After you enable IPv6 for a virtual private cloud (VPC), the IPv6 addresses assigned to the VPC can be used for communication in the VPC. You can purchase IPv6 Internet bandwidth for the IPv6 addresses for communication over the Internet based on your business requirements.
Background information
The number of IPv4 addresses is limited. In scenarios in which IPv4 addresses are used, it takes much time and effort for network engineers to resolve IP address conflicts. In this case, you can enable IPv6. IPv6 provides significantly more IP addresses than IPv4. IPv6 helps solve the issue of IP address shortage, and allows various types of devices to access the Internet.
Regions that support IPv6 gateways
Area | Region |
China | China (Qingdao), China (Beijing), China (Zhangjiakou), China (Hohhot), China (Ulanqab), China (Hangzhou), China (Shanghai), China (Fuzhou - Local Region), China (Shenzhen), China (Heyuan), China (Guangzhou), China (Chengdu), and China (Hong Kong) |
Asia Pacific | Philippines (Manila), Singapore, Japan (Tokyo), South Korea (Seoul), Indonesia (Jakarta), Malaysia (Kuala Lumpur), and Thailand (Bangkok) |
Europe and Americas | US (Virginia), US (Silicon Valley), and Germany (Frankfurt) |
Middle East | SAU (Riyadh - Partner Region) Important The SAU (Riyadh) region is operated by a partner. |
Prerequisites
Before you use cloud resources in a VPC, you must plan your networks. For more information, see Plan networks.
Create a VPC that supports both IPv4 and IPv6
Log on to the VPC console.
In the top navigation bar, select the region where you want to create the VPC.
On the VPC page, click Create VPC.
On the Create VPC page, set the following parameters and click OK.
Parameter
Description
VPC
Region
Displays the region where you want to create the VPC.
Name
Enter a name for the VPC.
The name must be 1 to 128 characters in length, and can contain letters, digits, underscores (_), and hyphens (-). The name must start with a letter.
IPv4 CIDR Block
Enter a primary IPv4 CIDR block for the VPC.
You can specify one of the following CIDR blocks or their subsets as the primary IPv4 CIDR block of the VPC: 192.168.0.0/16, 172.16.0.0/12, and 10.0.0.0/8. These CIDR blocks are standard private CIDR blocks as defined by Request for Comments (RFC) documents. The subnet mask must be 8 to 24 bits in length. Example: 192.168.0.0/24.
You can also use a custom CIDR block other than 100.64.0.0/10, 224.0.0.0/4, 127.0.0.0/8, 169.254.0.0/16, and their subnets as the primary IPv4 CIDR block of the VPC.
In scenarios in which multiple VPCs are used or in hybrid cloud scenarios in which you want to connect data centers to VPCs, we recommend that you use standard RFC CIDR blocks as VPC CIDR blocks with subnet masks no more than 16 bits in length. Make sure that the CIDR blocks of the VPCs and data centers do not overlap.
NoteAfter a VPC is created, you can add secondary IPv4 CIDR blocks to the VPC. For more information, see Add a secondary CIDR block.
IPv6 CIDR Block
Specify whether to assign an IPv6 CIDR block to the VPC. In this example, Assign (Alibaba Cloud) is selected.
If you set this parameter to Assign (Alibaba Cloud), the system automatically creates a free IPv6 gateway, and assigns an IPv6 CIDR block with the subnet mask /56 to the VPC, for example, 2001:db8::/56. By default, IPv6 addresses are used only for communication within private networks.
If you want to use an IPv6 address to access the Internet or provide services for IPv6 clients over the Internet, you must purchase IPv6 Internet bandwidth for the IPv6 address. For more information, see Enable and manage IPv6 Internet bandwidth.
ImportantAfter you create a VPC, you cannot change its IPv6 CIDR block.
Description
Enter a description for the VPC.
Resource Group
Select the resource group to which the VPC belongs.
Tag Key
Select or enter a tag key. To facilitate management, you can add custom tags to identify VPCs. To facilitate management, you can add custom tags to identify VPCs.
Tag Value
Select or enter a tag value.
vSwitch
Name
Enter a name for the vSwitch.
Zone
Select a zone for the vSwitch. In the same VPC, vSwitches in different zones can communicate with each other.
IPv4 CIDR Block
Enter an IPv4 CIDR block for the vSwitch. When you specify a CIDR block for the vSwitch, take note of the following limits:
The CIDR block of the vSwitch must be a subset of the CIDR block of the VPC.
For example, if the CIDR block of the VPC is 192.168.0.0/16, you can specify a CIDR block from 192.168.0.0/17 to 192.168.0.0/29 for the vSwitch.
The subnet mask of the vSwitch CIDR block must be 16 to 29 bits in length, which provides 8 to 65,536 IP addresses.
The first IP address and the last three IP addresses of a vSwitch CIDR block are reserved.
For example, if a vSwitch CIDR block is 192.168.1.0/24, the IP addresses 192.168.1.0, 192.168.1.253, 192.168.1.254, and 192.168.1.255 are reserved.
If a vSwitch is required to communicate with vSwitches in other VPCs or with data centers, make sure that the CIDR block of the vSwitch does not overlap with the destination CIDR blocks.
The CIDR block of a vSwitch cannot be the same as or larger than the destination CIDR block of a route in the route table of the VPC to which the vSwitch belongs.
ImportantAfter you create a vSwitch, you cannot change its CIDR block.
IPv6 CIDR Block
Enter an IPv6 CIDR block for the vSwitch.
By default, the subnet mask of the IPv6 CIDR block for a vSwitch is /64. To specify the last 8 bits of the IPv6 CIDR block, enter an integer from 0 to 255.
For example, if the IPv6 CIDR block of the VPC is 2001:db8::/56, you can enter 255 to define the last 8 bits of the IPv6 CIDR block of the vSwitch. In this case, the IPv6 CIDR block of the vSwitch is 2001:db8:ff::/64. ff is the hexadecimal value of 255.
Enable IPv6 for an existing VPC
Log on to the VPC console.
In the top navigation bar, select the region where the VPC is deployed.
On the VPC page, find the VPC that you want to manage and click Enable IPv6 in the IPv6 CIDR Block column.
In the Enable IPv6 dialog box, select Automatically Enable IPv6 for All vSwitches and click OK.
If you do not select Automatically Enable IPv6 for All vSwitches, you must enable IPv6 for each vSwitch. For more information, see Enable IPv6 for a vSwitch.
References
CreateVpc: creates a VPC.
ModifyVpcAttribute: modifies the name and description of a VPC.
CreateIpv6Gateway: creates an IPv6 gateway.