Are IPv6-only Internet services viable today?

Owen DeLong owen at delong.com
Sat Jan 16 07:45:56 UTC 2010


On Jan 15, 2010, at 7:53 PM, Jim Burwell wrote:

> Sorry for late response here...
> 
> On 1/14/2010 15:20, Cameron Byrne wrote:
>> On Thu, Jan 14, 2010 at 3:00 PM, Jim Burwell <jimb at jsbc.cc> wrote:
>> 
>>> On 1/14/2010 11:10, Cameron Byrne wrote:
>>> 
>>>> Folks,
>>>> 
>>>> My question to the community is:  assuming a network based IPv6 to IP4
>>>> translator is in place (like NAT64 / DNS64), are IPv6-only Internet
>>>> services viable as a product today?  In particular, would it be
>>>> appropriate for a 3G /smartphone or wireless broadband focused on at
>>>> casual (web and email) Internet users?  Keep in mind, these users have
>>>> NAT44 today.
>>>> 
>>>> 
>>> You may also want to read up on Dual Stack Lite (DS-Lite)
>>> <http://tools.ietf.org/html/draft-ietf-softwire-dual-stack-lite-02>,
>>> 
>> I have looked at DS-lite very carefully.   First, DS-Lite fits better
>> for cable operators since they have CPE and can have a DS-lite
>> function in the CPE that they control, and that in turn allows them to
>> provide IPv4, IPv6, and dual-stack to the end-host that they do not
>> control.  DS-Lite does not fit as well for a mobile phones since it
>> would require a major change to the phone's OS.  Second, DS-Lite
>> requires tunneling as well as translation, so it is one more piece of
>> overhead in addition to NAT64 solution.  For me, i believe it is less
>> complex to manage a single stack IPv6 host with NAT64 translation than
>> a dual stack host, tunneling infrastructure, as well as NAT44 CGN,
>> which is what DS-lite requires.  They both achieve the same result,
>> but I believe in the mobile space there is a quicker time to market as
>> well as more progress toward the end-goal of IPv6-only using NAT64
>> than DS-lite.
>> 
> I guess the choice here is between standing up and managing a NAT64 CGN
> + special DNS64 DNS server infrastructure, or a DS-Lite CGN + DS-Lite
> tunneling infrastructure (you'd be able to keep existing "vanilla" DNS
> servers).
> 
> 
As I understand DS-Lite, an IPv6-capable device is a DS-Lite capable device
without any modification.  The DS-Lite Gateway does all the heavy lifting
to provide IPv4 services and do the NAT64 translation between the IPv6-only
end-user device (phone) and the IPv4 internet.

Owen





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