University of Iowa ready for World IPv6 Day
The University of Iowa has moved quickly to deploy IPv6-compliant infrastructure.
By Donna DonnowitzJune 2, 2011
With World IPv6 Day just around the corner, more organizations are announcing their preparedness for the important event. Recently, the University of Iowa declared itself ready for the one-day trial of the new internet address protocol.
World IPv6 Day is designed to provide a worldwide trial of IPv6 technology in light of the growing urgency to switch the internet to IPv6 because IPv4 addresses are running out. The urgency of this move varies substantially based on location, with some regions, such as most of Asia, already out of addresses, while many parts of North America expect to retain IPv4 addresses for a few more years.
However, the University of Iowa has a somewhat unique approach to IPv6 considering its location. While most of the United States is moving slowly to IPv6 because IPv4 addresses are still available, the University of Iowa is recognizing a large quantity of users connecting to the internet on its campus and responding by getting IPv6 compliant fast.
Guy Falsetti, Windows services manager for the university's Information Technology Services department, said most of the institution's network is optimized to support IPv6. He explained the project has been in the works for a few years now and the university is confident that the network will be able to handle IPv6 traffic without any service disruptions.
While the University of Iowa has looked at growing mobile device use on its campus and identified IPv6 as a key need for its network's short-term future, other academic institutions are not moving as urgently toward IPv6 adoption. A recent Campus Technology report said most colleges and universities in the United States believe they have enough IPv4 addresses to last them through the next few years, and are therefore not worried about updating their networks to handle the IPv6 protocol.
However, the report said most organizations are recognizing that IPv6 is urgent in other parts of the world and do not want to be closed off from IPv6 users. This is creating a growing movement toward upgrading networks to accept IPv6 transmissions so organizations do not cut themselves off from consumers using IPv6-enabled devices.As a result, the focus for IPv6 adoption in the United States is now on communicating with users from other parts of the world and not as much on internal network changes.
World IPv6 Day is designed to provide a worldwide trial of IPv6 technology in light of the growing urgency to switch the internet to IPv6 because IPv4 addresses are running out. The urgency of this move varies substantially based on location, with some regions, such as most of Asia, already out of addresses, while many parts of North America expect to retain IPv4 addresses for a few more years.
However, the University of Iowa has a somewhat unique approach to IPv6 considering its location. While most of the United States is moving slowly to IPv6 because IPv4 addresses are still available, the University of Iowa is recognizing a large quantity of users connecting to the internet on its campus and responding by getting IPv6 compliant fast.
Guy Falsetti, Windows services manager for the university's Information Technology Services department, said most of the institution's network is optimized to support IPv6. He explained the project has been in the works for a few years now and the university is confident that the network will be able to handle IPv6 traffic without any service disruptions.
While the University of Iowa has looked at growing mobile device use on its campus and identified IPv6 as a key need for its network's short-term future, other academic institutions are not moving as urgently toward IPv6 adoption. A recent Campus Technology report said most colleges and universities in the United States believe they have enough IPv4 addresses to last them through the next few years, and are therefore not worried about updating their networks to handle the IPv6 protocol.
However, the report said most organizations are recognizing that IPv6 is urgent in other parts of the world and do not want to be closed off from IPv6 users. This is creating a growing movement toward upgrading networks to accept IPv6 transmissions so organizations do not cut themselves off from consumers using IPv6-enabled devices.As a result, the focus for IPv6 adoption in the United States is now on communicating with users from other parts of the world and not as much on internal network changes.
