IPv6 Operations (v6ops)

WG Name IPv6 Operations
Acronym v6ops
Area Operations and Management Area (ops)
State Active
Charter charter-ietf-v6ops-05 Approved
Document dependencies
Additional resources GitHub
Issue tracker
Wiki
Zulip Stream
Personnel Chairs Nick Buraglio, Ron Bonica, XiPeng Xiao
Area Director Warren "Ace" Kumari
Tech Advisor Fred Baker
Delegates Éric Vyncke, Warren "Ace" Kumari
Materials Managers Ron Bonica, XiPeng Xiao
Mailing list Address v6ops@ietf.org
To subscribe https://www.ietf.org/mailman/listinfo/v6ops
Archive https://mailarchive.ietf.org/arch/browse/v6ops/
Chat Room address https://zulip.ietf.org/#narrow/stream/v6ops

Charter for Working Group

The global deployment of IPv6 is underway, creating an Internet
consisting of IPv4-only, IPv6-only, IPv4-IPv6 dual-stack, and
IPv6+translation networks and nodes. This deployment must be properly
handled to avoid the division of the Internet into separate IPv4 and
IPv6 networks, ensuring addressing and connectivity for all IPv4 and
IPv6 nodes. IPv6 deployment has resulted in the shutdown of IPv4 in
some networks. Removing IPv4 constraints has resulted in innovations
in IPv6 network operations.

The IPv6 Operations Working Group (v6ops) develops guidelines for the
deployment and operation of new and existing IPv6 networks.

The goals of the v6ops working group are:

  1. Solicit input from network operators and users to identify
    operational issues with IPv6 networks, and determine solutions or
    workarounds to those issues.

  2. Solicit input from network operators and users to identify
    operational interaction issues with the IPv4 networks, and determine
    solutions or workarounds to those issues.

  3. Solicit discussion and documentation of the issues and opportunities
    in IPv6-only operation, and of the resulting innovations.

  4. Operational solutions for identified issues should be developed in
    v6ops and documented in informational or BCP drafts.

  5. Document operational requirements for IPv6 networks.

These documents should document IPv6 operational experience, including
interactions with IPv4, in dual stack networks, IPv6 networks with IPv4
delivered as an overlay or translation service, or IPv6-only networks.

IPv6 operational and deployment issues with specific protocols or
technologies (such as Applications, Transport Protocols, Routing
Protocols, DNS or Sub-IP Protocols) are the primary responsibility of
the groups or areas responsible for those protocols or
technologies. However, the v6ops Working Group may provide input to
those areas/groups, as needed, and cooperate with those areas/groups in
reviewing solutions to IPv6 operational and deployment problems.

Future work items within this scope will be adopted by the Working Group
only if there is a substantial expression of interest from the community
and if the work clearly does not fit elsewhere in the IETF.

There must be a continuous expression of interest for the Working Group
to work on a particular work item. If there is no longer sufficient
interest in the Working Group in a work item, the item may be removed
from the list of Working Group items.

Milestones

Date Milestone Associated documents
Dec 2026 Identify issues that prevent IPv6 traffic from becoming majority, and publish guidelines
Dec 2026 Publish BCP for enterprise IPv6 deployment
Jul 2026 Solicit IPv6-only deployment cases and publish BCP for IPv6-only
Jul 2026 Identify IPv6 issues that prevent H.E. from selecting IPv6 for Dual-Stack users, and publish operational solutions
Dec 2025 Update IPv6 CPE requirements (rfc7084-update)
Jul 2025 Publishing deployment and operations guidelines for IPv6-mostly
Dec 2024 Publish dhcp-pd, hbh, nd-considerations, rfc3849-update as RFCs

Done milestones

Date Milestone Associated documents
Done Recommendations regarding the use of DNS64
Done Update RFC 6555 with experience
Done Update RFC 7084 (IPv6 CE Requirements)
Done Prefix for use by IPv4/IPv6 translators in a network
Done File recommendation on how to build a commercial WiFi network