IPv6 Network Deployment Monitoring and Analysis
draft-pang-v6ops-ipv6-monitoring-deployment-01

v6ops                                                       R. Pang, Ed.
Internet-Draft                                              J. Zhao, Ed.
Intended status: Standards Track                            China Unicom
Expires: 5 January 2026                                      M. Jin, Ed.
                                                                  Huawei
                                                           S. Zhang, Ed.
                                                            China Unicom
                                                             4 July 2025

            IPv6 Network Deployment Monitoring and Analysis
             draft-pang-v6ops-ipv6-monitoring-deployment-01

Abstract

   This document presents an IPv6 network end-to-end monitoring and
   analysis system.  It describes a standardized end-to-end monitoring
   and analysis architecture and an indicator system, while also
   enabling capabilities for end-to-end monitoring data collection and
   integrated intelligent analysis.  This solution has been verified in
   the operators' network.

Status of This Memo

   This Internet-Draft is submitted in full conformance with the
   provisions of BCP 78 and BCP 79.

   Internet-Drafts are working documents of the Internet Engineering
   Task Force (IETF).  Note that other groups may also distribute
   working documents as Internet-Drafts.  The list of current Internet-
   Drafts is at https://datatracker.ietf.org/drafts/current/.

   Internet-Drafts are draft documents valid for a maximum of six months
   and may be updated, replaced, or obsoleted by other documents at any
   time.  It is inappropriate to use Internet-Drafts as reference
   material or to cite them other than as "work in progress."

   This Internet-Draft will expire on 5 January 2026.

Copyright Notice

   Copyright (c) 2025 IETF Trust and the persons identified as the
   document authors.  All rights reserved.

   This document is subject to BCP 78 and the IETF Trust's Legal
   Provisions Relating to IETF Documents (https://trustee.ietf.org/
   license-info) in effect on the date of publication of this document.
   Please review these documents carefully, as they describe your rights

Pang, et al.             Expires 5 January 2026                 [Page 1]
Internet-Draft     IPv6 Network Monitoring Deployment          July 2025

   and restrictions with respect to this document.  Code Components
   extracted from this document must include Revised BSD License text as
   described in Section 4.e of the Trust Legal Provisions and are
   provided without warranty as described in the Revised BSD License.

Table of Contents

   1.  Introduction  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   2
     1.1.  Current IPv6 Deployment Status  . . . . . . . . . . . . .   3
     1.2.  Current Approaches to Monitoring IPv6 Deployment  . . . .   3
   2.  Problem Statement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   4
     2.1.  Fragmented Monitoring Coverage  . . . . . . . . . . . . .   4
     2.2.  Single-Dimensional Evaluation . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   4
     2.3.  Lack of Cross-Domain Correlation  . . . . . . . . . . . .   4
     2.4.  Insufficient In-Depth Analysis  . . . . . . . . . . . . .   4
     2.5.  Limited Dynamic Prediction  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   4
   3.  IPv6 Network End-to-End Monitoring and Analysis System  . . .   4
     3.1.  IPv6 Network End-to-End Monitoring and Analysis System
           Architecture  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   5
       3.1.1.  Data Collection Layer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   5
       3.1.2.  Intelligent Analysis Layer  . . . . . . . . . . . . .   6
       3.1.3.  Visualization Layer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   7
     3.2.  Indicator System  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   7
   4.  Scenario-Based Capability Examples  . . . . . . . . . . . . .   8
     4.1.  IPv6 Monitoring and Analysis on the User Side . . . . . .   8
     4.2.  IPv6 Support and Application Access Quality Monitoring for
           Application Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   9
   5.  Use cases . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   9
     5.1.  User Network Quality Issue Localization . . . . . . . . .   9
     5.2.  Home terminals and router Traffic Analysis  . . . . . . .  10
   6.  Security Considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  10
   7.  IANA Considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  10
   8.  References  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  10
     8.1.  Normative References  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  10
     8.2.  Informative References  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  10
   Authors' Addresses  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  11

1.  Introduction

   The emergence of IPv6 can be traced back to the 1990s, when the
   development of IPv6 was initiated by the Internet Engineering Task
   Force (IETF) to solve the problem of IPv4 address exhaustion.  In
   1998, the IPv6 protocol specification was published.  As IPv6
   adoption accelerating over the past years, the IPv6 protocol was
   elevated to be an Internet Standard status [RFC8200] in 2017.

Pang, et al.             Expires 5 January 2026                 [Page 2]
Internet-Draft     IPv6 Network Monitoring Deployment          July 2025

1.1.  Current IPv6 Deployment Status

   In today's digital age, the deployment of IPv6 has become a core
   driving force for network development.  With the continuous expansion
   of network scale and the emergence of new applications, the extensive
   address space, enhanced security, and improved network performance of
   IPv6 have made it a key element in network evolution.  How to better
   deploy and promote IPv6 networks has become a widely concerned issue.

   As of 2023, significant strides have been made in the global
   deployment of IPv6.  According to the statistics from the 'Global
   IPv6 Development Report 2024', in 2023 the deployment of IPv6
   networks significantly accelerated, breaking through the 30% mark in
   global coverage for the first time.  Among leading countries, the
   IPv6 coverage rate has reached or approached 70%, and the percentage
   of IPv6 mobile traffic has surpassed that of IPv4.

   [RFC9386] presents the state of IPv6 network deployment in 2022, and
   its Section 5 lists common challenges, such as transition mechanisms,
   network management and operation, performance, and customer
   experience.  'ETSI-GR-IPE-001' also discusses the existing gaps in
   IPv6-related use cases.

1.2.  Current Approaches to Monitoring IPv6 Deployment

   Existing IPv6 deployment monitoring approaches include (not an
   exhaustive list):

   *  Internet Society Pulse: Curating information about levels of IPv6
      adoption in countries and networks around the world.

   *  Akamai IPv6 Adoption Visualization: Reviewing IPv6 adoption trends
      at a country or network level.

   *  APNIC IPv6 Measurement: Providing an interactive map that users
      can click on to see the IPv6 deployment rate in a particular
      country.

   *  Cloudflare IPv6 Adoption Trends: Offering insights into IPv6
      adoption across the Internet.

   *  Cisco 6lab IPv6: Displaying IPv6 prefix data.

   *  Regional or National Monitoring Platforms: Examples include the NZ
      IPv6, the RIPE NCC IPv6 Statistics, and the USG IPv6 & DNSSEC
      External Service Deployment Status, among others.

Pang, et al.             Expires 5 January 2026                 [Page 3]
Internet-Draft     IPv6 Network Monitoring Deployment          July 2025

   The aforementioned tools are capable of providing effective
   statistics and visualization of IPv6 support levels.  However, they
   do not adequately address the key problems that currently exist.  The
   specific deficiencies are presented in the following five aspects.

2.  Problem Statement

2.1.  Fragmented Monitoring Coverage

   Existing monitoring points are concentrated in the backbone network
   [RFC7707], lacking fine-grained coverage of terminals and
   applications.

2.2.  Single-Dimensional Evaluation

   It mainly relies on basic indicators such as connection availability
   [RFC9099] and address allocation rate, lacking a comprehensive
   assessment of service continuity, transmission quality, Network
   Element Readiness, Active IPv6 Connections, and other key metrics.

2.3.  Lack of Cross-Domain Correlation

   The monitoring data of each network domain is isolated, making it
   impossible to conduct correlation analysis of end-to-end traffic
   paths [RFC9312].

2.4.  Insufficient In-Depth Analysis

   For instance, the IPv6 transformation in some private network
   applications is not thorough enough, with internal application
   systems yet to be upgraded.  This results in secondary and tertiary
   links, as well as multimedia content traffic, still relying
   predominantly on IPv4.  However, there is a lack of effective deep
   monitoring methods to oversee these connections.

2.5.  Limited Dynamic Prediction

   Existing models find it difficult to quantify the impact of external
   factors such as policies and regulations, user behavior patterns, and
   market dynamics on the evolution of IPv6.

3.  IPv6 Network End-to-End Monitoring and Analysis System

   This system adheres to the following core principles.

   *  Correlation analysis: Capabilities for cross-domain data
      integration and analysis

Pang, et al.             Expires 5 January 2026                 [Page 4]
Internet-Draft     IPv6 Network Monitoring Deployment          July 2025

   *  Business orientation: A standardized indicator measurement system

   *  Visualized operation: Key operations supported by visual charts

   *  Scalability: Full utilization of current infrastructure, support
      for external system docking, and compatibility with multi-vendor
      devices and subsystems

3.1.  IPv6 Network End-to-End Monitoring and Analysis System
      Architecture

+==================================================================+
|                         Visualization Layer                      |
+==================================================================+
        |                |                |                |
+==================================================================+
|                     Intelligent Analysis Layer                   |
+==================================================================+
        |                |                |                |
+==================================================================+
|                       Data Collection Layer                      |
+==================================================================+
        |                |                |                |
+----------------+  +----------------+  +----------------+  +----------------+
| Home Broadband |  |    Mobile      |  |   IP Bearer    |  |   Application  |
|    Network     |  |    Network     |  |    Network     |  |                |
+----------------+  +----------------+  +----------------+  +----------------+

   Figure 1: IPv6 Network End to End Monitoring and Analysis System

   The system architecture is divided into three layers from top to
   bottom (shown in Figure 1): the Data Collection Layer, the
   Intelligent Analysis Layer, and the Visualization Layer.

   Based on network functions and service scenarios, the network is
   divided into four major professional network domains.  These
   specifically include: Home Broadband Network, Mobile Network, IP
   Bearer Network, and Application.

3.1.1.  Data Collection Layer

   For these four major professional network domains, data cleaning,
   transformation, and standardization are performed respectively.
   Based on multi-source data fusion methods, the aggregation,
   correlation and integration of data from each professional network
   are realized, forming a unified data analysis foundation.  According
   to the hierarchical division of the network architecture, the
   collected data indicators are explained from three dimensions: the

Pang, et al.             Expires 5 January 2026                 [Page 5]
Internet-Draft     IPv6 Network Monitoring Deployment          July 2025

   user side, the network side and the application side.  The core
   collection indicators are specified as follows.  For specific
   indicator details, refer to Section 3.2.

   *  User side: network element readiness, network readiness, basic
      resources, network traffic, active connections.

   *  Network side: network element readiness, network readiness, basic
      resources, network traffic, active connections.

   *  Application side: network element readiness, network readiness,
      basic resources, network traffic, active connections.  Data
      collection relies on the existing technical system.  The specific
      methods are:

      -  Adopt the established standardized data collection mechanism to
         ensure the uniformity of data formats.

      -  Access the existing network management systems of each
         professional network, and realize automatic collection and
         synchronization of indicator data through interface docking.

   TBD.

3.1.2.  Intelligent Analysis Layer

   The system develops a fine-grained, multi-dimensional traffic
   analysis model.  It enables correlated analysis of monitoring data
   from cloud, network, edge, and end systems.  This allows accurate
   identification of issues related to IPv6 traffic improvement.

3.1.2.1.  Multi-domain Traffic Correlation Analysis

   *  End-to-end cross-system integration: Integrate end-to-end data
      from professional systems such as user home networks, access
      networks, metro networks, IDCs, and content providers (covering
      cloud, network, edge, and end).  This enables end-to-end traffic
      analysis, quality localization and demarcation, and evaluation of
      overall IPv6 support.

   *  End-to-end traffic analysis: Perform correlated analysis on
      traffic data from end, network, and cloud systems.  It precisely
      attributes the causes of IPv6 traffic changes to end, network, or
      cloud subsystems.

      -  Network traffic analysis: Support collection of IPv6/IPv4
         inbound and outbound traffic at key network nodes.  Analyze
         traffic change trends.

Pang, et al.             Expires 5 January 2026                 [Page 6]
Internet-Draft     IPv6 Network Monitoring Deployment          July 2025

      -  Application traffic analysis: Support collection and analysis
         of IPv6/IPv4 active applications on the user side and
         application side.  Calculate IPv6 traffic data for different
         service applications.

      -  Inter-network traffic analysis: Support analysis of IPv6/IPv4
         traffic direction and application bearing information between
         municipal-level networks.  Provide an inter-municipal traffic
         matrix.

   *  Dynamic traffic attribution

      -  Identify traffic-restricted areas.  Develop multi-dimensional
         problem investigation plans covering the network side, user
         side, and application side.  Investigate potential influencing
         factors level by level.  Attribute traffic fluctuations to
         specific subsystems.

3.1.2.2.  Quality Deterioration Delimitation and Topology Restoration

   *  User-level Topology Reconstruction: Using user services as the
      link, reconstruct the end-to-end topology and diagnose latency/
      packet loss segment by segment (e.g., segmental quality of home
      terminal, access network, and application sides).

   *  Segmented Quality Degradation Localization: Compare IPv4/IPv6
      performance differences segment by segment to locate degraded
      network elements.

3.1.3.  Visualization Layer

3.1.3.1.  Indicator-Based Presentation

   Data is statistically aggregated and presented according to
   scenarios, with support for manual editing of display content and
   dimensions.

3.1.3.2.  Decision Support

3.2.  Indicator System

   Based on a standardized indicator system, conduct IPv6 support
   monitoring and analysis for each professional domain, breaking down
   monitoring metrics into specific services and network segments.

   *  Readiness Indicators

Pang, et al.             Expires 5 January 2026                 [Page 7]
Internet-Draft     IPv6 Network Monitoring Deployment          July 2025

      -  Network Element Readiness: IPv6 Readiness of Network Equipment,
         End-User Devices, and Security Devices.

      -  Application Readiness: IPv6 Support Rate of Website
         Applications and Business Systems.

      -  Infrastructure Readiness: IPv6 Readiness of Fixed Internet,
         Mobile Internet, Private Lines, and Data Center Network (DCN)
         Infrastructure.

      -  Network Readiness:

         o  IPv6 Network Coverage of Backbone Networks, Metropolitan
            Area Networks (MANs), Internet Data Centers (IDCs), and
            Private Lines.

         o  End-to-End IPv6 Network Performance of Backbone Networks,
            Metropolitan Area Networks (MANs), Internet Data Centers
            (IDCs), Private Lines, and Access Networks.

      -  Cloud Readiness: IPv6 Readiness of Content Delivery Networks
         (CDNs), Cloud Services, Cloud Platforms, and DNS Servers.

   *  Operational Metrics

      -  IPv6 Traffic: IPv6 Traffic Share in Cross-Border, Inter-Domain,
         Intra-Domain, Fixed Metropolitan Area Networks (MANs), Mobile
         Core Networks, Internet Data Centers (IDCs), Private Lines, and
         Applications.

      -  Active IPv6 Connections: Active IPv6 Connection Share in Fixed
         Metropolitan Area Networks (MANs), Mobile Core Networks,
         Internet Data Centers (IDCs), Private Lines, and Applications.

   *  Policy Compliance Indicators.

4.  Scenario-Based Capability Examples

4.1.  IPv6 Monitoring and Analysis on the User Side

   Monitor and analyze data from fixed and mobile network user sides,
   including: IPv6 support monitoring and IPv6 traffic quality analysis.
   Support end-to-end data analysis at the intelligent analysis layer.

Pang, et al.             Expires 5 January 2026                 [Page 8]
Internet-Draft     IPv6 Network Monitoring Deployment          July 2025

4.2.  IPv6 Support and Application Access Quality Monitoring for
      Application Systems

   Through application monitoring points, monitor and analyze the IPv6
   support of application systems, including: website and APP
   monitoring, IPv6 application access quality evaluation, and DNS
   resolution capability monitoring.

   TBD.

5.  Use cases

5.1.  User Network Quality Issue Localization

   When User A experiences network congestion while playing cloud-based
   games at home, it affects the gaming experience.  To identify the
   cause, it is necessary to collect performance data from each network
   segment for quality localization.  However, current independent
   management of network domains prevents direct data correlation.  The
   network segments are as follows: N1 (terminal device to ONT), N2 (ONT
   to BRAS), and N3 (BRAS to application side).

+-----------------+        +--------------+        +----------------+        +--------------+
| Terminal device |--------|     ONT      |--------|      BRAS      |--------|     APP      |
+-----------------+        +--------------+        +----------------+        +--------------+
        |                          |                         |                         |
        |<--------- N1 ----------> |                         |                         |
        |                          |<--------- N2 ---------->|                         |
        |                          |                         |<--------- N3 ---------->|

     Figure 2: Network schematic diagram based on home broadband
                      network access application

   The system detected end-to-end quality degradation of a certain
   service.  After the system segmented and delimited the quality
   degradation, it compared the performance of N1/N2/N3 segment by
   segment based on its preset multi-segment monitoring model
   (Figure 2).  It was determined that an abnormality occurred in the N3
   network segment.  At the same time, by correlating with CDN
   scheduling logs, a content source switching event was found.  The
   original service node was a local IDC, while the monitored service
   node was a remote node across provinces.  Therefore, it is concluded
   that the end-to-end quality degradation is caused by CDN remote
   scheduling and the bottleneck of the N3 cross-network link.
   Adjusting the CDN scheduling strategy can improve the quality
   degradation issue.

Pang, et al.             Expires 5 January 2026                 [Page 9]
Internet-Draft     IPv6 Network Monitoring Deployment          July 2025

5.2.  Home terminals and router Traffic Analysis

   Home terminals and routers, as the "last kilometer" for users to
   access the Internet, play a crucial role in user experience with
   regard to their IPv6 support.  The system detected that the
   proportion of IPv6 traffic in a demonstration community was lower
   than the city-wide average.  By correlating with home broadband
   terminal data, it was found that the proportion of bridge-mode
   optical modems in this community was relatively high, and the
   proportion of old devices among the connected routers was higher than
   the average.  Therefore, the root cause was identified as inadequate
   terminal support.  Old routers only support IPv4/NAT mode, which
   forces IPv6 traffic to be downgraded.  Targeted terminal replacements
   were carried out.  Specifically, bridge-mode optical modems for
   community users were upgraded to router-mode ones.  This has led to a
   significant increase in the proportion of IPv6 traffic.

6.  Security Considerations

   The monitoring system must implement:

   *  Role-based access control.

   *  Anonymization of user-specific data.

   *  Secure data transmission protocols.

   *  Integrity verification for collected metrics.

7.  IANA Considerations

   TBD.

8.  References

8.1.  Normative References

   [RFC8200]  Deering, S. and R. Hinden, "Internet Protocol, Version 6
              (IPv6) Specification", STD 86, RFC 8200,
              DOI 10.17487/RFC8200, July 2017,
              <https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc8200>.

8.2.  Informative References

   [RFC7707]  Gont, F. and T. Chown, "Network Reconnaissance in IPv6
              Networks", RFC 7707, DOI 10.17487/RFC7707, March 2016,
              <https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc7707>.

Pang, et al.             Expires 5 January 2026                [Page 10]
Internet-Draft     IPv6 Network Monitoring Deployment          July 2025

   [RFC9099]  Vyncke, É., Chittimaneni, K., Kaeo, M., and E. Rey,
              "Operational Security Considerations for IPv6 Networks",
              RFC 9099, DOI 10.17487/RFC9099, August 2021,
              <https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc9099>.

   [RFC9312]  Kühlewind, M. and B. Trammell, "Manageability of the QUIC
              Transport Protocol", RFC 9312, DOI 10.17487/RFC9312,
              September 2022, <https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc9312>.

   [RFC9386]  Fioccola, G., Volpato, P., Palet Martinez, J., Mishra, G.,
              and C. Xie, "IPv6 Deployment Status", RFC 9386,
              DOI 10.17487/RFC9386, April 2023,
              <https://www.rfc-editor.org/info/rfc9386>.

Authors' Addresses

   Ran Pang (editor)
   China Unicom
   Beijing
   China
   Email: pangran@chinaunicom.cn

   Jing Zhao (editor)
   China Unicom
   Beijing
   China
   Email: zhaoj501@chinaunicom.cn

   Mingshuang Jin (editor)
   Huawei
   Beijing
   China
   Email: jinmingshuang@huawei.com

   Shuai Zhang (editor)
   China Unicom
   Beijing
   China
   Email: zhangs366@chinaunicom.cn

Pang, et al.             Expires 5 January 2026                [Page 11]