2002 - cesnet

5 IP version 6Further expansion of IPv6 has so far suffered from a lack of interest from potentialusers, at least in Europe and Northern America. IPv4 addresses are still relativelyeasily available and other advantages of IPv6 are not likely to outweighthe inevitable expenses and complications associated with the transfer to thenew technology.As there is no demand, it is natural that the offer of IPv6 applications also developsrather slowly. The support of IPv6 among leading router manufacturershas improved significantly (Cisco Systems, Juniper Networks, etc.); however,this progress is still insufficient as long as the number of networks with routineIPv6 operation remains very low. Upgrading to IPv6 is generally consideredinevitable and necessary for the new development of the Internet – future generationsof mobile communication devices, use of IP in consumer electronics,car systems, etc.In this situation, it is important to see the increasing explicit support of IPv6“from above”, i.e., from institutions financing research programs at nationaland international levels. Towards the end of 2001, the steering council of theresearch plan decided to include IPv6 among its strategic projects, also with theobjective of joining the consortium of the European project 6NET.The project is divided into six partial tasks, described in the following sections.5.1 Project Coordination and InternationalCollaborationDuring 2002, the strategic project IPv6 became one of the largest projects withinCESNET’s short history, aim is also to assist in improving this support. The managementof such an extensive team requires news methods and it has revealedsome weak points within the system of technical and administrative projectsupport by CESNET, z.s.p.o. Our aim is also to assist in improving this support.5.1.1 Team of ResearchersBy the end of 2002, the project team consisted of 45 collaborators including22 students. The largest part of the team are people from Brno universities(Masaryk University and the Technical University), others are from Prague,High-speed National Research Network and its New Applications 200263