In 1998, China took its first steps into the world of IPv6. By 2003, the country had officially placed IPv6 development on its strategic agenda. This was a timely and wise decision, as it laid the foundation for future growth. However, despite over a decade of preparation, the majority of the Internet in China still relies on IPv4. Now, with the government accelerating the large-scale deployment of IPv6, there are several key challenges that have hindered its progress.
It was CERNET that first introduced IPv6 to China back in 1998. The government recognized its importance early on and included it in its development plans by 2003. This move was considered forward-thinking, but after five years of initial progress, the pace began to slow down around 2008. Since then, China's IPv6 development has lagged behind global standards, and the momentum has been difficult to regain.
There are six main reasons why China is facing difficulties in promoting IPv6:
First, the reliance on private IP addresses and network address translation (NAT) has made it hard to transition. While NAT temporarily solves the issue of limited public IPv4 addresses, managing these private addresses across multiple networks is complex. It also breaks the end-to-end transparency of the Internet, making it harder to trace users or ensure security.
Second, the government lacks clear market direction and application awareness. In many developed countries, the government and military have already started using IPv6. However, Chinese government websites have not played a leading role in this transition, which hinders broader adoption.
Third, the lack of sufficient content and supportive policies is another major obstacle. China’s IPv6 ports are not fully open, international bandwidth is limited, and foreign IPv6 services have not been properly integrated. As a result, the migration of applications and websites to IPv6 is slow, holding back overall progress.
Fourth, some misunderstandings and external interference have disrupted the national strategy. Certain groups promote isolated networks under the guise of "independent innovation" and "security," which contradicts China’s commitment to a globally connected Internet. Additionally, some believe that a new protocol will soon replace IP, leading to a wait-and-see attitude that delays IPv6 deployment.
Fifth, the lack of strong international competition limits the push for IPv6. While companies like Google and Facebook have already migrated many of their services to IPv6, Chinese ISPs have only made partial progress, without offering deep-level support.
Sixth, the high cost of Internet security regulation makes the transition more challenging. Migrating to IPv6 requires a complete rebuild of existing infrastructure, which is both time-consuming and expensive.
Beyond these six factors, there are additional challenges such as the complexity of migration, low return on investment, and issues with legacy hardware.
The migration process involves auditing, upgrading, reconfiguring, and testing all aspects of a company’s technology infrastructure—from routers and servers to smartphones and laptops. This means not only technical changes but also shifts in business strategies and operational policies.
Return on investment is also a concern. The costs involved in software and hardware upgrades are significant, and the revenue generated from IPv6 is relatively low. As a result, neither hardware manufacturers nor ISPs have enough incentive to drive large-scale IPv6 adoption. Moreover, there is no ideal smooth evolution plan, and the risks involved are still unclear.
Traditional hardware also poses a challenge. During the transition, devices often need dual-stack configurations, supporting both IPv4 and IPv6. Older equipment that doesn’t support IPv6 can cause communication issues and become a burden. Many commercial devices, including fixed-line terminals and mobile phones, currently lack full IPv6 support.
To speed up the large-scale deployment of IPv6, the Chinese government has taken several measures. In 2018, the General Office of the CPC Central Committee and the State Council issued an action plan with three main goals: by the end of 2018, IPv6 active users should reach 200 million, accounting for at least 20% of internet users; by 2020, this number should exceed 500 million, making up over 50% of users, with no new IPv4 private addresses used; and by 2025, all networks, applications, and terminals should fully support IPv6, completing the transition to the next generation of the Internet.
In practice, cities like Qinhuangdao have already begun implementing IPv6 on their government websites, supported by the National Next Generation Internet Industry Technology Innovation Strategic Alliance. Over 88 management modules, including branch offices, have been upgraded to support IPv6.
Additionally, the National Engineering Center for the Next Generation Internet recently launched an IPv6 public DNS service: 240c::6666, with an alternate DNS at 240c::6644. This free service offers faster, more secure, and stable DNS64 features, enhancing the overall IPv6 user experience.
With these efforts, China’s Internet landscape is set for major transformation in the coming years. The future of the Internet is evolving, and IPv6 is playing a crucial role in shaping it.
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