IP Next Generation (IPng) This set of Web pages provide information of the Next Generation Internet Protocol (IPng). IPng was recommended by the IPng Area Directors of the Internet Engineering Task Force at the Toronto IETF meeting on July 25, 1994 in RFC 1752, The Recommendation for the IP Next Generation Protocol The recommendation was approved by the Internet Engineering Steering Group and made a Proposed Standard on November 17, 1994. The formal name of the IPng protocol is IPv6 (where the "6" refers to it being assigned version number 6). The current version of the Internet Protocol is version 4 (referred to as IPv4). IPng is a new version of IP which is designed to be an evolutionary step from IPv4. It is a natural increment to IPv4. It can be installed as a normal software upgrade in internet devices and is interoperable with the current IPv4. Its deployment strategy is designed to not have any flag days or other dependencies. IPng is designed to run well on high performance networks (e.g. ATM) and at the same time is still efficient for low bandwidth networks (e.g. wireless). In addition, it provides a platform for new internet functionality that will be required in the near future. IPng includes a transition mechanism which is designed to allow users to adopt and deploy IPng in an a highly diffuse fashion and to provide direct interoperability between IPv4 and IPng hosts. The transition of a new version of the Internet Protocol must be incremental, with few or no critical interdependencies, if it is to succeed. The IPng transition allows the users to upgrade their hosts to IPng, and the network operators to deploy IPng in routers, with very little coordination between the two. IPng Overview A complete overview of IPng and the motivations behind it can be found in the IPng Overview . IPng Working Group The IPng working group is an IETF working group chartered to develop the next generation of the Internet Protocol. The working group is chaired by Steve Deering / Xerox PARC and Ross Callon / Bay Networks. The IPng document editor is Robert Hinden / Ipsilon Networks, Inc. The IPng working group represents the culmination of many working groups in the IETF working on the internet routing and addressing problems. To join the IPng working group mailing list send mail to: majordomo@sunroof.eng.sun.com and include: subscribe ipng in the body of the message. Complete instructions on subscribing/de-subscribing to the IPng mailing list. The IPng mail archives are also available from majordomo@sunroof.eng.sun.com. They can be obtained by send a message to: majordomo@sunroof.eng.sun.com and include: get ipng ipng.YYMM in the body of the message, where YYMM is the year and month of the archive. Alternatively including list ipng in the body of the message will return a list of available archives. Working Group Meeting Minutes The minutes of recent IPng working group meetings. IPng Specifications A listing of current IPng specifications organized by function. Presentations Presentations on the IPng have been done on the MBONE and at various tradeshows and conferences. Implementations IPv6 Implementations are being developed for 4.4-lite BSD, Digital UNIX, HP-UX, Linux, NetBSD, Solaris 2, and BayNetworks routers. This page was developed by Robert Hinden hinden@ipsilon.com of Ipsilon Networks, Inc. It was last updated on July 31, 1995.