IPv6 is the next generation of the Internet Protocol, the system by which data is transferred across the Internet. The primary problem that IPv6 solves is the shortage of IP addresses, which are becoming scarce due to the number of systems connected to the Internet. In the coming years the Internet will gradually move over to IPv6, with a transition period in which both IPv4 and IPv6 are in use.

VisualRoute 2008 traces IPv6 addresses and provides the full reporting as with IPv4 traces. To trace IPv6 addresses from your own desktop requires an Internet connection from an IPv6-enabled ISP (Internet service provider) — you cannot trace IPv6 addresses if your ISP supports only IPv4 traffic. In addition, to make use of your ISP‘s IPv6 features, your computer must have an IPv6 stack installed. Most modern operating systems such as Windows Vista have this preinstalled.

IPv6 addresses are much longer than traditional IPv4 addresses - an example of a IPv6 address is 2001:4860:0000:0000:0000:0000:0000:0000 (versus an IPv4 address such as 205.234.111.204). A VisualRoute trace to this IPv6 address is shown below.

If your ISP does not currently support IPv6, you can still perform IPv6 traces using the Trace From option in the VisualRoute Business and SupportPro editions. These editions include an option to perform traces from multiple Visualware server locations, including an IPv6 server in the UK, as shown below.

See the OmniPath and NetVu information for reporting of multiple route discovery and performance.