32 lines
		
	
	
		
			1.4 KiB
		
	
	
	
		
			Markdown
		
	
	
	
	
	
			
		
		
	
	
			32 lines
		
	
	
		
			1.4 KiB
		
	
	
	
		
			Markdown
		
	
	
	
	
	
---
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title: IPv6 Header
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---
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## IPv6 Header Format
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Below is the IPv6 header format according to [RFC2460](https://tools.ietf.org/html/rfc2460):
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##### Version [4-bits]
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  * Internet Protocol (IP) version number (decimal 6, binary 0110)
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##### Traffic Class [8-bits]
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  * Identifies different classes or priorities of IPv6 packets
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##### Flow Label [20-bits]
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  * Services that require special handling can utilize this field (defaults to all 0's)
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##### Payload Length [16-bits]
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  * Specifies the size of the payload including extension headers.  Value is measured in Octets (8-bit values)
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##### Next Header [8-bits]
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  * Specifies the type of the next header after the IPv6 header
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##### Hop Limit [8-bits]
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  * Number of hops before the packet is discarded
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  * Value is decremented by each forwarding node in the network.  When the value reaches 0, the packet is discarded
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  * Maximum hops using 8-bits is `2^8` or 256 hops
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##### Source Address [128-bits]
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  * The IPv6 address of the device sending the packet
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##### Destination Address [128-bits]
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  * The IPv6 address of the device(s) destined to receive the packet
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  * Destination may be more than one host/device when using Multicast/Anycast
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#### More Information:
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* [List of IP protocol numbers used in the Next Header](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_IP_protocol_numbers)
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