raised during the setup of Dual Stack IPV4/IPv6 network is the issue of handling
multiple configuration information on client side i.e. dual stack approach for handling multiple
responses in an IPv6 networks.

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1. Dual Stack

Dual stack devices are able to run IPv4 and IPv6 in parallel. It allows hosts to simultaneously

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reach IPv4 and IPv6 content, so it offers a very flexible coexistence strategy.

Benefits of Dual Stack are:

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● Native dual stack does not require any tunneling Mechanisms on internal networks

● Both IPv4 and IPv6 run independent of each other

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● Dual stack supports gradual migration of endpoints, networks, and applications

The evolution of the Internet to IPv6 will directly affect enterprise customers because they
will have to communicate with their clients, partners, and suppliers over an IPv6 network.
In order to ensure business continuity and future growth, all organizations need to
carefully plan for coexistence between IPv4 and IPv6. Also, as IPv6 propagates, early
adopters can deliver innovative platforms,applications, and services that take advantage of
the technical possibilities of IPv6 A combination of both Native IPv4 and IPv6, better
known as dual stack, is the recommended coexistence strategy for enterprise networks

Who Needs Dual Stack Support?

● Companies that need or want to deploy IPv6 on their internal network infrastructure

● Enterprises with IPv6-enabled, employee-provided, or guest devices on their network

● Enterprises getting started with IPv6 with pilot deployment or lab trials

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2. DHCP

● The Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) provides dynamic configuration

parameters to Internet hosts. DHCP consists of two components:

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● 1. A protocol for delivering host-specific configuration parameters from a DHCP server
to a host and a mechanism for allocation of network addresses to hosts.

● 2. DHCP is built on a client-server model, where designated DHCP server hosts allocate

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network addresses and deliver configuration parameters to dynamically configured hosts.
Throughout the remainder of this document, the term "server" refers to a host providing
initialization parameters through DHCP, and the term "client" refers to a host requesting
initialization parameters from a DHCP server.

● A DHCP server maintains a database of available IP addresses and configuration

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information. When the server receives a request from a client, the DHCP server
determines the network to which the DHCP client is connected, and then allocates an IP
address or prefix that is appropriate for the client, and sends configuration information
appropriate for that client.

3. DHCPV6

● DHCPv6 is a network protocol that is used for configuring IPv6 hosts with IP addresses,
IP prefixes and/or other configuration required to operate on an IPv6 network.

● IPv6 hosts that use stateless auto configuration may require information other than an IP
address. DHCPv6 can be used to acquire this information, even though it is not being
used to configure IP addresses.

● DHCPv6 is not necessary for configuring Domain Name System servers they can be
configured using Neighbor Discovery Protocol, which is needed anyway for stateless
auto configuration.

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IPv6 Structure:
● The Internet Protocol (IP) is a method in which data is sent to different computers
over the internet.
● An IPv6 address is a 128-bit alphanumeric value that identifies an endpoint device in an
Internet Protocol Version 6 (IPv6) network.
● IP v6 was developed by Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) to deal with the
problem of IP v4 exhaustion. IP v6 is a 128-bits address having an address space of
2^128, which is way bigger than IPv4. In IPv6 we use Colon-Hexa representation. There
are 8 groups
and each group represents 2 Bytes.
● An IPv6 address is 128 bits long and is arranged in eight groups, each of which is 16 bits.

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Each group is expressed as four hexadecimal digits and the groups are separated by
colons.

FE80:CD00:0000:0CDE:1257:0000:211E:729C

An IPv6 address is split into two parts: a network and a node component.

● The network component is the first 64 bits of the address and is used for routing.
● The node component is the later 64 bits and is used to identify the address of the
interface.

In IPv6 representation, we have different addressing methods :

There are different types and formats of IPv6 addresses, of which, it's notable to mention that
there are no broadcast addresses in IPv6. Some examples of IPv6 formats include:
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● Global unicast. These addresses are routable on the internet and start with "2001:" as
the prefix group. Global unicast addresses are the equivalent of IPv4 public addresses.

● Unicast address. Used to identify the interface of an individual node.

● Anycast address. Used to identify a group of interfaces on different nodes.

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● Multicast address. An address used to define multicast Multicasts are used to send a
single packet to multiple destinations at one time.

● Link local addresses. One of the two internal address types that are not routed on the
internet. Link local addresses are used inside an internal network, are self-assigned and start
with "fe80:" as the prefix group.

● Unique local addresses. This is the other type of internal address that is not routed on
the internet. Unique local addresses are equivalent to the IPv4 addresses 10.0.0.0/8,
172.16.0.0/12 and 192.168.0.0/16.

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Address format:

The address format of IPv4:

The address format of IPv6:

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The above diagram shows the address format of IPv4 and IPv6. An IPv4 is a 32-bit decimal
address. It contains 4 octets or fields separated by 'dot', and each field is 8-bit in size. The
number that each field contains should be in the range of 0-255. Whereas an IPv6 is a 128-bit
hexadecimal address. It contains 8 fields separated by a colon, and each field is 16-bit in size.

Advantages of IPv6

Some advantages of IPv6 over IPv4 are mentioned below:

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1. Address Space : IPv6 has a 128 bit long address, which is larger than IPv4.
2. Header format : IPv6 has a new header format, in which options are separated from the base

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header and inserted between the base header and the upper layer data.
3. Extension : IPv6 is designed to allow the extension of the protocol, if required for new
applications.
4. Security : Encryption and authentication mechanism provides confidentiality and integrity to
the packets in IPv6.

Packet Format of IPv6:

The IPv6 packet is shown in the diagram. Each packet is composed of base header and the
payload. The payload consists of two fields, optional extension headers and the data from upper
layer.

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The Base header consists of eight fields:

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1. Version : This is 4 bit field, which defines the version number of an IP and its value is 6
for IPv6.
2. Priority : This is 4 bit field, which defines the priority of the packet with respect to the
traffic congestion.
3. Flow label : This is 24 bit field, which is designed to provide facility of specially handling
the specific flow of the data.
4. Payload length : This is 16 bit field, which defines the length of an IP datagram excluding
the base header.
5. Next header : This is 8 bit field, which defines the header that follows the base header in
the datagram.
6. Hop limit : This is 8 bit field, which serves the same purpose as the TTL( Time to Live
field in IPv4) field. It is a mechanism that limits the life span of the data in computer networks.
7. Source address : This is 128 bit source address field, which identifies the original source
of the datagram.
8. Destination address : It is 128 bit destination address field, which identifies the
original destination of the datagram.

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 Priority field of IPv6

Defines the priority of each packet with respect to other packets from the same source.

The IPv6 divides the traffic into two categories:

● Congestion-Controlled Traffic : If source can adjust itself with traffic slowdown due
to congestion, the traffic is referred to as congestion controlled traffic.
● Non Congestion-Controlled Traffic : Non-Congestion - Controlled Traffic is a type of
traffic which can accept a minimum delay.

Extension Headers

The length of the base header is 40 bytes and to provide greater functionality to the IP datagram.
It can be extended upto six extension headers.
1. Hop by hop option : It is used when the source needs to pass the information to all routers
visited by the datagram.

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2. Source routing : It combines the concepts of the strict source route and the loose source
route options of IPv4.
3. Fragmentation : The data travels through the different networks, each router
first decapsulates the IPv6 datagram from the received frame, then processes it and
again encapsulates in another frame.
4. Authentication : Authentication validates the message sender and ensures the integrity of the
data.
5. Encrypted Security Payload (ESP) : It is an extension that provides confidentiality and
protects against eavesdropping .
6. Destination option : It is used when the source needs to forward information to the
destination only and not to intermediate routers.

Transition from IPv4 to IPv6

Three strategies have been invented by the IETF (Internet Engineering Task Force) to help
the transition:

1. Dual stack

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● The host should run IPv4 and IPv6 simultaneously until the entire internet uses IPv6.
● The source host queries the DNS, to determine which version can be used at the time of
sending a packet to the destination.
● If the DNS returns an IPv6 address, the source host sends an IPv6 packet.

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2. Tunneling

● When two computers use IPv6 and want to communicate with each other and the packet passes
through a region that uses IPv4, it is called tunneling.
● The IPv6 packet is encapsulated in an IPv4 packet, when it enters the region. It leaves the
capsule when it exits the region.

3. Header Translation

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● It is used when some of the systems use the IPv4 and the sender wants to use IPv6, but the
receiver does not understand IPv6.
● The header format should be totally changed through header translation.
● The header of the IPv6 packet is converted to an IPv4 header.

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IPv6 Addresses:

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In IPv6 representation, we have three addressing methods :
1. Unicast Address –
● A unicast address represents a single interface in the network. It is used in end-to-end

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communication between two devices. Data packets addressed to a unicast address are
received and processed by only one device.
● The following image shows a unicast communication between two PCs. In this example,
packets sent by PC0 are received only by PC6.

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 ● There are mainly three types of unicast addresses: link-local, site-local or unique local,
and global.
● A link-local unicast address identifies the interface in the local network.
● A site-local address represents the interface in the network.
● A global unicast address provides a unique identity to the interface in the global IPv6

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Internet network.

2. Multicast Address –

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● A multicast address represents all interfaces of the multicast group. Packets sent to
the multicast address are received and processed by all interfaces of the multicast
group.
● An interface can join or leave a multicast group at any time. It can also join multiple
multicast groups simultaneously. If it is a member of multiple multicast groups, it
can receive multicast packets from all groups at the same time.
● The following image shows how multicast works in a network. In this example network,

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PC0 sent a packet to the multicast group 1. The packet is received by all members of the
group-1.

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3. Anycast Address:
● An anycast address identifies a single interface in the group of interfaces. The concept of
anycast addresses is introduced in IPv6. In this concept, a group of interfaces is created
by assigning the same anycast address on all interfaces.
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 ● Once the group is created, any interface from the group can receive IP packets on the
behalf of the group.
● IP packets sent to an anycast address are received by only one interface of the group, not
by all interfaces. To identify the interface that will receive IP packets, routers use
routing table metrics.

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● When a router receives an IP packet for an anycast address, it forwards the packet to the
interface that is nearest to the router and belongs to the destination anycast group.
Anycast addresses are used to optimize the network.
● In this implementation, five interfaces are grouped by specifying the same anycast
address. From these interfaces, any interface that is near to the sender device can receive
IP packets sent to this anycast address.

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● For example, when PC-A and PC-C send IP packets to this anycast address, they are
respectively received by the In1 and In3 interfaces, as both interfaces are near to their
respective sender devices.

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IPv6 Address Autoconfiguration:

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A highly useful aspect of IPv6 is its ability to configure itself without the use of a stateful
configuration protocol, such as Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol for IPv6 (DHCPv6). By
default, an IPv6 host can configure a link-local address for each interface. By using router
discovery, a host can also determine the addresses of routers, additional addresses, and other
configuration parameters. Included in the Router Advertisement message is an indication of

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whether a stateful address configuration protocol should be used.

Address auto-configuration can only be performed on multicast-capable interfaces. Address

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auto-configuration is described in RFC 2462, "IPv6 Stateless Address Autoconfiguration."

Autoconfigured Address States:

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Autoconfigured addresses are in one or more of the following states:

*Tentative — The address is in the process of being verified as unique. Verification

occurs through duplicate address detection.

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*Preferred — An address for which uniqueness has been verified. A node can send and
receive unicast traffic to and from a preferred address. The period of time that an address can
remain in the tentative and preferred states is included in the Router Advertisement message.

*Deprecated — An address that is still valid, but its use is discouraged for new communication.
Existing communication sessions can continue to use a deprecated address. A node can send and
receive unicast traffic to and from a deprecated address.

*Valid — An address from which unicast traffic can be sent and received. The valid state
covers both the preferred and deprecated states. The amount of time that an address remains in
the tentative and valid states is included in the Router Advertisement message. The valid
lifetime must be greater than or equal to the preferred lifetime.

*Invalid — An address for which a node can no longer send or receive unicast traffic.
An address enters the invalid state after the valid lifetime expires.

Types of Autoconfiguration:

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There are three types of autoconfiguration, Stateless, Stateful and Both.

*Stateless — Configuration of addresses is based on the receipt of Router Advertisement

messages. These messages include stateless address prefixes and require that hosts not use a
stateful address configuration protocol.

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*Stateful — Configuration is based on the use of a stateful address configuration protocol, such
as DHCPv6, to obtain addresses and other configuration options. A host uses stateful address
configuration when it receives Router Advertisement messages that do not include address

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prefixes and require that the host use a stateful address configuration protocol. A host also uses a
stateful address configuration protocol when there are no routers present on the local link.

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*Both — Configuration is based on receipt of Router Advertisement messages. These messages
include stateless address prefixes and require that hosts use a stateful address configuration
protocol.

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Autoconfiguration Process:

The address autoconfiguration process for an IPv6 node occurs as follows:

1. A tentative link-local address is derived, based on the link-local prefix of FE80::/64 and the
64-bit interface identifier.

2. Duplicate address detection is performed to verify the uniqueness of the tentative link-local
address.

3. If duplicate address detection fails, manual configuration must be performed on the node.

4. If duplicate address detection succeeds, the tentative link-local address is assumed to be

unique and valid. The link-local address is initialized for the interface. The corresponding
solicited-node multicast link-layer address is registered with the network adapter.

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 QUESTION BANK

PART-A

1. What is computer networks?

Computer networking refers to interconnected computing devices that can exchange data
and share resources with each other. These networked devices use a system of rules, called
communications protocols, to transmit information over physical or wireless technologies.

2. How does a computer network works?

Nodes and links are the basic building blocks in computer networking. A network node
may be data communication equipment (DCE) such as a modem, hub or, switch, or data
terminal equipment (DTE) such as two or more computers and printers. A link refers to the
transmission media connecting two nodes. Links may be physical, like cable wires or optical
fibers, or free
space used by wireless networks.

In a working computer network, nodes follow a set of rules or protocols that define how to
send and receive electronic data via the links. The computer network architecture defines the
design of these physical and logical components. It provides the specifications for the

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network’s physical components, functional organization, protocols, and procedures.

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3. What are the types of computer network architecture?

1. Client-server architecture

In this type of computer network, nodes may be servers or clients. Server nodes provide
resources like memory, processing power, or data to client nodes. Server nodes may also manage
client node behavior. Clients may communicate with each other, but they do not share resources.
For example, some computer devices in enterprise networks store data and configuration
settings. These devices are the servers in the network. Clients may access this data by making a
request to the server machine.

2. Peer-to-peer architecture

In Peer-to-Peer (P2P) architecture, connected computers have equal powers and privileges. There
is no central server for coordination. Each device in the computer network can act as either client
or server. Each peer may share some of its resources, like memory and processing power, with
the entire computer network. For example, some companies use P2P architecture to host
memory-consuming applications, such as 3-D graphic rendering, across multiple digital devices.

4. What is network topology?

The arrangement of nodes and links is called network topology. They can be configured in
different ways to get different outcomes. Some types of network topologies are:

Bus topology->Each node is linked to one other node only. Data transmission over the network
connections occurs in one direction.

Ring topology->Each node is linked to two other nodes, forming a ring. Data can flow bi-
directionally. However, single node failure can bring down the entire network.

Star topology->A central server node is linked to multiple client network devices. This topology
performs better as data doesn’t have to go through each node. It is also more reliable.

Mesh topology->Every node is connected to many other nodes. In a full mesh topology, every
node is connected to every other node in the network.

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5. Difference between LAN and WAN.

A LAN is an interconnected system limited in size and geography. It typically connects

computers and devices within a single office or building. It is used by small companies or as a
test network for small-scale prototyping.

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An enterprise network spanning buildings, cities, and even countries, is called a wide area
network (WAN). While local area networks are used to transmit data at higher speeds within
close proximity, WANs are set up for long-distance communication that is secure and
dependable.

6.Difference between ring and star topology.

Ring topology->Each node is linked to two other nodes, forming a ring. Data can flow

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bi-directionally. However, single node failure can bring down the entire network.

Star topology->A central server node is linked to multiple client network devices. This topology
performs better as data doesn’t have to go through each node. It is also more reliable.

7. What are the types of computer network architecture?

1. Client-server architecture

In this type of computer network, nodes may be servers or clients. Server nodes provide
resources like memory, processing power, or data to client nodes. Server nodes may also
manage client node behavior. Clients may communicate with each other, but they do not share
resources.
For example, some computer devices in enterprise networks store data and configuration
settings. These devices are the servers in the network. Clients may access this data by making a
request to the server machine.

2. Peer-to-peer architecture

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 In Peer-to-Peer (P2P) architecture, connected computers have equal powers and
privileges. There is no central server for coordination. Each device in the computer network can
act as either client or server. Each peer may share some of its resources, like memory and
processing power, with the entire computer network. For example, some companies use P2P
architecture to host memory-consuming applications, such as 3-D graphic rendering, across

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multiple digital devices.

8. Difference between point-to-point and multipoint.

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□ Point To Point networks: Point-to-Point networking is a type of data networking that
establishes a direct link between two networking nodes.
A direct link between two devices, such as a computer and a printer, is known as a point-

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to-point connection.
□ Multipoint: is the one in which more than two specific devices share links. In the
multipoint environment, the capacity of the channel is shared, either spartailly or

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temporally. If several devices can use the link simultaneously, it is a spatially shared
connection.
9. Write the advantages of mesh topology.
□ Data can be sent from multiple devices at the same time. This topology can handle a lot
of traffic.
□ Even if one of the connections fails, a backup is always available. As a result, data transit
is unaffected.
□ Physical boundaries prevent other users from gaining access to messages
□ Point to Point links make fault transmission & fault isolation easy.
10. Define router.
Routers are networking devices that use headers and forwarding tables to find the optimal
way to forward data packets between networks. A router is a computer networking device that
links two or more computer networks and selectively exchanges data packets between them. A
router can use address information in each data packet to determine if the source and destination
are on the same network or if the data packet has to be transported between networks.
11. What is the basic difference between the Internet and the network?

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Serial
number Network Internet

A network is a collection of two The internet, on the other hand, is the

or interconnection of a few networks.
1. more computer systems.

Low hardware devices required More hardware devices required

as as compared to network.
2. compared to internet.

Geographically constrained (small

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Geographically extensive (large –
3. – area wise) area wise)

4. As cover small area, low error rate As covers large area, higher error rate

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5. Lower communication cost High communication cost

12. Define Hub.

A hub is a device that joins together many twisted pairs or fiber optic Ethernet devices to

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give the illusion as a formation of a single network segment. The device can be visualized as a
multiport repeater. A network hub is a relatively simple broadcast device.

13. What is IP address?

An Internet Protocol address is a unique identifier for devices connected to a network.
The unique identifier makes it possible for devices to find and communicate with each other.
Initially, the main types of devices that required an IP address included network devices, such as
computers, servers, routers, and printers.
14. Define IPv4.
IP stands for Internet Protocol and v4 stands for Version Four (IPv4). IPv4 was the
primary version brought into action for production within the ARPANET in 1983.
IP version four addresses are 32-bit integers which will be expressed in decimal notation.
IPv4 address consists of a set of four numbers separated by a period character (“.”), often
referred to as a “dot.” Each number can be from 0 to 254. Some addresses may not be assigned
because they are reserved for special uses.

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Example- 192.0.2.126 could be an IPv4 address.

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15. Write any five characteristics of IPv4.
□ IPv4 could be a 32-Bit IP Address.
□ IPv4 could be a numeric address, and its bits are separated by a dot.
□ The number of header fields is twelve and the length of the header field is twenty.

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□ It has Unicast, broadcast, and multicast style of addresses.

16. Write the advantages of IPv4.

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□ IPv4 security permits encryption to keep up privacy and security.
□ IPV4 network allocation is significant and presently has quite 85000 practical routers.
□ It becomes easy to attach multiple devices across an outsized network while not NAT.

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□ This is a model of communication so provides quality service also as economical
knowledge transfer.

17. Write the different types of IPv4 addressing mode.

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1. Unicast addressing mode
In this mode, the data gets sent to only one host. The destination address field contains only the
IPv4 address of the destination host. A computer sends data to a target server. It is a one-to-one
transmission. It is what happens when a user sends an email to a single recipient.

2. Broadcast addressing mode

In this mode, the data gets sent to all of the hosts connected to a network. The destination address
field contains a special broadcast address. Any host that sees the packet will process it. It is a
one-to-all transmission. It is how mass mailers get sent to all connected recipients.

3. Multicast addressing mode

This is a combination of the unicast and broadcast addressing modes. It can be one-to-many or
many-to-many transmission. In this mode, the destination address includes a unique address that
begins with 224.x.x.x, which can be accommodated by more than one host.

18. Write the example of IPv4 addressing.

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Site Dot-decimal Binary
Google.com 172.217.168.238 10101100.11011001.10101000.1110111
0
Facebook.com 31.13.84.36 00011111.00001101.01010100.0010010
0
Pinterest.com 151.101.0.84 10010111.01100101.00000000.0101010
0
19. Write the different types of classes in IPv4 addressing.

□ Class A network’s first octet begins with 0. The first octet identifies the network.
Class A supports 127 networks, each with 16 million hosts.
□ Class B network’s first octet begins with 10. The first and second octets identify
the network. Class B upports 16,000 networks, each with 65,000 hosts.
□ Class C network’s first octet begins with 110. The first three octets identify
the network. Class C supports 2 million networks, each with 254 hosts.
□ Class D network’s first octet begins with 1110. Class D is reserved for
multicast groups.
□ Class E network’s first octet begins with 1111. Class E is reserved for future use.

20. Define TTL.

□ Time to Live − To avoid looping in the network, every packet is sent with some TTL
value set, which tells the network how many routers (hops) this packet can cross. At
each hop, its value is decremented by one and when the value reaches zero, the packet
is discarded.

21. Write any two IPv6 transition issues.

Dual Stack

Dual stack devices are able to run IPv4 and IPv6 in parallel. It allows hosts to
simultaneously reach IPv4 and IPv6 content, so it offers a very flexible
coexistence strategy.

DHCP

The Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) provides dynamic configuration

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parameters to Internet hosts. DHCP consists of two components: A protocol for delivering

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 host-specific configuration parameters from a DHCP server to a host and a mechanism for
allocation of network addresses to hosts.

22. Define IPv6.

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An IPv6 address consists of eight groups of four hexadecimal digits.
Example IPv6 address:
3001:0da8:75a3:0000:0000:8a2e:0370:7334

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23. Write any different types of IPv6 addresses.
□ Unicast addresses It identifies a unique node on a network and usually refers to
a single sender or a single receiver.

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□ Multicast addresses It represents a group of IP devices and can only be used as
the destination of a datagram.
□ Anycast addresses It is assigned to a set of interfaces that typically belong
to different nodes.
24. Write the advantages of IPv6.
1. Address Space : IPv6 has a 128 bit long address, which is larger than IPv4.
2. Header format : IPv6 has a new header format, in which options are separated from
the base header and inserted between the base header and the upper layer data.
3. Extension : IPv6 is designed to allow the extension of the protocol, if required for new
applications.
4. Security : Encryption and authentication mechanism provides confidentiality and
integrity to the packets in IPv6.

25. Difference between congestion controlled traffic and Non-congestion controlled traffic.

● Congestion-Controlled Traffic : If source can adjust itself with traffic slowdown due
to congestion, the traffic is referred to as congestion controlled traffic.
● Non Congestion-Controlled Traffic : Non-Congestion - Controlled Traffic is a type
of traffic which can accept a minimum delay.
26. Define tunneling.
● When two computers use IPv6 and want to communicate with each other and the packet
passes through a region that uses IPv4, it is called tunneling.

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 ● The IPv6 packet is encapsulated in an IPv4 packet, when it enters the region. It leaves
the capsule when it exits the region.

What is translation?
It is used when some of the systems use the IPv4 and the sender wants to use IPv6, but the receiver does not unde
The header format should be totally changed through header translation.
The header of the IPv6 packet is converted to an IPv4 header.

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28. Define IPv6 Autoconfiguration.

● A highly useful aspect of IPv6 is its ability to configure itself without the use of a stateful
configuration protocol, such as Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol for IPv6
(DHCPv6). By default, an IPv6 host can configure a link-local address for each interface.
By using router discovery, a host can also determine the addresses of routers,
additional addresses, and other configuration parameters. Included in the Router
Advertisement message is an indication of whether a stateful address configuration
protocol should be used.

29. Write any three states in autoconfigured address.

Tentative — The address is in the process of being verified as unique. Verification

occurs through duplicate address detection.

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 Preferred — An address for which uniqueness has been verified. A node can send and
receive unicast traffic to and from a preferred address. The period of time that an address can
remain in the tentative and preferred states is included in the Router Advertisement message.

Deprecated — An address that is still valid, but its use is discouraged for new

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communication. Existing communication sessions can continue to use a deprecated address. A
node can send and receive unicast traffic to and from a deprecated address.

30. Write any two types of autoconfiguration.

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Stateless — Configuration of addresses is based on the receipt of Router Advertisement
messages. These messages include stateless address prefixes and require that hosts not use a

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stateful address configuration protocol.

Stateful — Configuration is based on the use of a stateful address configuration protocol,

such as DHCPv6, to obtain addresses and other configuration options. A host uses stateful

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address configuration when it receives Router Advertisement messages that do not include
address prefixes and require that the host use a stateful address configuration protocol. A host
also uses a stateful address configuration protocol when there are no routers present on the local
link.

31.What is address auto configuration? Nov/Dec 2022

Address autoconfiguration refers to the process of automatically assigning IP addresses to

vehicles in vehicular networking, allowing them to communicate with other vehicles or RSUs.

This can be done through server-based stateful or location-based stateless approaches, each
with their own advantages and disadvantages.

32.Define IPv6. Why it is important? Nov/Dec 2022

IPv6 (Internet Protocol version 6) is the latest version of the Internet Protocol (IP) address

standard and is intended to eventually replace IPv4, the protocol that many internet services

currently use. IPv6 has several advantages over IPv4, including:

 Larger address space

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IPv6 uses a 128-bit address format, which provides a virtually unlimited number of

unique IP addresses. This makes it easier for devices to connect and communicate with each

other.

 Improved efficiency

IPv6 includes multicast, which allows a single packet to be sent to multiple destinations

at the same time. It also has a larger address space and can handle packets more efficiently.

 Simplified address assignment

IPv6 includes automatic address configuration and supports both stateless and stateful address

configuration.

33. Define IPv6 loopback.

The IPv6 loopback address is ::1 in compact notation, or 0:0:0:0:0:0:0:1 in colon-

hexadecimal notation. It's an internal address that devices use to send messages back to

themselves for testing and diagnostic purposes.

34. Difference between unicast, multicast and anycast addresses.

 Unicast addresses: It identifies a unique node on a network and usually refers to a single

sender or a single receiver.

 Multicast addresses: It represents a group of IP devices and can only be used as the

destination of a datagram.

 Anycast addresses: It is assigned to a set of interfaces that typically belong to different node

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 PART-B

1. Define IP. Explain in detail about IPv4.

IP stands for Internet Protocol and v4 stands for Version Four (IPv4). IPv4 was the primary
version brought into action for production within the ARPANET in 1983.
IP version four addresses are 32-bit integers which will be expressed in decimal notation.
IPv4 address consists of a set of four numbers separated by a period character (“.”), often
referred to as a “dot.” Each number can be from 0 to 254. Some addresses may not be assigned
because they are reserved for special uses.
Example- 192.0.2.126 could be an IPv4 address.

IP stands for Internet Protocol and v4 stands for Version Four (IPv4). IPv4 was the primary
version brought into action for production within the ARPANET in 1983.
IP version four addresses are 32-bit integers which will be expressed in decimal notation.
IPv4 address consists of a set of four numbers separated by a period character (“.”), often
referred to as a “dot.” Each number can be from 0 to 254. Some addresses may not be assigned

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because they are reserved for special uses.
Example- 192.0.2.126 could be an IPv4 address.
Parts of IPv4

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● Network part:
The network part indicates the distinctive variety that’s appointed to the network.
The network part conjointly identifies the category of the network that’s assigned.

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● Host Part:
The host part uniquely identifies the machine on your network. This part of the IPv4 address
is assigned to every host.
For each host on the network, the network part is the same, however, the host half must vary.
● Subnet number:
This is the nonobligatory part of IPv4. Local networks that have massive numbers of hosts
are divided into subnets and subnet numbers are appointed to that.

Characteristics of IPv4
● IPv4 could be a 32-Bit IP Address.
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 K
● IPv4 could be a numeric address, and its bits are separated by a dot.
● The number of header fields is twelve and the length of the header field is twenty.
● It has Unicast, broadcast, and multicast style of addresses.
● IPv4 supports VLSM (Virtual Length Subnet Mask).
● Networks ought to be designed either manually or with DHCP.
● Packet fragmentation permits from routers and causing host.

Advantages of IPv4
● IPv4 security permits encryption to keep up privacy and security.
● IPV4 network allocation is significant and presently has quite 85000 practical routers.
● It becomes easy to attach multiple devices across an outsized network while not NAT.

2. Describe about the structure of IPv4 with an neat diagram.

IPv4 Structure:

IP
header includes many relevant information including Version Number, which, in this context, is
4. Other details are as follows −

● Version − Version no. of Internet Protocol used (e.g. IPv4).

● IHL − Internet Header Length; Length of entire IP header.
● DSCP − Differentiated Services Code Point; this is Type of Service.

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 ● ECN − Explicit Congestion Notification; It carries information about the congestion seen
in the route.
● Total Length − Length of entire IP Packet (including IP header and IP Payload).
● Identification − If IP packet is fragmented during the transmission, all the fragments
contain same identification number. to identify original IP packet they belong to.
● Flags − As required by the network resources, if IP Packet is too large to handle, these
‘flags’ tells if they can be fragmented or not. In this 3-bit flag, the MSB is always set to
‘0’.
● Fragment Offset − This offset tells the exact position of the fragment in the original IP
Packet.

● Time to Live − To avoid looping in the network, every packet is sent with some TTL
value set, which tells the network how many routers (hops) this packet can cross. At each
hop, its value is decremented by one and when the value reaches zero, the packet is
discarded.
● Protocol − Tells the Network layer at the destination host, to which Protocol this packet
belongs to, i.e. the next level Protocol. For example protocol number of ICMP is 1, TCP
is 6 and UDP is 17.
● Header Checksum − This field is used to keep checksum value of entire header which is
then used to check if the packet is received error-free.
● Source Address − 32-bit address of the Sender (or source) of the packet.
● Destination Address − 32-bit address of the Receiver (or destination) of the packet.
● Options − This is optional field, which is used if the value of IHL is greater than 5. These
options may contain values for options such as Security, Record Route, Time Stamp, etc.

3. Explain in detail about IP Depletion.

IPv4 Depletion:
● IPv4 address exhaustion is the depletion of the pool of unallocated IPv4 addresses.
Because the original Internet architecture had fewer than 4.3 billion addresses available,
depletion has been anticipated since the late 1980s, when the Internet started
experiencing dramatic growth. This depletion is one of the reasons for the development
and , .IPv4 and IPv6 coexist on the Internet.
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 ● The IP address space is managed globally by the Internet Assigned Numbers
Authority (IANA), and by five regional Internet registries (RIRs) responsible in their
designated territories for assignment to end users and local Internet registries, such
as Internet service providers. The main market forces that accelerated IPv4 address
depletion included the rapidly growing number of Internet users, always-on devices, and
mobile devices.
IP Address Depletion:

While the primary reason for IPv4 address exhaustion is insufficient capacity in the design of the
original Internet infrastructure, several additional driving factors have aggravated the
shortcomings. Each of them increased the demand on the limited supply of addresses, often in

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ways unanticipated by the original designers of the network.

Mobile devices
As IPv4 increasingly became the de facto standard for networked digital communication

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and the cost of embedding substantial computing power into hand-held devices dropped,
mobile phones have become viable Internet hosts. New specifications of 4G devices
require IPv6 addressing.

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Always-on connections
Throughout the 1990s, the predominant mode of consumer Internet access was telephone
modem dial-up. The rapid increase in the number of the dial-up networks increased
address consumption rates, although it was common that the modem pools, and as a

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result, the pool of assigned IP addresses, were shared amongst a large customer base. By
2007, however, broadband Internet access had begun to exceed 50% penetration in many
markets.[14] Broadband connections are always active, as the gateway devices (routers,
broadband modems) are rarely turned off, so that the address uptake by Internet service
providers continued at an accelerating pace.
Internet demographics
The developed world consists of hundreds of millions of households. In 1990, only a
small fraction of these had Internet access. Just 15 years later, almost half of them had
persistent broadband connections.[15] The many new Internet users in countries such as

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 China and India are also driving address exhaustion.
Inefficient address use
Organizations that obtained IP addresses in the 1980s were often allocated far more
addresses than they actually required, because the initial classful network allocation
method was inadequate to reflect reasonable usage. For example, large companies or
universities were assigned class A address blocks with over 16 million IPv4 addresses
each, because the next smaller allocation unit, a class B block with 65,536 addresses, was
too small for their intended deployments.
Many organizations continue to utilize public IP addresses for devices not accessible
outside their local network. From a global address allocation viewpoint, this is inefficient
in many cases, but scenarios exist where this is preferred in the organizational network

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implementation strategies.[citation needed]
Due to inefficiencies caused by subnetting, it is difficult to use all addresses in a block.
The host-density ratio, as defined in RFC 3194, is a metric for utilization of IP address

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blocks, that is used in allocation policies.

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4. Explain any three types of IP Transition Issues with an example.

IPv6 Transition Issues:

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The exhaustion of IPv4 addresses on November 2011 has made the future of the internet
in the IPv6 and raised new challenges for IPV4-IPV6 transition in the network research. One of
the challenges raised during the setup of Dual Stack IPV4/IPv6 network is the issue of handling
multiple configuration information on client side i.e. dual stack approach for handling multiple
responses in an IPv6 networks.

1. Dual Stack

Dual stack devices are able to run IPv4 and IPv6 in parallel. It allows hosts to simultaneously
reach IPv4 and IPv6 content, so it offers a very flexible coexistence strategy.

Benefits of Dual Stack are:

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 ● Native dual stack does not require any tunneling Mechanisms on internal networks

● Both IPv4 and IPv6 run independent of each other

● Dual stack supports gradual migration of endpoints, networks, and applications

The evolution of the Internet to IPv6 will directly affect enterprise customers because they
will have to communicate with their clients, partners, and suppliers over an IPv6 network.
In order to ensure business continuity and future growth, all organizations need to
carefully plan for coexistence between IPv4 and IPv6. Also, as IPv6 propagates, early
adopters can deliver innovative platforms,applications, and services that take advantage of

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the technical possibilities of IPv6 A combination of both Native IPv4 and IPv6, better
known as dual stack, is the recommended coexistence strategy for enterprise networks

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Who Needs Dual Stack Support?

● Companies that need or want to deploy IPv6 on their internal network infrastructure

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● Enterprises with IPv6-enabled, employee-provided, or guest devices on their network

● Enterprises getting started with IPv6 with pilot deployment or lab trials

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2. DHCP

● The Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) provides dynamic configuration

parameters to Internet hosts. DHCP consists of two components:

● 1. A protocol for delivering host-specific configuration parameters from a DHCP server

to a host and a mechanism for allocation of network addresses to hosts.

● 2. DHCP is built on a client-server model, where designated DHCP server hosts allocate
network addresses and deliver configuration parameters to dynamically configured hosts.
Throughout the remainder of this document, the term "server" refers to a host providing
initialization parameters through DHCP, and the term "client" refers to a host requesting

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 initialization parameters from a DHCP server.

● A DHCP server maintains a database of available IP addresses and configuration

information. When the server receives a request from a client, the DHCP server
determines the network to which the DHCP client is connected, and then allocates an IP
address or prefix that is appropriate for the client, and sends configuration information
appropriate for that client.

3. DHCPV6

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● DHCPv6 is a network protocol that is used for configuring IPv6 hosts with IP addresses,
IP prefixes and/or other configuration required to operate on an IPv6 network.

● IPv6 hosts that use stateless auto configuration may require information other than an IP

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address. DHCPv6 can be used to acquire this information, even though it is not being
used to configure IP addresses.

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● DHCPv6 is not necessary for configuring Domain Name System servers they can be
configured using Neighbor Discovery Protocol, which is needed anyway for stateless
auto configuration.

5. Give the comparison between IPv4 and IPv6.

Differences between IPv4 and IPv6:

Address length IPv4 is a 32-bit address. IPv6 is a 128-bit address.

Fields IPv4 is a numeric address that consists IPv6 is an alphanumeric address

of 4 fields which are separated by dot that consists of 8 fields, which
(.). are separated by colon.
Classes IPv4 has 5 different classes of IP IPv6 does not contain classes
address that includes Class A, Class of IP addresses.
B, Class C, Class D, and Class E.
Number of IP IPv4 has a limited number of IP IPv6 has a larg numbe of IP
address addresses. addresses e r
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 .
VLSM It supports VLSM (Virtual Length It does not support VLSM.
Subnet Mask). Here, VLSM means
that Ipv4 converts IP addresses into
a subnet of different sizes.
Address It manu and DHCP It supports DHCP,
configuration al manual, auto- and
supports configuration,
configuratio renumbering.
n.
Address space It generates 4 billion unique addresses It generates 340 undecillion
unique addresses.
End-to-end In IPv4, end-to-end connection In the case of IPv6, end-to-
connection integrity integrity is unachievable. end connection integrity is
achievable.
Security features In IPv4, security depends on the In IPv6, IPSEC is developed for
application. This IP address is not security purposes.
developed in keeping the security
feature in mind.
Address In IPv4, the IP address is In IPv6, the representation of
representation represented in decimal. the IP address in hexadecimal.

Fragmentation Fragmentation is done by the Fragmentation is by the

senders and the forwarding routers. done
senders only.
Packet flow It does not provide any It uses flow label field in the
identification mechanism for packet flow header for the packet flow
identification. identification.
Checksum field The checksum field is available in IPv4. The checksum field is not
available in IPv6.
Transmission IPv4 is broadcasting. On the other hand, IPv6 is
scheme multicasting, which provides
efficient network operations.
Encryption and It does not provide encrypti and It provides encryption
Authentication authenticatio on and authentication.
n.
Number of octets It consists of 4 octets. It consists of 8 fields, and each
field contains 2 octets.
Therefore, the total number of
octets in IPv6 is 16.

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6. With a neat sketch explain the different types of IPv6 Headers.

Packet Format of IPv6:

The IPv6 packet is shown in the diagram. Each packet is composed of base header and the
payload. The payload consists of two fields, optional extension headers and the data from upper
layer.

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The Base header consists of eight fields:

1. Version : This is 4 bit field, which defines the version number of an IP and its value is 6
for IPv6.
2. Priority : This is 4 bit field, which defines the priority of the packet with respect to the
traffic congestion.
3. Flow label : This is 24 bit field, which is designed to provide facility of specially handling
the specific flow of the data.
4. Payload length : This is 16 bit field, which defines the length of an IP datagram excluding
the base header.
5. Next header : This is 8 bit field, which defines the header that follows the base header in
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 the datagram.
6. Hop limit : This is 8 bit field, which serves the same purpose as the TTL( Time to Live
field in IPv4) field. It is a mechanism that limits the life span of the data in computer networks.
7. Source address : This is 128 bit source address field, which identifies the original source
of the datagram.
8. Destination address : It is 128 bit destination address field, which identifies the
original destination of the datagram.

Extension Headers

The length of the base header is 40 bytes and to provide greater functionality to the IP datagram.
It can be extended upto six extension headers.
1. Hop by hop option : It is used when the source needs to pass the information to all routers
visited by the datagram.
2. Source routing : It combines the concepts of the strict source route and the loose source
route options of IPv4.

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3. Fragmentation : The data travels through the different networks, each router
first decapsulates the IPv6 datagram from the received frame, then processes it and
again encapsulates in another frame.
4. Authentication : Authentication validates the message sender and ensures the integrity of the

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data.
5. Encrypted Security Payload (ESP) : It is an extension that provides confidentiality and
protects against eavesdropping .

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6. Destination option : It is used when the source needs to forward information to the
destination only and not to intermediate routers.

7. Explain the following

i) Router Header
The IPv6 header is a part of the data packet structure used in Internet Protocol version 6
(IPv6), which is the latest version of the Internet Protocol. IPv6 is designed to replace IPv4, offering a
much larger address space and improved features. The header in IPv6 contains important information
needed for routing and delivering packets across networks.
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IPv6 header includes fields such as the source and destination addresses, traffic class, flow label,
payload length, and next header. Understanding the IPv6 header is essential for managing and
troubleshooting modern IP networks. In this article, we are going to learn about each field in detail.
IPv6 Header Representation
The IPv6 header is the first part of an IPv6 packet, containing essential information for routing and
delivering the packet across networks. The IPv6 header representation is a structured layout of fields in
an IPv6 packet, including source and destination addresses, traffic class, flow label, payload length,
next header, and hop limit. It ensures proper routing and delivery of data across networks.

IPv6 Fixed Header

The IPv6 header is a part of the information sent over the internet. It’s always 40 bytes long and
includes details like where data should go and how it should get there. This helps devices talk to each
other and share information smoothly online.
Version (4-bits)
The size of this field is 4-bit. Indicates the version of the Internet Protocol, which is always 6 for IPv6,
so the bit sequence is 0110.
Traffic Class(8-bit)
The Traffic Class field indicates class or priority of IPv6 packet which is similar to Service Field in
IPv4 packet. It helps routers to handle the traffic based on the priority of the packet. If congestion
occurs on the router then packets with the least priority will be discarded.
As of now, only 4-bits are being used (and the remaining bits are under research), in which 0 to 7 are
assigned to Congestion controlled traffic and 8 to 15 are assigned to Uncontrolled traffic.
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Priority assignment of Congestion controlled traffic :

Uncontrolled data traffic is mainly used for Audio/Video data. So we give higher priority to
Uncontrolled data traffic.
The source node is allowed to set the priorities but on the way, routers can change it. Therefore, the
destination should not expect the same priority which was set by the source node.
Flow Label (20-bits)
Flow Label field is used by a source to label the packets belonging to the same flow in order to request
special handling by intermediate IPv6 routers, such as non-default quality-of-service or real-time
service. In order to distinguish the flow, an intermediate router can use the source address, a destination
address, and flow label of the packets. Between a source and destination, multiple flows may exist
because many processes might be running at the same time. Routers or Host that does not support the
functionality of flow label field and for default router handling, flow label field is set to 0. While setting
up the flow label, the source is also supposed to specify the lifetime of the flow.
Payload Length (16-bits)
It is a 16-bit (unsigned integer) field, indicates the total size of the payload which tells routers about the
amount of information a particular packet contains in its payload. The payload Length field includes
extension headers(if any) and an upper-layer packet. In case the length of the payload is greater than
65,535 bytes (payload up to 65,535 bytes can be indicated with 16-bits), then the payload length field
will be set to 0 and the jumbo payload option is used in the Hop-by-Hop options extension header.
Next Header (8-bits)
Next Header indicates the type of extension header(if present) immediately following the IPv6 header.
Whereas In some cases it indicates the protocols contained within upper-layer packets, such as TCP,
UDP.
Hop Limit (8-bits)

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Hop Limit field is the same as TTL in IPv4 packets. It indicates the maximum number of intermediate
nodes IPv6 packet is allowed to travel. Its value gets decremented by one, by each node that forwards
the packet and the packet is discarded if the value decrements to 0. This is used to discard the packets
that are stuck in an infinite loop because of some routing error.

Source Address (128-bits)

Source Address is the 128-bit IPv6 address of the original source of the packet.
Destination Address (128-bits)
The destination Address field indicates the IPv6 address of the final destination(in most cases). All the
intermediate nodes can use this information in order to correctly route the packet.
Extension Headers
In order to rectify the limitations of the IPv4 Option Field, Extension Headers are introduced in IP
version 6. The extension header mechanism is a very important part of the IPv6 architecture. The next
Header field of IPv6 fixed header points to the first Extension Header and this first extension header
points to the second extension header and so on.

ii) Fragment Header.

IPv6 packet may contain zero, one or more extension headers but these should be present in their recommended
order:

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Rule: Hop-by-Hop options header(if present) should always be placed after the IPv6 base header.
Conventions
 Any extension header can appear at most once except Destination Header because Destination
Header is present two times in the above list itself.
 If Destination Header is present before Routing Header then it will be examined by all intermediate
nodes specified in the routing header.
 If Destination Header is present just above the Upper layer then it will be examined only by the
Destination node.
Rules of Headers
The order of the header is defined by some predefined rules which are given below:
 If there is a hop-by-hop option then it must be after the base header of the IPv6 header.
 All headers except the destination header must be present once in the list.
 If the destination header appears before the routing header, then all the intermediate nodes that are in
the routing header examine the destination header.
 If the destination header is present before the upper layer, then only the destination nodes will
examine the destination header.
Sequence of Headers
Given order in which all extension header should be chained in IPv6 packet and working of each
extension header :

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8. Explain classful IP addressing scheme with a neat diagram.

Classes:

The class system defined which class a network belongs in based on its first octet.

● Class A network’s first octet begins with 0. The first octet identifies the network. Class
A supports 127 networks, each with 16 million hosts.

● Class B network’s first octet begins with 10. The first and second octets identify
the network. Class B upports 16,000 networks, each with 65,000 hosts.
● Class C network’s first octet begins with 110. The first three octets identify the
network. Class C supports 2 million networks, each with 254 hosts.
● Class D network’s first octet begins with 1110. Class D is reserved for multicast groups.
● Class E network’s first octet begins with 1111. Class E is reserved for future use.

The address format of IPv4:

The address format of IPv6:

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 K
The above diagram shows the address format of IPv4 and IPv6. An IPv4 is a 32-bit decimal
address. It contains 4 octets or fields separated by 'dot', and each field is 8-bit in size. The
number that each field contains should be in the range of 0-255. Whereas an IPv6 is a 128-bit
hexadecimal address. It contains 8 fields separated by a colon, and each field is 16-bit in size.

9. Describe about the IPv6 Address Autoconfiguration.

IPv6 Address Autoconfiguration:

A highly useful aspect of IPv6 is its ability to configure itself without the use of a stateful
configuration protocol, such as Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol for IPv6 (DHCPv6). By
default, an IPv6 host can configure a link-local address for each interface. By using router
discovery, a host can also determine the addresses of routers, additional addresses, and
other configuration parameters. Included in the Router Advertisement message is an
indication of whether a stateful address configuration protocol should be used.

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Address auto-configuration can only be performed on multicast-capable interfaces. Address
auto-configuration is described in RFC 2462, "IPv6 Stateless Address Autoconfiguration."

Autoconfigured Address States:

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Autoconfigured addresses are in one or more of the following states:

*Tentative — The address is in the process of being verified as unique. Verification

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occurs through duplicate address detection.

*Preferred — An address for which uniqueness has been verified. A node can send and
receive unicast traffic to and from a preferred address. The period of time that an address can
remain in the tentative and preferred states is included in the Router Advertisement message.

*Deprecated — An address that is still valid, but its use is discouraged for new communication.
Existing communication sessions can continue to use a deprecated address. A node can send and
receive unicast traffic to and from a deprecated address.

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*Valid — An address from which unicast traffic can be sent and received. The valid state
covers both the preferred and deprecated states. The amount of time that an address remains in
the tentative and valid states is included in the Router Advertisement message. The valid
lifetime must be greater than or equal to the preferred lifetime.

*Invalid — An address for which a node can no longer send or receive unicast traffic.
An address enters the invalid state after the valid lifetime expires.

Types of Autoconfiguration:

There are three types of autoconfiguration, Stateless, Stateful and Both.

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*Stateless — Configuration of addresses is based on the receipt of Router Advertisement
messages. These messages include stateless address prefixes and require that hosts not use a
stateful address configuration protocol.

*Stateful — Configuration is based on the use of a stateful address configuration protocol, such

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as DHCPv6, to obtain addresses and other configuration options. A host uses stateful address
configuration when it receives Router Advertisement messages that do not include address
prefixes and require that the host use a stateful address configuration protocol. A host also uses a

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stateful address configuration protocol when there are no routers present on the local link.

*Both — Configuration is based on receipt of Router Advertisement messages. These messages

include stateless address prefixes and require that hosts use a stateful address configuration

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protocol.

Autoconfiguration Process:

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The address autoconfiguration process for an IPv6 node occurs as follows:

1. A tentative link-local address is derived, based on the link-local prefix of FE80::/64 and the
64-bit interface identifier.

2. Duplicate address detection is performed to verify the uniqueness of the tentative link-local
address.

3. If duplicate address detection fails, manual configuration must be performed on the node.

4. If duplicate address detection succeeds, the tentative link-local address is assumed to be

unique and valid. The link-local address is initialized for the interface. The corresponding
solicited-node multicast link-layer address is registered with the network adapter.

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