IPv6 Version 6 Flashcards

Study Notes

IPv6 Address Validity

IPv6 addresses consist of 128 bits and are formatted as eight 16-bit sections in hexadecimal notation.
Leading zeros in each 16-bit section can be omitted (e.g., 141:0:0:0:15:0:0:1 can be simplified to 141::15:0:0:1).
A valid IPv6 address must not contain a hexadecimal digit greater than F (0-9, A-F).
Addresses must have eight sections; addresses with less than eight sections may require expansion with leading zeros.

Structure and Format

An IPv6 address is composed of 32 hexadecimal digits, organized into 8 quartets separated by colons.
The total number of hexadecimal characters in an uncompressed IPv6 address is 32, representing 128 bits.
Double colons (::) can be used to represent consecutive blocks of zeros but can only appear once in an address.

Address Components

The first 64 bits of an IPv6 address serve as the prefix, identifying the network segment.
The Interface ID, which identifies the specific interface on the network, takes up the last 64 bits of the address.
In any given IPv6 address, the prefix is derived from the first four quartets (64 bits), while the last four quartets represent the Interface ID.

Prefix and Interface ID Identification

The subnet address is indicated by the last quartet in the prefix section of an IPv6 address.
For example, in the address FEC0:1319:7700:F631:446A:5511:CC40:25AB, FEC0:1319:7700:F631 is the prefix, and F631 identifies the subnet.
The Interface ID in the example would be 446A:5511:CC40:25AB, comprising the last four quartets.

Comparisons with IPv4

Unlike IPv6, IPv4 addresses are 32-bit numbers, organized into four octets and expressed in decimal format separated by periods.
IPv4 values range from 0 to 255 for each octet, contrasting with the hexadecimal ranges of IPv6.

Examples and Non-Examples

Valid IPv6 addresses include formats that properly follow the hexadecimal section rules and maintain the proper structure.
A hexadecimal section with fewer than four characters should be padded with leading zeros to meet formatting requirements (e.g., 343F:1EEE:ACDD:2034:1FF3:5012 is invalid as it has only six sections).

Description

Test your knowledge of IPv6 addresses with these flashcards. Determine which formats are valid and learn about the structure of IPv6, including the significance of leading zeros and the abbreviation of all-zero sections. Perfect for students or anyone interested in network addressing.