Swisscom gets involved in World IPv6 Day
On 8 June it is World IPv6 Day. This day is being held by the Internet Society (ISOC). The Swiss IPv6 Council, of which Swisscom is also a member, is promoting this day and the new Internet protocol in Switzerland.
Mr. Gysi, what exactly is happening on the World IPv6 Day?
A global experiment will take place on this day. On 8 June, numerous large and small Web services, such as Google, Yahoo and Facebook, will publish their IPv6 addresses alongside their IPv4 addresses in the Domain Name System (DNS) for 24 hours. It is usually only the IPv4 addresses that are known and active.
What does this mean and how exactly should I picture it?
The DNS helps to convert a Web address (e.g. www.swisscom.ch) into an IP address (e.g. 138.190.35.25 for IPv4). The operating system uses this IP address to establish a connection to the server and transfers the content to the PC. On 8 June, the IPv6 addresses will also be published in the DNS. This means that users can also access the websites of companies participating in the test via the IPv6 protocol and thus test their own IPv6 compatibility. In this way, any problems can be detected at an early stage.
Why might I be unable to access these test websites on 8 June?
If your own operating system and the test website you access both have an IPv6 address, a connection will be established via IPv6. If this connection does not work, the website will be displayed only very slowly or not at all, although the connection via IPv4 should also continue to work in parallel. Such problems may, for instance, be caused by automatic or manual tunnelling of IPv6 via IPv4 or an incorrectly configured router.
Our company is not yet IPv6-compatible – is this cause for concern?
Yes and no. On the one hand, IPv6 is being introduced in addition to IPv4, which means that the two protocols will be operated in parallel for several years. It is therefore not necessary to implement IPv6 immediately. On the other hand, the complexity of introducing IPv6 should not be underestimated. A large proportion of the IT infrastructure is affected, and not just the network elements that are being tested on 8 June. Furthermore, users will have problems accessing Web services if they are only offered via the IPv6 protocol in the future.
What should companies do with regard to IPv6?
There is no hurry to migrate to IPv6. However, Swisscom recommends that you keep an eye on the situation and incorporate IPv6 implementation into your business plan. Our customer advisors will be happy to provide further information and support.
What will Swisscom be doing on World IPv6 Day?
The Swiss IPv6 Council is organising various IPv6 events in Zurich on 8 June. Swisscom is a member of the Council and will be presenting a business case for IPv6 implementation at the Devoteam Genesis event. We will also be demonstrating a live IPv6 test with a router model for private customers at the Digicomp event.
How far is Swisscom with the switchto IPv6?
We want our customers to be able to make a smooth transition to IPv6. Swisscom will therefore be successively upgrading all affected services to IPv6 by around 2013. The speed of implementation greatly depends on the current market situation and on demand. Swisscom already offers three IPv6-compatible services to business customers: IP-Plus Business Internet, LAN-Interconnect Service and Network Services.
Thank you for a highly informative interview, Mr. Gysi.