How many IPs do we have left?

By Rayed

November 7, 2008

Only 14% of IP addresses are left, which is estimated to be used in 811 days which is around 2 years!!

Does that mean the Internet as we know it will stop growing? yes exactly, if we ran out of IP addresses you can not connect your new game console, phone, notebook, etc... to the Internet.

Scientists has found many solutions to delay this problem, including “classless network”, and NAT, which allowed us to use the IP address space more efficiently.

The solution: IPv6

IPv6 solve many problems with the current standard IPv4, the most important one is IP address exhaustion, it has been their since 1996, and it has address space enough to give an IP address to every centimeter on earth.

The world wide adoption of IPv6 isn’t fast enough. With only 2 years to total IP address exhaustion, we should start moving now, and fast as we can.

Most network devices and operating systems already support IPv6, but unfortunately not many Internet provider support IPv6 connectivity.

In Saudi Arabia, no data provider including STC, Bayanat, ITC, nor any other service provider provide IPv6 service, I am not even sure if they have any plan to do it.

So what can we do, call them and ask about it, send them emails, blog about it, Saudi Arabia Internet usage is booming and IPv6 could be the only way to ensure it growth.