--------------------------------------------------------------------
APNIC Document identity

 Title: APNIC guidelines for IPv6 allocation and assignment
        requests

 Short title:                     ipv6-guidelines
 Document ref:                    APNIC-114
 Version:                         007
 Date of original publication:    2 July 2004
 Date of this version:            19 August 2012
 Review scheduled:                n/a
 Obsoletes:                       apnic-114-006
 Status:                          Active
 Comments:                        Implementation of prop-102
---------------------------------------------------------------------



APNIC guidelines for IPv6 allocation and assignment requests

About this document
-------------------
These guidelines are intended to complement the document IPv6 address 
allocation and assignment policy.

    http://www.apnic.net/policy/ipv6-address-policy

These guidelines will be updated from time to time, in consultation with 
the Asia Pacific and global Internet communities, to ensure they remain 
appropriate to the current addressing environment.



Table of contents
-----------------

Section 1: Background

1. Introduction

2. Scope

3. Additional guidance

4. Goals of address space management

5. Application of guidelines


Section 2: General guidelines

6. Definition of an "end site"

7. IPv6 allocations
   7.1.  Initial allocation criteria

         7.1.1.  A plan for 200 assignments
         7.1.2.  Existing LIRs with IPv4 allocations from APNIC or 
                 an NIR
         7.1.3.  Justifying an initial allocations larger than /32
                 7.1.3.1.  Expanding initial allocations received 
                           before August 2004
         7.1.4.  Supporting documentation
   7.2. Sparse Allocation Framework


8.  Assignments to end sites
    8.1.  Assignment size
    8.2.  Second opinion request

          8.2.1.  Sub-allocations and second opinion request
          8.2.2.  Supporting documentation

9.  Subsequent allocations
    9.1.  Prior allocations to be used first
    9.2.  Special circumstances

10.  Requesting a reverse DNS delegation
     10.1.  Reverse DNS delegations in ip6.int and ip6.arpa

11.  Registration requirements
     11.1.  Updating registration details
     11.2.  Registering contact persons


Section 1: Background
------------------------------------------------------------------------

1. Introduction
---------------

These guidelines are developed within the APNIC community, and are
consistent with the goals and policies applicable to IPv6 address space
management. They are intended to assist organizations requesting IPv6
address space only.

Nothing in these guidelines should be considered to replace or modify
any of the specific policies defined in other APNIC documents.


2. Scope
--------

This document applies to the management of global unicast IPv6 public
address space in the Asia Pacific region.

This document does not apply to IPv4, multicast, or unique local IPv6
unicast addresses, or Autonomous System Numbers. It should be read in
conjunction with other APNIC documents, particularly APNIC-089 IPv6
address allocation and assignment policy.

    http://www.apnic.net/policy/ipv6-address-policy


3. Additional guidance
----------------------

These guidelines are not intended to be exhaustive. Additional guidance
and examples are available from the help information available for each
APNIC request form and in FAQs and other information on the APNIC web
site:

    - Resource guides
      http://www.apnic.net/services

    - APNIC FAQs
      http://www.apnic.net/info/faq

    - RFC 3152 "Delegation of IP6.ARPA"
      http://www.ietf.cnri.reston.va.us/rfc/rfc3152.txt

    - RFC 3177 "IAB/IESG Recommendations on IPv6 Address Allocations to 
      Sites"
      http://www.ietf.cnri.reston.va.us/rfc/rfc3177.txt


4. Goals of address space management
------------------------------------

In this document, all reference to the goals of address space management
refer to the goals described in Policy environment for Internet number
resource distribution in the Asia Pacific, namely:

    - uniqueness;
    - registration;
    - aggregation;
    - conservation;
    - fairness; and
    - minimised overhead.

The Policy environment for Internet number resource distribution in the
Asia Pacific document is available at the following URL:

    http://www.apnic.net/policy/policy-environment


5. Application of guidelines
----------------------------

This document is primarily intended to guide ISPs when making
assignments to their customers or requesting address space from APNIC.
The issues discussed in this document reflect many of the considerations
used by APNIC in evaluating requests for initial allocations and
subsequent allocations of IPv6 address space.

It is intended that NIRs will either adopt these, or similar guidelines,
for their own members.



Section 2: General guidelines
------------------------------------------------------------------------


6. Definition of an "end site"
------------------------------

Section 2.9 of "IPv6 address allocation and assignment policy" defines
an end site as "an end user (subscriber) who has a business relationship
with a service provider". That section also lists some possible business
relationships (which would normally be found in the contract between the
LIR and their customer) that typically indicate end sites. End sites do
not re-assign any of their IP addresses to other organizations.

Examples:

    Single end site

    - A home or corporate user who has a single contract with a service 
      provider for their own device or network.
    - A home or corporate user who has multiple devices to connect to
      the Internet, but has only one contract with a service provider.

    Multiple sites

    - A home or corporate user who has multiple contracts with one or 
      more service providers.
    - A home or corporate user who has multiple separate networks that 
      are not connected to each other because each network has a
      different management policy, even if they are in the same place
      (for example, a merged company with independent networks).


7. IPv6 allocations
-------------------

APNIC will allocate IPv6 address space to a network with global or local
connectivity, provided the network meets the criteria stated in "IPv6
address allocation and assignment policy".

The following networks are examples of the types of organizations that
most commonly apply for an IPv6 allocation from APNIC. This list is not
intended to be exhaustive:

    - An ISP providing IPv6 connectivity to the global Internet.
    - An ISP providing IPv6 services to end sites and restricting 
      connectivity to its own closed network.
    - An ISP providing IPv6 services to end sites and restricting 
      connectivity to peering partners.
    - A large organisation providing IPv6 connectivity to its group 
      companies or subsidiaries and restricting connectivity to its own
      network.


7.1. Initial allocation criteria

     To qualify for an initial allocation of IPv6 address space
     organizations that do not already hold IPv4 space from APNIC must
     meet the criteria stated in section 5.2.1 of "IPv6 address
     allocation and assignment policy". Under d) in section 5.2.1, an
     organisation can choose from one of the two alternative criteria:

    1. Have a plan for making at least 200 assignments to other
       organisations within two years, OR

    2. Be an existing LIR with IPv4 allocations from APNIC or an NIR
       which will make IPv6 assignments or sub-allocations to other
       organisations and announce the allocations in the inter-domain
       routing system within two years

    These two alternative criteria are explained in sections 7.1.1 and
    7.1.2 below.


7.1.1. A plan for 200 assignments

       An organisation must provide a plan to make at least 200
       assignments within two years. However, APNIC regards the
       existence of the plan as a demonstration of the LIR's readiness
       to commence IPv6 services and does not assess the feasibility of
       the plan. For example: An LIR with at least 200 customers
       currently using IPv4 address space can meet the initial
       allocation criteria of 200 assignments if it plans to provide
       them with IPv6 connectivity service within two years.

       IPv4 sub-allocations made by an LIR to downstream ISPs can be
       used to justify the corresponding amount of /56 assignments.

       Below is an example of a plan that that includes a sub-allocation
       to a downstream ISP that meets the initial allocation criteria of
       a plan to assign 200 assignments within two years:

       /52 sub-allocation to ISP:             16 /56s
       Assignments to PoPs:                   20 /56s
       Assignments to end sites:             170 /56s
       ----------------------------------------------
       Total number of /56s:                 206 /56s

       For example: If a CATV provider has 4,000 IP static connection
       customers in IPv4 and 5% of the customers (200 customers) are
       expected to subscribe to IPv6 services, then this provider will
       meet the initial allocation criteria of 200 assignments. (A /56
       can be assigned to end sites using either static or dynamic
       addressing).

       If an LIR assigns a single static IP address in IPv4, the ISP can
       assign up to a /48 in IPv6. The LIR may also assign a smaller
       prefix in accordance with recommendations in RFC 3177.


7.1.2. Existing LIRs with IPv4 allocations from APNIC or an NIR

       To qualify under this criterion, an organisation must:

       - Document an existing IPv4 allocation made to it by APNIC or an NIR
       - Commit to making IPv6 assignments and/or sub-allocations
       - Agree to announce the IPv6 allocation in the routing table
         within two years

       Please note that historical IP ranges do not meet the criteria of
       being "an existing IPv4 allocation from APNIC or an NIR".
       Historical IP ranges are defined in section 2.2 of: Policies for
       historical Internet resources in the APNIC Whois Database
       
       http://www.apnic.net/policy/historical-resource-policies


7.1.3. Justifying an initial allocation larger than /32

       LIRs can use existing IPv4 customers and IPv4 network
       infrastructure to justify an initial allocation larger than a /32
       by providing documentation on the number of their existing IPv4
       users as well as the extent of their IPv4 network infrastructure.

       The HD ratio is used to determine the appropriate size of the
       IPv6 allocation based on IPv4 customer and infrastructure
       assignments. For more information, refer to section 5.2.3 of the
       "IPv6 address allocation and assignment policy".

       LIRs are likely to be eligible for an initial allocation if they
       meet both of the following conditions:

       - They have received an IPv4 allocation as an LIR, or meet the
         criteria to receive an IPv4 allocation; and

       - They plan to transfer the existing IPv4 infrastructure or
         customers partly, or wholly, to IPv6 in two years.

       LIRs are still requested to provide information on how many /56s
       they expect to assign within the first two years.

       Below is a brief table based on the HD ratio table that states
       the number of IPv4 customers needed to justify an allocation size
       greater than /32.

       For the full HD ratio table, please see Appendix A of the "IPv6
       address allocation and assignment policy".


7.1.3.1. Expanding initial allocations received before August 2004

         Organizations that received an initial allocation of IPv6 can
         take advantage of the August 2004 policy permitting initial
         allocations larger than /32. To expand the initial allocation
         size without needing to meet subsequent allocation criteria,
         the LIR must have received its initial allocation before 16
         August 2004 and must meet the initial allocation criteria
         described in section 5.2.2 of the "IPv6 address allocation and
         assignment policy".

         Expansion of the initial allocation space for existing IPv6
         address space holders:

             http://www.apnic.net/policy/proposals/prop-021


7.1.4. Supporting documentation

       The APNIC IPv6 Allocation Request Form gives LIRs the opportunity
       to include additional documentation to support the request for an
       initial IPv6 allocation. Examples of the types of information an
       LIR can include in the "Additional information" section of the
       form to support the request are

       - network diagrams
       - approximate deployment dates
       - a brief description of IPv6 deployment method (use of IPv6 
         tunneling, dual stack, etc.)
       - service plans (web hosting, access service, etc.)
       - network equipment information to demonstrate that the LIR has a 
         plan to implement IPv6-ready infrastructure; and
       - IPv4 infrastructure and/or customer information if the LIR chooses 
         the option of using existing IPv4 infrastructure to justify the
         request (see Section 7.1.2).

       When requesting an initial allocation from APNIC, network
       equipment information, such as the vendor and model name of an
       LIR's equipment, is not mandatory; however, if an LIR requests a
       large pool of address space for CATV or ADSL operations, APNIC
       may ask for information on the network's equipment.


7.2. Sparse Allocation Framework

     APNIC delegates blocks of IPv6 address space to resource holders
     according to a "sparse allocation" algorithm. This allocation
     process is designed to maximize the growth potential for each
     allocation by maximizing the distance between allocations.

     The following illustration shows the order in which a sequence of
     16 delegations would be made in an available free pool using
     APNIC’s sparse allocation algorithm.


    |---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|  
    1   |   |   |   |   |   |   |       |   |   |   |   |   |   |      
        |   |   |       |   |   |   2   |   |   |       |   |   |      
        |       |   3   |       |       |       |   4   |       |      
            5               6               7               8          
        9       10      11      12      13      14      15      16     


     The sparse allocation algorithm used, selects the starting address
     for each new delegation by calculating the mid-point between the
     next two start addresses that are furthest apart in the free pool.
     The algorithm works from the beginning address of the free pool to
     the end address before returning to the first available slot at the
     beginning of the pool.

     The effect is to successively sub-divide each remaining free block
     in two, the addresses after that point being used for the new
     allocation and the preceding addresses being left available for
     subsequent delegation.

     In accordance with APNIC’s IPv6 address allocation and assignment
     policy, where possible, subsequent delegations to the same resource
     holder are made from an adjacent address block by growing the
     allocation into the free space remaining, unless disaggregated
     ranges are requested for multiple discreet networks.


7.2.1. Avoiding Fragmentation

       While the free space between sparse delegations is initially very
       large, the size of available blocks reduces as more sub-divisions
       occur. To minimize this effect, APNIC manages its central pool by
       making similar sized allocations from a number of sub-pools, with
       large delegations made from one pool, small delegations made from
       another, and so on.

       In this way, the high frequency of smaller allocations will not
       cause sub-divisions of free space available to large address
       block holders, as they are taken from different sub-pools.

       For more information about the resource ranges managed by APNIC
       see:

           http://www.apnic.net/resources


8. Assignments to end sites
---------------------------

8.1. Assignment size

    An LIR can assign a /64 to /48 to an end site customer network based
    on their requirements. The following guidelines may be useful:

    - /64 where it is known that only one subnet is required.

    - /56 for small sites where it is expected only a few subnets will 
      be required within the next two years. Subscribers can receive a
      /56 when connecting through on-demand or always-on connections
      such as small office and home office enterprises.

      - /48 for larger sites, or if an end site is expected to grow into 
        a large network.
        
    An LIR must submit a second opinion request to APNIC if it plans to
    assign more than a /48 to a single end site (see Section 8.2 below).


8.2. Second opinion request

    Currently, the global Internet community considers a /48 assignment
    to be sufficient address space for an end site.

    Therefore, when an end site requires an assignment larger than /48,
    or it requires additional /48 assignments after the initial
    assignment, the LIR must first submit a second opinion request.


8.2.1. Sub-allocations and second opinion request

       LIRs do not need to submit a second opinion request before making
       sub-allocations to downstream ISPs (please see Section 9 below).
       However, APNIC encourages LIRs to contact APNIC hostmasters for
       advice if LIRs are unsure how much address space to sub-allocate.


8.2.2. Supporting documentation

       The APNIC Second Opinion Request Form gives LIRs the opportunity
       to include additional documentation to support the request for an
       assignment to an end site that is larger than a /48.

       - Network diagram of an end site
       - Network equipment information
       - Full details to justify multiple /48 assignments to an end site
         (for example, the number of clients (PCs or other network
         equipment) or other information which justify multiple /48
         assignments)


9. Subsequent allocations
-------------------------


9.1. Prior allocations to be used first

     An LIR is not eligible to receive subsequent allocations until its
     current assignments reach a HD ratio of 0.94 based on /56
     assignments.


9.2. Special circumstances

     An LIR may request an exception to the HD 0.94 rule when:

     - It has a demonstrated need for an assignment that is larger than 
       the amount of remaining space

     - It is announcing its existing IPv6 allocation and can demonstrate 
       a need or requirement to build discreet networks to be advertised
       under different ASNs

     - It requires the additional allocation for technical reasons such 
       as for IPv4 to IPv6 transitional technologies, or

     - It can demonstrate other reasons accepted by APNIC as valid 
       circumstance, or in accord with applicable policies.


10. Requesting a reverse DNS delegation
---------------------------------------

LIRs should maintain reverse DNS delegations for their customers'
networks. If a network is not specifically associated with an LIR then
the reverse DNS delegation should be maintained by APNIC. In both IPv4
and IPv6 networks, it is the LIR's responsibility to delegate or to
maintain PTR records for its customers' networks.

The size of a reverse DNS delegation by an LIR to an end site will
usually be a /48, which is the recommended minimum assignment to an
end-site specified in RFC 3177. However, it is possible to delegate a
prefix longer than /48. Some organisations may delegate such a prefix in
their internal network.


10.1. Reverse DNS delegations in ip6.int and ip6.arpa

      As specified in RFC 3152, reverse DNS delegations in the ip6.int
      tree have been deprecated, and APNIC has now removed all ip6.int
      reverse delegations from the APNIC Whois Database.

      For more information, see: 

          Reverse DNS delegations resource guide
          http://www.apnic.net/services/dns_guide.html


11. Registration requirements
-----------------------------

LIRs are responsible for promptly and accurately registering their
allocations, sub-allocations, and assignments in the APNIC Whois
Database, as follows:

    - All allocations and sub-allocations must be registered.
    - Assignments for networks equal to, or greater than, /48 must be
      registered.
    - Assignments for networks of /48 or less may be registered, at the 
      discretion of the LIR and the network administrator.

When an LIR makes a sub-allocation to a downstream ISP, the LIR is
responsible for ensuring that assignments from the sub-allocated range
are registered in the database; however, the LIR may delegate the
responsibility to the downstream ISP.

If an LIR registers a /64 assignment, it will be counted as a utilised
/48 when assessing existing address utilisation for future IPv6
allocation requests.

Note: Privacy of customer assignments (prop-007-v001) was implemented in
2004. APNIC policy no longer requires the registration of assignments and
sub-allocations to be publicly available. The registration of customer
assignments is still required, but will be 'hidden' by default.


11.1. Updating registration details

          LIRs must update the APNIC Whois Database when any of the
          registration information changes. This is the responsibility
          of the LIR concerned, but may be formally delegated to the end
          user as a condition of the original assignment.


11.2. Registering contact persons

          Administrative and technical contact persons must be
          registered.

          The registered administrative contact (admin-c) must be
          someone who is physically located at the site of the network,
          subject to the following exceptions:

          - For residential networks or users, the network's technical
            contact may be registered as admin-c.

          - For networks in exceptional circumstances that make it
            impractical to maintain an on-site administrative contact,
            an off-site person may be registered as the admin-c.

    The technical contact (tech-c) need not be physically located at the
    site of the network, but must be a person who is responsible for the
    day-to-day operation of the network.