IPv4 vs IPv6

Differences between IPv4 and IPv6


 

This page shows to you the main differences between

IPv4

and

IPv6

. I hope it is useful to you.

 

Packets

IPv4 packet

and

IPv6 packet

IPv4 packetIPv6 packet

 

Addresses

Address on IPv4

32 bits (4 bytes)
12:34:56:78

Address on IPv6

128 bits (16 bytes) 1234:5678:9abc:def0:
1234:5678:9abc:def0


Packets size

Packet size on IPv4

576 bytes required,
fragmentation optional

Packet size on IPv6

1280 bytes required
without fragmentation


Packets fragmentation

Fragmentation on IPv4

Routers and sending hosts

Fragmentation on IPv6

Sending hosts only


Packets header

Header on IPv4

Does not identify packet flow for QoS handling
Includes a checksum
Includes options up to 40 bytes

Header on IPv6

Contains Flow Label field that specifies packet flow for QoS handling
Does not include a checksum
Extension headers used for optional data


DNS records

DNS records on IPv4

Address (A), maps host names
Pointer (PTR), IN-ADDR.ARPA DNS domain

DNS records on IPv6

Address (AAAA), maps host names
Pointer (PTR), IP6.ARPA DNS domain


Addresses configuration

Addresses configuration on IPv4

Manual or via DHCP

Addresses configuratiion on IPv6

Stateless address autoconfiguration (SLAAC) using Internet Control Message Protocol version 6 (ICMPv6) or DHCPv6


IP to MAC resolution

IP to MAC resolution on IPv4

broadcast ARP

IP to MAC resolution on IPv6

Multicast Neighbor Solicitation


Local subnet group management

Local subnet group management on IPv4

Internet Group Management Protocol (IGMP)

Local subnet group management on IPv6

Multicast Listener Discovery (MLD)


Broadcast

Broadcast on IPv4

Yes

Broadcast on IPv6

No


Multicast

Multicast on IPv4

Yes

Multicast on IPv6

Yes


IPSec

IPSec on IPv4

optional, external

IPSec on IPv6

required