Posted: 19th Apr, 2011 By: MarkJ

ZyXEL Communications (UK), an internet access solutions provider that develops a large range of consumer and business broadband ISP routers, has today issued an important
progress update on its work towards achieving
complete IPv6 readiness.
The current generation of IP addresses ( IPv4 ), one of which is assigned to your computer each time you connect to the internet, are fast running out (
Asia Pacific Regional Internet Registry Issues Alert as ipv4 Addresses Run Dry) and as a result it has become mandatory for all hardware and software to add support for its successor - IPv6 .
Back in 2008 ZyXEL informed ISPreview.co.uk that it intended to, "
provide IPv6 software upgrades for current router models capable of supporting IPv6" (
here). The firm also claims to have devoted itself to developing products and solutions that support IPv6 since 2003 and even started obtaining the
IPv6 Ready Logo certificate in 2004.
Since then they have moved into "
Phase II IPv6 Ready"
Golden Logo for a few VDSL2 integrated access devices and CPE products in 2010.
ZyXEL's Current ipv6 Readiness Status
More recent products undergoing IPv6 compliant certification include ADSL2+ routers, 11n ADSL2+ gateways and VoIP Internet Access Device (IAD), as well as 11n VDSL2 gateways, which are targeted to confirm compliance within the year.
To support an increase in inquiries from leading ISP and Telco customers for solutions, ZyXEL has been accelerating its development of IPv6 feature products to help its customers enjoy a smooth transition and/or deployment to stay on top of this new opportunity. Internet service providers and telecommunications companies are regarded as the key driving forces in making this wide-spread evolution successful.
ZyXEL currently supports three technologies for IPv6 deployment, a dual-stack approach, along with 6rd and DS-Lite tunneling to meet diversified requirements for different implementation scenarios. Additionally, with solid software capability, ZyXEL has also developed its own IPv6 Software Stack, which can be applied to a wide range of products and solutions.
However, many ISPs still contest that
router manufacturers in general have been far too slow to adapt and should have had full IPv6 support ready a lot ealier. Even now many are still being rather coy about IPv6 support and which older models may or may not benefit from support through future firmware upgrades. We'll be covering this more next week in our NetGear interview.