Publicación:

"Implementation of an IPv6 Local Area Network for Enterprise Network Scalability Planning"

Resumen

"Cyber-attacks represent a constant global threat with devastating consequences and significant economic losses. Therefore, it is essential to design secure and scalable network infrastructures based on the principles of confidentiality, integrity, and availability. Vulnerability to these attacks is often related to deficiencies in network design. A hierarchical approach is key to improving scalability, supporting new users and services, and ensuring high availability, fault tolerance, and rapid packet convergence. In this context, a scalability plan geared toward business growth is crucial for business continuity, facilitating the addition of new services and end users. The adoption of IPv6 addresses improves address availability and strengthens network capacity despite growing cyber challenges. This project implements an IPv6-enabled LAN to optimize scalability in enterprise networks. The PPDIOO methodology was used, consisting of six phases: preparation, planning, design, implementation, operation and optimization. For the network simulation, GNS3 was used, a software that supports services such as VLAN, STP, VTP, EtherChannel and OSPF. The tests were performed using virtual machines, using PRTG for monitoring and ManageEngine MibBrowser for enhancements. The results show that in a two-level hierarchy under IPv6, it reaches 66.6%, with the maximum level being three levels. Redundancy reached 60% with the STP protocol. In terms of co-broadcasting, IPv6 achieved 100%, surpassing 97.6% of IPv4. In addition, in the bitrate tests on reception, IPv6 achieved 99.8%, compared to 58% for IPv4. In conclusion, the implementation of IPv6 not only significantly improves the performance and scalability of enterprise networks but also provides a more robust infrastructure ready for future connectivity and security challenges. These results reaffirm the need to adopt strategies that facilitate the transition to IPv6 in the enterprise environment. © The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2026."