Difference between IPv4 and IPv6

What is IP?

An Internet Protocol address is also known as IP address. It is a numerical label which assigned to each device connected to a computer network which uses the IP for communication.

IP address act as an identifier for a specific machine on a particular network. The IP address is also called IP number and internet address. IP address specifies the technical format of the addressing and packets scheme. Most networks combine IP with a TCP (Transmission Control Protocol). It also allows developing a virtual connection between a destination and a source.

What is IPv4?

IPv4 was the first version of IP. It was deployed for production in the ARPANET in 1983. Today it is most widely used IP version. It is used to identify devices on a network using an addressing system.

The IPv4 uses a 32-bit address scheme allowing to store 2^32 addresses which is more than 4 billion addresses. Till date, it is considered the primary Internet Protocol and carries 94% of Internet traffic.

Find below a few important characteristics of IPv4:

It enhances its support towards video library files and conferences

It is basically an implementation for the connectionless protocol

It is used in the creation of virtual communication layers over different devices.

 

What is IPv6?

It is the most recent version of the Internet Protocol. Internet Engineer Taskforce initiated it in early 1994. The design and development of that suite is now called IPv6.

This new IP address version is being deployed to fulfill the need for more Internet addresses. It was aimed to resolve issues which are associated with IPv4. With 128-bit address space, it allows 340 undecillion unique address space. IPv6 also called IPng (Internet Protocol next generation).

Find below a few important characteristics of IPv6:

 

It provides support towards storing of the unlimited number of IP addresses and becomes a favorable choice for interactions between neighboring nodes.

It provides extensive supports towards the state-full and state-less configurations.

It enhances the Hierarchical addressing infrastructure.

Features of IPv4

• Connectionless Protocol


• Allow creating a simple virtual communication layer over diversified devices


• It requires less memory, and ease of remembering addresses


• Already supported protocol by millions of devices


• Offers video libraries and conferences

Features of IPv6

• Hierarchical addressing and routing infrastructure


• Stateful and Stateless configuration


• Support for quality of service (QoS)


• An ideal protocol for neighboring node interaction

 

The key difference between IPv4 vs IPv6:

Both IPv4 vs IPv6 are popular choices in the market; let us discuss some of the major Difference Between IPv4 and IPv6:

1. Internet Protocol version 4 (IPv4) is basically the fourth version of the Internet Protocol (IP) and was initially published in 1981. Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6) is the latest version of the Internet Protocol (IP) and it became a draft standard in 1998 and later established as Internet Standard in 2017.


2. From the end-to-end connectivity perspective, IPv6 provides better results than IPv4.


3. IPv4 is a 32 bit IP address whereas IPv6 is a 128 bit IP address.


4. IPv4 offers five classes of IP Address (Class A to E) whereas IPv6 offers the unlimited number of IP addresses.


5. IPv4 offers support to the Virtual Length Subnet Mask (VLSM) whereas there is no support provided for VLSM in case of IPv6.


6. IPv4 offers support to the SNMP protocol for system management whereas there is no support provided for VLSM in case of IPv6.


7. IPv6 provides much better Multicast and Anycast abilities than IPv4.

Difference Between IPv4 and IPv6 Addresses

IPv4 & IPv6 are both IP addresses that are binary numbers. IPv4 is 32 bit binary number while IPv6 is 128 bit binary number address. IPv4 address are separated by periods while IPv6 address are separated by colons.

Both are used to identify machines connected to a network. In principle, they are the same, but they are different in how they work.

Basis for differences	IPv4	IPv6
Size of IP address	IPv4 is a 32-Bit IP Address.	IPv6 is 128 Bit IP Address.
Addressing method	IPv4 is a numeric address, and its binary bits are separated by a dot (.)	IPv6 is an alphanumeric address whose binary bits are separated by a colon (:). It also contains hexadecimal.
Number of header fields	12	8
Length of header filed	20	40
Checksum	Has checksum fields	Does not have checksum fields
Example	12.244.233.165	2001:0db8:0000:0000:0000:ff00:0042:7879
Type of Addresses	Unicast, broadcast, and multicast.	Unicast, multicast, and anycast.
Number of classes	IPv4 offers five different classes of IP Address. Class A to E.	lPv6 allows storing an unlimited number of IP Address.
Configuration	You have to configure a newly installed system before it can communicate with other systems.	In IPv6, the configuration is optional, depending upon on functions needed.
VLSM support	IPv4 support VLSM (Virtual Length Subnet Mask).	IPv6 does not offer support for VLSM.
Fragmentation	Fragmentation is done by sending and forwarding routes.	Fragmentation is done by the sender.
Routing Information Protocol (RIP)	RIP is a routing protocol supported by the routed daemon.	RIP does not support IPv6. It uses static routes.
Network Configuration	Networks need to be configured either manually or with DHCP. IPv4 had several overlays to handle Internet growth, which require more maintenance efforts.	IPv6 support autoconfiguration capabilities.
Best feature	Widespread use of NAT (Network address translation) devices which allows single NAT address can mask thousands of non-routable addresses, making end-to-end integrity achievable.	It allows direct addressing because of vast address Space.
Address Mask	Use for the designated network from host portion.	Not used.
SNMP	SNMP is a protocol used for system management.	SNMP does not support IPv6.
Mobility & Interoperability	Relatively constrained network topologies to which move restrict mobility and interoperability capabilities.	IPv6 provides interoperability and mobility capabilities which are embedded in network devices.

Conclusion

In this IPv4 vs IPv6 article, we have seen both IPv4 vs IPv6 are important in networking and communication industries. After comparing IPv4 and IPv6 over a range of factors, it can be concluded that each one has its own pros and cons. So, before choosing any one of them, basic features of both IPv4 vs IPv6 networking protocols should be properly learned and analyzed. Thus, based on the type of project need, time of work and on all other different discussed aspects, any of these two should be selected to reach the desired goal.