"IPv6+" builds intelligent connections in all scenarios and supports the digital future

On August 28, the 2020 China IPv6 Development Forum & the third "IPv6+" Industry Salon was successfully held at the Next Generation Internet and Major Application Technology Innovation Park in Beijing. The forum was hosted by the Expert Committee for Promoting Large-Scale Deployment of IPv6 and co-organized by China Academy of Information and Communications Technology, CERNET Co., Ltd., and Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. With the theme of "Collaborative Interconnection, Innovative Development", it brought together more than 20 experts from the Cyberspace Administration of China, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the General Office of the State Council, the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council, the People's Bank of China, the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television, China Academy of Information and Communications Technology, operators, communication equipment vendors, Internet companies, standard organizations, universities, large enterprises and other industry organizations to share the latest research progress and commercial deployment results of IPv6 in China, discuss the future development direction of innovative technologies based on "IPv6+" in China, and jointly promote the large-scale deployment of IPv6 in all walks of life in China.

IPv6 can provide a large number of IP addresses. It is a necessary basic technology for the Internet of Everything and one of the key basic technologies required for my country's new infrastructure. In 2017, the Chinese government issued the "Action Plan for Promoting the Large-Scale Deployment of Internet Protocol Version 6 (IPv6)", which clearly proposed to build the world's largest IPv6 commercial network to meet the urgent needs of my country's technological industry innovation and development and network security capabilities, and to build China's next-generation Internet based on IPv6. At the same time, with the continuous development of 5G, cloud computing and Internet of Things technologies, the era of ubiquitous networks has arrived. Massive smart terminals connected through ubiquitous networks and omnipotent computing power will be the foundation of the future intelligent society, which has also led to a sharp increase in the scale and complexity of the network, and the demand for network intelligence is also increasing day by day. In order to meet the needs of ubiquitous intelligent interconnection in the future, the industry has creatively proposed "IPv6+" based on IPv6. "IPv6+" is represented by technologies such as SRv6, network slicing, flow detection, new multicast and application-aware networks, combined with intelligent "network autonomous driving" innovative technologies. It can meet the needs of multi-cloud one network, intelligent connection, intelligent operation, and intelligent operation and maintenance brought about by the interconnection of all things and the cloudization of thousands of industries, and realize true network following the cloud and intelligent connection of all things.

Academician Wu Hequan of the Chinese Academy of Engineering said in his keynote speech on "China's IPv6 Development": "We hope to stimulate network business innovation and improve network service quality through the development of IPv6's innovative capabilities. China is currently ahead of the curve in this regard. In relevant international standardization organizations, domestic companies and research institutions are actively promoting the standardization of some IPv6+ new capabilities. We hope that through these standardization efforts, the entire IPv6 network will not only solve the IP address problem, but also meet the rigid needs of new services in the new era, bringing value to network operators, content providers, and end users."

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"SRv6, as a key technology of IPv6+, is a new network bearer protocol and the cornerstone of building network automation. Especially in the 5G era, we attach great importance to the three-layer programmability of SRv6, which will bring a very rich scenario for future business development and application promotion." Feng Jie, general manager of China Telecom's cloud network development department, shared, "This year, China Telecom deployed cross-vendor SRv6/EVPN on the STN network carrying 5G SA. We have achieved basic national coverage of SRv6."

Later, Hu Kewen, President of Huawei's Data Communication Product Line, mentioned in his keynote speech on "Building an Intelligent IP Network in the IPv6+ Era": "The 5G and cloud eras drive the network towards IPv6+. Future networks need to have intelligent ultra-broadband, intelligent connectivity, and intelligent operation and maintenance capabilities. Huawei continues to innovate in IPv6+, leads the formulation of SRv6 and network slicing standards, and provides a full-scenario 'IPv6+' Ready series of products to accelerate the large-scale deployment of global operators and industries and lead the intelligent IPv6+ era."

Zhao Feng, deputy director of the Internet Center of the Institute of Technology and Standards of the China Academy of Information and Communications Technology, pointed out in the "IPv6+ Technology Innovation Working Group Development Work Report": "Relying on the achievements of my country's large-scale deployment of IPv6, we will strengthen the system innovation based on IPv6 next-generation Internet technology, integrate the strength of the IPv6-related technology industry chain (production, learning, research, and application), and actively carry out experimental verification and application demonstration of new IPv6+ network technologies (including SRv6, network slicing, flow detection, and BIERv6, etc.) and new applications in the areas of network routing protocols, management automation, intelligence, and security. We will continuously improve the IPv6 technology standard system and significantly enhance my country's international competitiveness in the field of IPv6."

"The mission of IPv6+ includes three aspects: efficient cross-domain connection and service deployment based on IP reachability; support for more types of encapsulation based on IPv6 extension header mechanism to meet the needs of new services; and integration of IP network and applications based on IPv6 to enhance network value." Li Zhenbin, a member of the IETF Internet Architecture Board (IAB), said, "It is gratifying that in recent years, IPv6+ innovation and standardization have been carried out steadily and orderly, and have made great progress. In particular, all drafts of the basic features of SRv6 have been accepted by the IETF working group, and the RFC of SRH has been officially released. At the same time, SRv6 has achieved large-scale deployment to meet the new needs of the 5G and cloud era."

In addition to the operator network, the digital transformation of thousands of industries has entered the deep water zone. Yu Yafeng, a senior expert from the Network Department of China Construction Bank, said: "Based on the comprehensive consideration of trends, policies and business, China Construction Bank chose to upgrade the backbone network from MPLS to SRv6 in one step, creating a more intelligent and flexible intelligent backbone network, breaking down data silos, making data flow more intelligently and flexibly within the enterprise, improving the organizational efficiency and business experience of the enterprise, and enabling smart financial technology."

(Image source: Expert Committee for Promoting Large-Scale Deployment of IPv6)

Through this summit, standards organizations, operators, equipment vendors, and large enterprises have reached a broader consensus on the vision and mission, evolution path, standardization progress, and commercial deployment of IPv6 and IPv6+ industries, laying a solid foundation for continuing to promote the deployment of IPv6 in my country on a large scale and continuously building an IPv6+ industry ecosystem. It is believed that through the continued active promotion of all parties in the industry, the deployment of IPv6 in my country will be further accelerated, and the commercial practice of IPv6+ in all walks of life will also flourish. In the future, IPv6+ will serve as the cornerstone of a full-scenario intelligent connected society, helping my country to achieve the intelligent connection of all things and build my country's digital future.