The latest version of the IPv6 CPE survey and matrix can be found here: IPv6 CPE Surveys

Disclaimer

The information in this article is provided as is. The authors will try their best to keep the information up-to-date, but for the latest information please consult the documentation provided by the manufacturer. Most of the software products listed are under development and are actively being worked on. Check the manufacturer's website to verify you are using the latest version available, especially when you encounter issues or decide to report back to us.

Testing Method

The tests we ran are best described as consumer panel testing. We check if a feature is present and we try and verify if the feature actually works. This is by no means a foolproof approach, as subtle differences in your local setup can dramatically change behavior. Our aim in producing this article is to provide a useful guide, but we strongly advise you to verify that the devices work correctly in your own environment before making a final decision to purchase. Most vendors are usually happy to organise a demo. If you are looking to purchase a box in retail, we also advise you to check the return policy of the retailer.



For the purpose of this article we consider customer premises equipment (CPE) or home gateway to be a device that can act as a gateway between the infrastructure of your local provider and your home network. Such devices usually come with a variety of interfaces and can either plug in directly into your DSL or cable connection or can be placed behind a box (supplied by the provider) to introduce additional functionality such as NAT44 (i.e. IPv4 to IPv4 network address translation) , VoIP or Wifi. The IPv6 behavior of such devices is best described in draft-ietf-v6ops-ipv6-cpe-router .



In contrast with IPv4, when using IPv6 you are likely to get one or more subnets assigned by your provider, which means there is no longer a need for NAT. Although this re-establishes the end-to-end model of the Internet, it does mean that your hosts are exposed directly to the Internet. For added security most of the devices described here come with basic filtering capabilities, often referred to as a firewall. Recommendations on these filters are described in draft-ietf-v6ops-cpe-simple-security .



We have done our best to make this list complete, and are happy to continue refining and adding to it. If you find anything missing or your box isn’t listed, please contact us. However, please keep in mind that the goal of this list is to identify those CPEs that are suitable for mass deployment. We like the hacks with custom software patches but that would probably make the list endless.

Your Feedback Required

This document is based on feedback received from the community and we intend it to serve as a living document, so further feedback is more than welcome. If you have access to a testbed, are already running tests of your own or if you spot an error please contact us on labs at ripe dot net or leave a comment here.

Overview

The matrix below lists the features and various models of CPE on which we have information. The status fields can have five different values.



Unknown ( - ):

Neither the vendor nor the community can confirm the feature is present.

No:

Vendor or testing confirms the feature is not supported.

Claimed by vendor:

The vendor has confirmed the feature is present. However, we haven’t heard any reports from the community confirming whether it actually works and we haven’t been able to test it ourselves.

Broken:

Feedback from the community or test results indicate the feature is there but not working.

Buggy:

Feedback from the community or test results indicate the feature is showing irregular behavior or is not working as expected.

Confirmed:

Based on community feedback and testing we can confirm the feature is there and working as expected.



AVM (FRITZ!Box) Draytek Zyxel Juniper (ScreenOS) Juniper (JUNOS) Cisco Hardware version required 7270, 7570 Vigor 2130 series, vigor 120 All models released in 2010 All All Most SOHO boxes Minimum software level required "Labor" only 2130:v1.3.0 120:v3.2.4.3 Per model, check vendor 6.1 10.2 12.4T or 15 Status Beta General deployment Beta General deployment Early deployment General deployment

WAN layer 2 Docsis 3.0 vendor no no no no - ADSL 2+ confirmed 120 only vendor confirmed confirmed confirmed VDSL confirmed no vendor no vendor - Ethernet confirmed vendor vendor confirmed confirmed confirmed FTTx - vendor vendor no no - WAN Layer 3 PPPoA confirmed no vendor no vendor confirmed PPPoE confirmed confirmed vendor confirmed confirmed confirmed RFC1483/bridge vendor no vendor no no - RFC1483/routed - - vendor vendor vendor - Plain IP - vendor vendor confirmed confirmed confirmed WAN address acquiring PPP link local only (unnumbred) confirmed confirmed vendor confirmed confirmed confirmed SLAAC confirmed vendor vendor vendor vendor confirmed DHCPv6 IA_NA - vendor vendor vendor vendor - DHCPv6 IA_PD confirmed confirmed vendor no no confirmed LAN Manual addressing on LAN interface no - - confirmed confirmed confirmed SLAAC confirmed confirmed vendor confirmed confirmed confirmed DHCPv6 server no vendor vendor vendor vendor - DHCPv6 prefix delegation no - - - - - Static routing towards LAN no confirmed - - - confirmed Firewall Configurable buggy confirmed vendor confirmed confirmed confirmed Default setting on on on on on off DNS resolving WAN RFC5006 - no - no no - WAN DHCP confirmed confirmed no - - - LAN RFC5006 buggy no - no no - LAN DHCP confirmed - - - - - Configurable no - - - - confirmed Tunnels 6in4 - vendor vendor vendor no confirmed 6to4 confirmed no vendor vendor no - Teredo - no no no no - SIXXS buggy no no no no - 6RD - no no no no - Management WebGUI buggy confirmed vendor confirmed no confirmed Telnet no confirmed vendor confirmed confirmed confirmed SSH no confirmed vendor confirmed confirmed confirmed SNMP no vendor vendor vendor no confirmed TR69 vendor vendor vendor no no - Routing protocols no no RIP announced most most most

Experiences

AVM

As one of the first consumer grade CPEs with IPv6 support, the FRITZ!Box has been in beta (or "labor" as they call it) for over a year now. The box supports the basics and stands out by supporting a large variety of tunnel options as well as native connection models. The box is really aimed at the average user, so the moment you need more complicated setups it might not be the right choice. It lacks the option to route subnets or part of your prefix to another device and manual configuration is fairly limited. The pinholes in the firewall are limited to UDP and TCP only. The GUI to control the firewall shows some bugs and there have been reports that the latest version has some issues with tunnel setups as well. Updates are released regularly though, and it’s advised to keep to the latest versions.

Draytek

Unfortunately the main device (2130n) only has Ethernet ports, which limits its use. However a solution exists in the form of the Vigor 120, which makes it possible to hook it up to DSL using a small box that can either bridge the PPPoE session or translate the PPPoS from your provider into PPPoE.

The 2130 is based on Linux and when you use Telnet or SSH management it should feel fairly familiar for those people used to Linux machines. As far as LAN and routing functionality goes, this box is pretty complete, however some features, like static routing, are only manageable from the shell.

The 120 as a standalone box also offers a solution for those who want a different setup. Capable of translating to PPPoE, it fits most systems. Be careful of MTU issues when using the translating function though.

Zyxel

With the P2612HNU-F1, Zyxel has released their first IPv6 capable box. The box is pretty new and scarce. We are currently waiting on one to test or demo. If you happen to have one, please send us your experiences.

Juniper

Juniper is the first to admit that they don’t aim their products at the residential market, but just in case you encounter one, we've included it here. The biggest issue here might be that it doesn’t support prefix delegation, which might make it impossible to connect to residential subscriptions at your ISP. It also requires some knowledge when configuring. The firewall is really complete and is the only one that goes beyond the standard packet filter. Pricey but if you have one laying around it might just work.

Cisco

Another vendor not really suitable for mass deployment in the residential market. It requires some skill level to configure and maintain the system, but feature-wise it is a pretty complete box, and depending on the actual hardware version you run it can handle most routing protocols and the packet filters can do a nice job. Earlier versions require an additional license to run IPv6; with the latest hard- and software versions IPv6 is included in the base image.

There are many different software versions available and it might be hard to find the right one for your purpose. In general, newer is better, but if you have access to the Cisco portal take a look at release notes or field reports.

Be aware that earlier versions have issues when bridging between LAN and Wifi. These issues have been resolved in the latest release (15.x) and we have confirmation of an 886w now working.

Technicolor/Thomson

Not yet released so it is not included in the matrix. There have been sightings of a Speedtouch 789 running IPv6 code and supporting PPP. Please consult your Technicolor sales representative for more information.

Apple

Apple has introduced a routing option in the latest release of the Airport Extreme and Time Capsule. WAN support seems to be fairly limited as far as PPPoE is concerned, but maybe on a plain IP or bridge line it might just work. As a tunnel client, it just works.

Linksys

Linksys does not officially support IPv6, although some versions include 6to4 support. However a lot of people are using the OpenWRT software package to make this into an IPv6 box. Being unsupported, it is not suitable for mass deployment and your mileage may vary. For more information check the OpenWRT website.

Others

There have been reports of D-Link supporting IPv6 but information is limited. Iskratel is working on a new release, which should come with IPv6. Mikrotik has IPv6 support, but is limited to Ethernet only. We also have a report of a Spanish company called Teldat offering IPv6 support - if you have one at home please tell us about it.