Take-up of IPv6 solutions slower than expected?

If you're looking for dedicated servers or Cloud VPS on which to base a web hosted solution, one attractive feature might be native IPv6 capabilities. After all, this is the future of the internet and it's going to become increasingly necessary in the coming years, as the number of available IPv4 options gets exhausted.

But despite this, you might be surprised to find there's little urgency from many businesses and website owners about upgrading their systems. The benefits of IPv6 have been extolled by commentators and analysts for some time, but the message is apparently not getting through.

Companies have no immediate plans to make the transition to IPv6

In fact, an informal poll of readers of technology news publication Tech Week Europe found 43% of companies have no immediate plans to make the transition, with less than one in five expecting to support it externally by the end of next year. More worryingly, 17% said they weren't sure of what IPv6 is and 11% said they don't think they'll ever need it.

This could a very short-sighted view, as the continued push towards the technology might mean some older devices won't be compatible with new IPv6-based networks. For the moment, most equipment has support for both, but it's likely to be the case that IPv4 will be phased out of future technology developments.

Don't get left behind

If you aren't prepared for this, you could end up being forced into an upgrade quicker than you'd like so you don't get left behind. Therefore, it's probably going to be better in the long run if you can start making plans now, so you know exactly what you have to do to migrate successfully to IPv6.

The importance of making the move was also stressed recently by IPv6 advocacy group 6UK. In an interview with PC Pro magazine, former director of the organisation Philip Sheldrake said firms operating internationally in particular need to embrace it, because the technology is standard in some nations and compatibility is an expectation.

He added companies that don't get on board with be compromising their competitiveness. If you want to make sure this isn't you, it's important you look at solutions today.