Chapter 12. Generic Deployment Planning Guidelines

The first part of this book reviews the IPv6 technologies from a deployment and practical perspective. It provides the tools necessary to implement IPv6 in existent or new networks. The second part of the book offers concrete examples on using these tools in different types of environments. These examples go over all the technical details related to designing and deploying scalable and high-performance IPv6-based services. In real life however, the deployment is preceded by significant planning work. Regardless of environment type, enterprise, or service provider, a business faces similar challenges in preparing for such a deployment. This chapter provides planning guidelines and pointers to useful sources of information, and it focuses on the following key topics:

• Cost analysis

• Address policies and the registration process

• Education

The importance of these planning aspects resides in their relationship to costs. The deployment case studies of the subsequent chapters address business drivers and technical guidelines related to rolling out IPv6 services in different market segments. This chapter deals with more generic challenges that apply to any IPv6 deployment irrespective of context or environment.