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Best Current Operational Practice for operators:
IPv6 Prefix Assignment for end-
customers - persistent vs non-
persistent and what size to
choose
Jordi	Palet
jordi.palet@consulintel.es
BCOP
IPv6 Prefix Assignment for end-customers – persistent vs non-
persistent and what size to choose
1
Authors:
• Andrew	Alston
• Gert Doering
• Jan	Žorž
• Jen	Linkova
• Jordi	Palet
• Kevin	Meynell
• Lee	Howard	
• Luis	Balbinot
• Mark	Townsley
• Primož Dražumerič
• Sander	Steffann
BCOP
IPv6 Prefix Assignment for end-customers – persistent vs non-
persistent and what size to choose
2
Draft v2 meeting
BCOP
IPv6 Prefix Assignment for end-customers – persistent vs non-
persistent and what size to choose
3
RIPE BCOP TF
• Work	in	Progress:
• https://www.sinog.si/docs/draft-IPv6pd-BCOP-v7.pdf
• https://www.ripe.net/ripe/mail/archives/bcop/2017-August/000173.html
BCOP
IPv6 Prefix Assignment for end-customers – persistent vs non-
persistent and what size to choose
4
Table of Content
1. Executive	Summary
2. What	is	a	BCOP?
3. Introduction	and	incentives
4. Size	of	end-customer	prefix	assignment:	/48,	/56	or	something	else?
4.1.	Numbering	the	WAN	link	(interconnection	between	our	network	and	the	end-customer	CPE):
4.1.1.	/64	prefix	out	of	a	dedicated	pool	of	IPv6	prefixes
4.1.2.	Unnumbered
4.1.3.	ULA
4.1.4.	/64	prefix	out	of	the	IPv6	prefix	assigned	to	the	end-customer
4.1.5.	Summary
4.2.	Prefix	assignment	options
4.2.1.	/48	for	everybody
4.2.2.	/48	for	business	customers	and	/56	for	residential	customers
4.2.3.	Less	than	/56
4.2.4.	Considerations	for	cellular	operators
5. End-customer	IPv6	prefix	assignment:	Persistent	vs	non-persistent
5.1.	Why	non-persistent	assignments	may	be	perceived	as	“easier”	than	static	ones
5.2.	Why	non-persistent	assignments	are	considered	harmful.
5.3.	Why	persistent	prefix	assignments	are	recommended
6. Acknowledgements
7. Glossary	of	terms	and	acronyms
BCOP
IPv6 Prefix Assignment for end-customers – persistent vs non-
persistent and what size to choose
5
Executive Summary
• Making	wrong	choices	when	designing	your	IPv6	network	will	
sooner	or	later	have	negative	implications	…
• IPv6	is	not	the	same	as	IPv4.	In	IPv6	you	assign	a	short	prefix	to	each	end-
customer	site,	so	they	are	able	to	have	as	many	subnets	(/64s)	as	they	need.
• It	is	strongly	discouraged to	assign	prefixes	longer	than	/56.	If	you	want	a	
simple	addressing	plan,	/48	for	each	end-customer.
• In	order	to	facilitate	troubleshooting	and	have	a	future	proof	network,	you	
should	consider	numbering	the	WAN	links	using	GUAs.
• Non-persistent	prefixes	are	considered	harmful	in	IPv6	as	you	can’t	avoid	issues	
that	may	be	caused	by	simple	end-customer	power	outages,	so	assigning	
persistent	prefixes	is	a	safer	and	simpler	approach.
BCOP
IPv6 Prefix Assignment for end-customers – persistent vs non-
persistent and what size to choose
6
BCOP and Why?
•Describe	best	actual practices
•Target:	ISPs	deploying	IPv6
•Lack	of	experience	or	following	IPv4	practices	bring	
unexpected	or	unwanted	results
• IPv6	“brokenness”	=	Content	providers	rejection	of	your	AS
• Lack	of	compliance	with	new	standards	such	as	Homenet
• Complete	production network	renumbering,	etc.
BCOP
IPv6 Prefix Assignment for end-customers – persistent vs non-
persistent and what size to choose
7
Size of end-customer prefix
•/48,	/56	or	something	else?
•Change	your	mind,	this	is	not	IPv4!
•IPv6	has	been	designed	to	assign	prefixes	not	
addresses
•Tony	Hain	“maths”:
• IPv6	lifetime	over	480	years,	and	keep	doing	that	several	
times
• Scarcity	of	addresses	is	not	going	to	be	our	next	problem
BCOP
IPv6 Prefix Assignment for end-customers – persistent vs non-
persistent and what size to choose
8
/64 ?
•DO	NOT	DO	THAT!
BCOP
IPv6 Prefix Assignment for end-customers – persistent vs non-
persistent and what size to choose
9
/64 ?
•DO	NOT	DO	THAT!
•NEVER!
BCOP
IPv6 Prefix Assignment for end-customers – persistent vs non-
persistent and what size to choose
10
/64 ?
•DO	NOT	DO	THAT!
•NEVER!
•NO	WAY!
BCOP
IPv6 Prefix Assignment for end-customers – persistent vs non-
persistent and what size to choose
11
/64 ?
•DO	NOT	DO	THAT!
•NEVER!
•NO	WAY!
•BROKEN!
BCOP
IPv6 Prefix Assignment for end-customers – persistent vs non-
persistent and what size to choose
12
/64 ?
•DO	NOT	DO	THAT!
•NEVER!
•NO	WAY!
•BROKEN!
•VERY	BAD	FOR	YOU
BCOP
IPv6 Prefix Assignment for end-customers – persistent vs non-
persistent and what size to choose
13
/64 ?
•DO	NOT	DO	THAT!
•NEVER!
•NO	WAY!
•BROKEN!
•VERY	BAD	FOR	YOU
•BAD	FOR	YOUR	CUSTOMER
BCOP
IPv6 Prefix Assignment for end-customers – persistent vs non-
persistent and what size to choose
14
Numbering the WAN link
1./64	out	of	the	end-customer	prefix
2./64	out	of	a	dedicated	pool
3.Unnumbered
4.ULA
BCOP
IPv6 Prefix Assignment for end-customers – persistent vs non-
persistent and what size to choose
15
/64 from customer prefix
•Use	the	1st /64	from	the	customer	prefix
• https://tools.ietf.org/html/draft-palet-v6ops-point2point
• Simplifies	routing	and	provisioning
•Some	CPEs	may	not	support	RFC6603
• Prefix	exclude	option	for	DHCPv6-PD
•Even	being	required	by	RFC7084
• Basic	Requirements	for	IPv6	CPEs
BCOP
IPv6 Prefix Assignment for end-customers – persistent vs non-
persistent and what size to choose
16
/64 from dedicated pool
• Most	common	scenario
• Dedicated	pool	for	WAN	links
• CPE	performs	router	discovery
• If	it	is	a	host	(PPPoE),	setup	is	completed
• If	it	is	a	router,	will	request	a	prefix	(DHCPv6-PD)
• /126,	/127,	/112	or	/64?
• RFC6164	suggest	/127
• Not	all	hardware	supports	it
• /64	is	future	proof
• Hardware	limitations	for	longer	than	/64	prefixes
• Allocate	/64,	use	/127	to	prevent	ND	attacks
• If	there	is	*always*	a	CPE,	you	can	apply	security	policies	w/o	harming	
customers
BCOP
IPv6 Prefix Assignment for end-customers – persistent vs non-
persistent and what size to choose
17
Unnumbered
• Don’t	use	GUAs
• Instead	use	Link-Local
• Doesn’t	work	for	all	the	devices,	which	can’t	request	DHCPv6-PD
• No	GUAs	means	no	traffic	…
• Complicate	troubleshooting
• Not	able	to	traceroute	the	point	of	failure
• Not	suitable	for	unknown	CPEs	or	non-CPEs	attached	to	the	WAN	
link
• End-host	will	stay	unnumbered
• Some	hardware	may	consume	additional	resources	for	
numbered	links
BCOP
IPv6 Prefix Assignment for end-customers – persistent vs non-
persistent and what size to choose
18
ULA
•Strongly	discouraged
•ICMPv6	from	the	CPE	to	outside	ISP
•ULA	source	address	will	not	traverse	filters
•PMTUD	will	break
•IPv6	connection	will	break	if	Path	MTU	is	not	
the	same
BCOP
IPv6 Prefix Assignment for end-customers – persistent vs non-
persistent and what size to choose
19
WAN link summary
•/64	GUA	is	the	recommended	choice
• From	the	customer	prefix	if	RFC6603	is	supported
•It	may	be	even	required	when	more	that	2	
endpoints
• Managed	bridges
• Repeaters
• Redundancy	(VRRP,	multiple	routers)
• Monitoring/troubleshooting	devices
BCOP
IPv6 Prefix Assignment for end-customers – persistent vs non-
persistent and what size to choose
20
Prefix assignment options
•Align	the	size	of	the	delegated	prefix	with	a	nibble	
boundary	(multiples	of	4	bits),	so	it	match	DNS	
reverse	zone	delegations
•A	single	customer	network	is	/64
• A	single	/64	is	plain	wrong
• IETF	work	allows	a	single	/64	for	an	interface
•Multiple	/64	must	be	the	rule
• RIR	policies	allow	/48
BCOP
IPv6 Prefix Assignment for end-customers – persistent vs non-
persistent and what size to choose
21
/48 for business, /56 residential
• Some	operators	do	this
• Rationale	->	Marketing/Sales	differentiation
• Advanced	home	users	may	have	problems	with	this
• You’re	not	able	to	use	all	the	4	digits	(/48-/56)
• Some	may	have	already	an	addressing	plan	with	/48	(ULA,	TB,	
transition,	etc.)
• /56	forces	to	redo	it	+	renumbering
• /48	just	means	changing	the	prefix
• Alternatively,	reserve	/48,	assign	/56
• Are	you	considering	SMEs?
BCOP
IPv6 Prefix Assignment for end-customers – persistent vs non-
persistent and what size to choose
22
/48 for everybody
•Most	practical	and	pragmatic
•Less	call-centre	time	to	sort	out	problems
•Single	“flat”	provisioning	system
•Same	prefix	size	as	ULAs,	transition,	etc.
•Direct	mapping	of	existing	addressing	plans
BCOP
IPv6 Prefix Assignment for end-customers – persistent vs non-
persistent and what size to choose
23
Less than /56
•Not	recommended
• Technically	no	reason	for	that,	enough	addresses,	this	is	
not	IPv4!
• Over	134	million	/56	in	a	/29
• Over	16	million	/56	in	a	/32
•Ask	for	more	space	to	your	RIR	if	required
•Never	assign	a	single	/64
• Except	for	cellular	phones	(1	/64	for	each	PDP)
•LTE	modems	still	require	/56	or	/48
BCOP
IPv6 Prefix Assignment for end-customers – persistent vs non-
persistent and what size to choose
24
Persistent or non-persistent
•Persistent	typically	by	means	of	AAA	or	custom	
provisioning	system
• At	customer	connection	they	always	get	the	same	prefix
•Non-persistent	by	means	of	a	big	pool	in	each	
termination	point
• At	customer	connection	they	get	a	random	prefix
• If	persistent,	the	lease	time	may	provide	days,	weeks	or	
even	months
BCOP
IPv6 Prefix Assignment for end-customers – persistent vs non-
persistent and what size to choose
25
Non-persistent is easier?
•Less	effort	to	deploy
• Issues	come	later
• It	comes	from	IPv4	practices,	DHCP
• But	we	have	NAT!
• Looks	easier	for	aggregation
• Not	looking	for	“customer”	portability
• May	be	an	extra	service
•Commonly	using	DHCPv6-PD
• Each	end-customer	device	has	a	GUA
BCOP
IPv6 Prefix Assignment for end-customers – persistent vs non-
persistent and what size to choose
26
However … non-persistent is harmful
• In	case	of	power	failure,	CPE	hang-up,	…
• Common	even	in	highly-developed	countries
• CPE	doesn’t	send	prefix	valid	lifetime	=	0
• End-customer	devices	keep	the	old	prefix
• Will	try	to	use	it,	will	fail
• Customers	claims	to	the	call-centre
• Content	providers	measure	IPv6	brokenness
• Will	ignore	your	IPv6	traffic
• Power	outage	often	happen	several	consecutive	times	…
• Non-persistent	prefixes	force	a	logging	system
BCOP
IPv6 Prefix Assignment for end-customers – persistent vs non-
persistent and what size to choose
27
Best choice: Persistent or non-persistent
•Allow	broadband	services	provided	by	the	
customer	and	the	ISP
•Allow	stable	DNS	names
• camera1.username.ispname.com
•New	business/apps/services,	new	incomes
•Key	for	non-residential	customers
•Avoid	having	a	logging	system
•The	WAN	link	still	can	be	non-persistent
BCOP
IPv6 Prefix Assignment for end-customers – persistent vs non-
persistent and what size to choose
28
Questions?
Thanks!
BCOP
IPv6 Prefix Assignment for end-customers – persistent vs non-
persistent and what size to choose
29

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Best Current Operational Practice for Operators IPv6 prefix Assignment for end-customers

  • 1. Best Current Operational Practice for operators: IPv6 Prefix Assignment for end- customers - persistent vs non- persistent and what size to choose Jordi Palet jordi.palet@consulintel.es BCOP IPv6 Prefix Assignment for end-customers – persistent vs non- persistent and what size to choose 1
  • 2. Authors: • Andrew Alston • Gert Doering • Jan Žorž • Jen Linkova • Jordi Palet • Kevin Meynell • Lee Howard • Luis Balbinot • Mark Townsley • Primož Dražumerič • Sander Steffann BCOP IPv6 Prefix Assignment for end-customers – persistent vs non- persistent and what size to choose 2
  • 3. Draft v2 meeting BCOP IPv6 Prefix Assignment for end-customers – persistent vs non- persistent and what size to choose 3
  • 4. RIPE BCOP TF • Work in Progress: • https://www.sinog.si/docs/draft-IPv6pd-BCOP-v7.pdf • https://www.ripe.net/ripe/mail/archives/bcop/2017-August/000173.html BCOP IPv6 Prefix Assignment for end-customers – persistent vs non- persistent and what size to choose 4
  • 5. Table of Content 1. Executive Summary 2. What is a BCOP? 3. Introduction and incentives 4. Size of end-customer prefix assignment: /48, /56 or something else? 4.1. Numbering the WAN link (interconnection between our network and the end-customer CPE): 4.1.1. /64 prefix out of a dedicated pool of IPv6 prefixes 4.1.2. Unnumbered 4.1.3. ULA 4.1.4. /64 prefix out of the IPv6 prefix assigned to the end-customer 4.1.5. Summary 4.2. Prefix assignment options 4.2.1. /48 for everybody 4.2.2. /48 for business customers and /56 for residential customers 4.2.3. Less than /56 4.2.4. Considerations for cellular operators 5. End-customer IPv6 prefix assignment: Persistent vs non-persistent 5.1. Why non-persistent assignments may be perceived as “easier” than static ones 5.2. Why non-persistent assignments are considered harmful. 5.3. Why persistent prefix assignments are recommended 6. Acknowledgements 7. Glossary of terms and acronyms BCOP IPv6 Prefix Assignment for end-customers – persistent vs non- persistent and what size to choose 5
  • 6. Executive Summary • Making wrong choices when designing your IPv6 network will sooner or later have negative implications … • IPv6 is not the same as IPv4. In IPv6 you assign a short prefix to each end- customer site, so they are able to have as many subnets (/64s) as they need. • It is strongly discouraged to assign prefixes longer than /56. If you want a simple addressing plan, /48 for each end-customer. • In order to facilitate troubleshooting and have a future proof network, you should consider numbering the WAN links using GUAs. • Non-persistent prefixes are considered harmful in IPv6 as you can’t avoid issues that may be caused by simple end-customer power outages, so assigning persistent prefixes is a safer and simpler approach. BCOP IPv6 Prefix Assignment for end-customers – persistent vs non- persistent and what size to choose 6
  • 7. BCOP and Why? •Describe best actual practices •Target: ISPs deploying IPv6 •Lack of experience or following IPv4 practices bring unexpected or unwanted results • IPv6 “brokenness” = Content providers rejection of your AS • Lack of compliance with new standards such as Homenet • Complete production network renumbering, etc. BCOP IPv6 Prefix Assignment for end-customers – persistent vs non- persistent and what size to choose 7
  • 8. Size of end-customer prefix •/48, /56 or something else? •Change your mind, this is not IPv4! •IPv6 has been designed to assign prefixes not addresses •Tony Hain “maths”: • IPv6 lifetime over 480 years, and keep doing that several times • Scarcity of addresses is not going to be our next problem BCOP IPv6 Prefix Assignment for end-customers – persistent vs non- persistent and what size to choose 8
  • 9. /64 ? •DO NOT DO THAT! BCOP IPv6 Prefix Assignment for end-customers – persistent vs non- persistent and what size to choose 9
  • 10. /64 ? •DO NOT DO THAT! •NEVER! BCOP IPv6 Prefix Assignment for end-customers – persistent vs non- persistent and what size to choose 10
  • 11. /64 ? •DO NOT DO THAT! •NEVER! •NO WAY! BCOP IPv6 Prefix Assignment for end-customers – persistent vs non- persistent and what size to choose 11
  • 12. /64 ? •DO NOT DO THAT! •NEVER! •NO WAY! •BROKEN! BCOP IPv6 Prefix Assignment for end-customers – persistent vs non- persistent and what size to choose 12
  • 13. /64 ? •DO NOT DO THAT! •NEVER! •NO WAY! •BROKEN! •VERY BAD FOR YOU BCOP IPv6 Prefix Assignment for end-customers – persistent vs non- persistent and what size to choose 13
  • 14. /64 ? •DO NOT DO THAT! •NEVER! •NO WAY! •BROKEN! •VERY BAD FOR YOU •BAD FOR YOUR CUSTOMER BCOP IPv6 Prefix Assignment for end-customers – persistent vs non- persistent and what size to choose 14
  • 15. Numbering the WAN link 1./64 out of the end-customer prefix 2./64 out of a dedicated pool 3.Unnumbered 4.ULA BCOP IPv6 Prefix Assignment for end-customers – persistent vs non- persistent and what size to choose 15
  • 16. /64 from customer prefix •Use the 1st /64 from the customer prefix • https://tools.ietf.org/html/draft-palet-v6ops-point2point • Simplifies routing and provisioning •Some CPEs may not support RFC6603 • Prefix exclude option for DHCPv6-PD •Even being required by RFC7084 • Basic Requirements for IPv6 CPEs BCOP IPv6 Prefix Assignment for end-customers – persistent vs non- persistent and what size to choose 16
  • 17. /64 from dedicated pool • Most common scenario • Dedicated pool for WAN links • CPE performs router discovery • If it is a host (PPPoE), setup is completed • If it is a router, will request a prefix (DHCPv6-PD) • /126, /127, /112 or /64? • RFC6164 suggest /127 • Not all hardware supports it • /64 is future proof • Hardware limitations for longer than /64 prefixes • Allocate /64, use /127 to prevent ND attacks • If there is *always* a CPE, you can apply security policies w/o harming customers BCOP IPv6 Prefix Assignment for end-customers – persistent vs non- persistent and what size to choose 17
  • 18. Unnumbered • Don’t use GUAs • Instead use Link-Local • Doesn’t work for all the devices, which can’t request DHCPv6-PD • No GUAs means no traffic … • Complicate troubleshooting • Not able to traceroute the point of failure • Not suitable for unknown CPEs or non-CPEs attached to the WAN link • End-host will stay unnumbered • Some hardware may consume additional resources for numbered links BCOP IPv6 Prefix Assignment for end-customers – persistent vs non- persistent and what size to choose 18
  • 20. WAN link summary •/64 GUA is the recommended choice • From the customer prefix if RFC6603 is supported •It may be even required when more that 2 endpoints • Managed bridges • Repeaters • Redundancy (VRRP, multiple routers) • Monitoring/troubleshooting devices BCOP IPv6 Prefix Assignment for end-customers – persistent vs non- persistent and what size to choose 20
  • 21. Prefix assignment options •Align the size of the delegated prefix with a nibble boundary (multiples of 4 bits), so it match DNS reverse zone delegations •A single customer network is /64 • A single /64 is plain wrong • IETF work allows a single /64 for an interface •Multiple /64 must be the rule • RIR policies allow /48 BCOP IPv6 Prefix Assignment for end-customers – persistent vs non- persistent and what size to choose 21
  • 22. /48 for business, /56 residential • Some operators do this • Rationale -> Marketing/Sales differentiation • Advanced home users may have problems with this • You’re not able to use all the 4 digits (/48-/56) • Some may have already an addressing plan with /48 (ULA, TB, transition, etc.) • /56 forces to redo it + renumbering • /48 just means changing the prefix • Alternatively, reserve /48, assign /56 • Are you considering SMEs? BCOP IPv6 Prefix Assignment for end-customers – persistent vs non- persistent and what size to choose 22
  • 24. Less than /56 •Not recommended • Technically no reason for that, enough addresses, this is not IPv4! • Over 134 million /56 in a /29 • Over 16 million /56 in a /32 •Ask for more space to your RIR if required •Never assign a single /64 • Except for cellular phones (1 /64 for each PDP) •LTE modems still require /56 or /48 BCOP IPv6 Prefix Assignment for end-customers – persistent vs non- persistent and what size to choose 24
  • 25. Persistent or non-persistent •Persistent typically by means of AAA or custom provisioning system • At customer connection they always get the same prefix •Non-persistent by means of a big pool in each termination point • At customer connection they get a random prefix • If persistent, the lease time may provide days, weeks or even months BCOP IPv6 Prefix Assignment for end-customers – persistent vs non- persistent and what size to choose 25
  • 26. Non-persistent is easier? •Less effort to deploy • Issues come later • It comes from IPv4 practices, DHCP • But we have NAT! • Looks easier for aggregation • Not looking for “customer” portability • May be an extra service •Commonly using DHCPv6-PD • Each end-customer device has a GUA BCOP IPv6 Prefix Assignment for end-customers – persistent vs non- persistent and what size to choose 26
  • 27. However … non-persistent is harmful • In case of power failure, CPE hang-up, … • Common even in highly-developed countries • CPE doesn’t send prefix valid lifetime = 0 • End-customer devices keep the old prefix • Will try to use it, will fail • Customers claims to the call-centre • Content providers measure IPv6 brokenness • Will ignore your IPv6 traffic • Power outage often happen several consecutive times … • Non-persistent prefixes force a logging system BCOP IPv6 Prefix Assignment for end-customers – persistent vs non- persistent and what size to choose 27
  • 28. Best choice: Persistent or non-persistent •Allow broadband services provided by the customer and the ISP •Allow stable DNS names • camera1.username.ispname.com •New business/apps/services, new incomes •Key for non-residential customers •Avoid having a logging system •The WAN link still can be non-persistent BCOP IPv6 Prefix Assignment for end-customers – persistent vs non- persistent and what size to choose 28
  • 29. Questions? Thanks! BCOP IPv6 Prefix Assignment for end-customers – persistent vs non- persistent and what size to choose 29