I was searching around for information on IPv6 implementations and found a statement in Twitter that sums up the global state of affairs related to IPv6 perfectly:

Woke up again thinking about IPv6. Gotta do something about.

The IT world’s realized that IPv6 is inevitable but nothing solid is really being done in a huge majority of organizations. I feel it’s not just the costs associated, but also the lack of information that is available on the subject. Apparently only 10% of IPv4 addresses are available globally and this would exhaust in a year or two.

So what happens then if you do not get along with IPv6?

• You cannot have another ‘networked’ equipment (a sure bye bye to the ‘internet of things’ concept)
• There will be islands of IPv6 networks private or public that you will find hard to reach to
• IPv6 networks would also stumble a few times before reaching your network. Your business would definitely be hurt by the lack of IPv6 compatibility(the US government has even announced that they will only procure gear that supports IPv6 from next July)

IPv6 is not just against ‘IP address exhaustion’, but it also ensures a more secure (by including IPsec) and quicker network (fixed size headers that requiring less processing).

Businesses need to educate the IT team on the importance and short time available and also ensure only IPv6 supported hardware and software is procured. Every aspect of the network will need an overhaul – the ISP, connectivity with ISP, the routers, firewalls, switches, every single node on the network, including application installations. A good social network site that offers information and help on implementing IPv6 is gogo6. It also offers services and hardware to make that smooth transitioning :- tunneling services for IPv6 connectivity and an IP gateway providing v4-v6 interoperability.

Other interesting reading on IPv6 implementation:

• Worldwide only 0.238 percent of their users’ systems have IPv6 enabled. Russia, France, Ukraine, Norway, USA lead in IPv6 adoption.
• More Macs mean higher IPv6 usage in US (no less than 52 percent of all IPv6 users have a Mac and use 6to4)
• Cash for Clunker architecture?
• Most common IPv6 questions answered
• Largest IPv6 ISP doubles in size