IPv6 Command Line Utilities | Understanding Ipv6

The Windows .NET Server 2003 family includes the following IPv6 command line utilities:

Netsh.exe (with the interface ipv6, interface ipv6 6to4, interface ipv6 isatap, and interface portproxy contexts)
Ipsec6.exe

Netsh.exe

You can use the Netsh.exe command-line and scripting utility to configure networking components on the local computer or remote computers. You can run Netsh commands from the command prompt, interactively from a Netsh command prompt, or by creating a script file to run a batch of Netsh commands. You can also use the Netsh utility to save a computer's current network configuration in a script file for either archival and restoration purposes or to configure other servers.

Netsh supports multiple components through the addition of Netsh helper dynamic link libraries (DLLs). A Netsh helper DLL extends Netsh functionality by providing additional commands to monitor or configure a specific networking component. For example, Ipv6mon.dll provides commands to configure IPv6 and subcomponents of the IPv6 protocol. Each Netsh helper DLL provides a context—a group of commands for a specific networking component. Within each context, subcontexts might exist. For example, within the interface ipv6 context, the 6to4 and isatap subcontexts group 6to4 and ISATAP configuration commands.

For more information about the Netsh utility, search for "netsh overview" in the Windows .NET Server Help and Support Center.

Netsh interface ipv6

Although IPv6 was designed to be self-configuring for most IPv6 hosts, there is still a need to configure specific configuration parameters based on the role of the computer running a member of the Windows .NET Server 2003 family on the network. For example, a simple host computer with a single LAN interface should not require any additional configuration. All configuration for addresses and routes for basic connectivity is provided through router discovery. However, a computer acting as a router or PortProxy server must be manually configured.

If additional configuration is needed, using the commands in the netsh interface ipv6 context is the only way to configure the IPv6 protocol provided with the Windows .NET Server 2003 family. There are no dialog boxes for configuring the Microsoft TCP/IP version 6 protocol in the Network Connections folder.

For more information about the syntax for a specific netsh interface ipv6 command, either type the command without the parameters to obtain command-line help, or search for "netsh interface ipv6" in the Windows .NET Server Help and Support Center.

Useful commands to gather information about the IPv6 configuration of a computer running the IPv6 protocol for the Windows .NET Server 2003 family are the following:

Netsh interface ipv6 show interface
Netsh interface ipv6 show address
Netsh interface ipv6 show routes
Netsh interface ipv6 show neighbors
Netsh interface ipv6 show destinationcache

Netsh interface ipv6 show interface

This command displays the list of IPv6 interfaces. Here is an example:

 Idx  Met   MTU    State         Name ---  ----  ----   ----------    -----   3     0   1500  Connected     Local Area Connection   2     1   1280  Connected     Automatic Tunneling Pseudo-Interface   1     0   1500  Connected     Loopback Pseudo-Interface

Netsh interface ipv6 show address

This command displays the list of IPv6 addresses for each interface. Here is an example:

 Interface 3: Local Area Connection Addr Type  DAD State  Valid Life    Pref. Life  Address ---------  ---------  ----------    ----------  ------------------------------------ Public     Preferred  29d23h58m51s  6d23h58m51s fec0::f282:204:5aff:fe56:1006 Anonymous  Preferred      6d56m49s        54m2s3ffe:2900:d005:f282:b8df:3ec8:8a61:a06b Public     Preferred  29d23h58m51s  6d23h58m51s3ffe:2900:d005:f282:204:5aff:fe56:1006 Link       Preferred      infinite     infinite fe80::204:5aff:fe56:1006 Interface 2: Automatic Tunneling Pseudo-Interface Addr Type  DAD State  Valid Life   Pref. Life   Address ---------  ---------  ----------   ----------   ------------------------------------ Link       Preferred    infinite     infinite   fe80::5efe:157.60.137.151 Interface 1: Loopback Pseudo-Interface Addr Type  DAD State  Valid Life   Pref. Life   Address ---------  ---------  ----------   ----------   ------------------------------------ Loopback   Preferred    infinite     infinite   ::1 Link       Preferred    infinite     infinite   fe80::1

Netsh interface ipv6 show routes

This command displays the list of IPv6 routes in the IPv6 routing table. Here is an example:

 Publish  Type       Met  Prefix                   Idx  Gateway/Interface Name -------  --------   ---  -----------------------  ---  ------------------------ no       Autoconf     8  fec0:0:0:f282::/64         3  Local Area Connection no       Autoconf     8  3ffe:2900:d005:f282::/64   3  Local Area Connection no       Autoconf   256  ::/0                       3  fe80::210:ffff:fed6:58c0

By default, host and multicast routes are not displayed. To see all the IPv6 routes, use the netsh interface ipv6 show routes level=verbose command.

Netsh interface ipv6 show neighbors

This command displays the contents of the neighbor cache, sorted by interface. Here is an example:

 Interface 3: Local Area Connection Internet Address                              Physical Address   Type -----------------------------------------     ----------------   -------------- fe80::210:ffff:fed6:58c0                      00-10-ff-d6-58-c0  Stale (router) fe80::204:5aff:fe56:1006                      00-04-5a-56-10-06  Permanent 3ffe:2900:d005:f282:204:5aff:fe56:1006        00-04-5a-56-10-06  Permanent 3ffe:2900:d005:f282:b8df:3ec8:8a61:a06b       00-04-5a-56-10-06  Permanent fec0::f282:204:5aff:fe56:1006                 00-04-5a-56-10-06  Permanent Interface 2: Automatic Tunneling Pseudo-Interface Internet Address                              Physical Address   Type -----------------------------------------     ----------------   -------------- fe80::5efe:157.60.137.151                      127.0.0.1          Permanent Interface 1: Loopback Pseudo-Interface Internet Address                              Physical Address   Type -----------------------------------------     ----------------   -------------- fe80::1                                                          Permanent ::1                                                              Permanent

Netsh interface ipv6 show destinationcache

This command displays the contents of the destination cache, sorted by interface. Here is an example:

 Interface 3: Local Area Connection PMTU Destination Address                         Next Hop Address ---- ------------------------------------------  ------------------------ 1500 fec0:0:0:ffff::3                            fe80::210:ffff:fed6:58c0 1500 fec0:0:0:ffff::2                            fe80::210:ffff:fed6:58c0 1500 fec0:0:0:ffff::1                            fe80::210:ffff:fed6:58c0

Netsh interface ipv6 6to4

The commands in the Netsh interface ipv6 6to4 context are used to configure the behavior or to display the configuration of the 6to4 component on either a 6to4 host or a 6to4 router.

For more information about the syntax for a specific netsh interface ipv6 6to4 command, either type the command without the parameters to obtain command-line help or search for "netsh interface ipv6" in the Windows .NET Server Help and Support Center. The syntax for the commands in the netsh interface ipv6 6to4 context is included in the topic titled "Netsh commands for Interface IPv6: Command-line reference."

Netsh interface ipv6 isatap

The commands in the netsh interface ipv6 isatap context are used to configure the behavior or display the configuration of the ISATAP component on an ISATAP router. For more information about the syntax for a specific netsh interface ipv6 isatap command, either type the command without the parameters to obtain command-line help or search for "netsh interface ipv6" in the Windows .NET Server Help and Support Center. The syntax for the commands in the netsh interface ipv6 isatap context is included in the topic titled "Netsh commands for Interface IPv6: Command-line reference."

Netsh interface portproxy

The commands in the netsh interface portproxy context are used to configure PortProxy behavior or to display its configuration. For more information about the syntax for a specific netsh interface portproxy command, either type the command without the parameters to obtain command-line help or search for "netsh interface portproxy" in the Windows .NET Server Help and Support Center.

Ipsec6.exe

You can use Ipsec6.exe to configure IPSec policies and security associations for IPSec-protected IPv6 traffic. For more information about Ipsec6.exe, search for "ipsec6" in the Windows .NET Server Help and Support Center. The syntax for the Ipsec6.exe commands is included in the topic titled "IPv6 utilities."

For an example of using Ipsec6.exe to configure IPSec security policies and associations for two link-local hosts, see Appendix E, "Setting up an IPv6 Test Lab."

The IPSec support for the IPv6 protocol for the Windows .NET Server 2003 family is not designed for production use. The Ipsec6.exe utility is provided for experimentation purposes and will be removed in a future version of the Windows operating system.