On July 7, at the Third China IPv6 Innovation Development Conference, Wu Jianping, Academician of Tsinghua University and Deputy Director of the Expert Committee for Promoting IPv6 Large-scale Deployment and Application, delivered a keynote speech titled “The Important Content of IPv6 Innovation Development: Self-Reliance in Core Technologies for the Next Generation Internet.”
2024 marks the 30th anniversary of China’s full access to the international Internet and the 50th anniversary of the birth of the core TCP/IP protocol.
The current cyberspace has become a new space for human survival and development, with the Internet being the most important infrastructure of cyberspace, and IPv6 as the crucial infrastructure for the future of the Internet. Understanding core Internet technologies, especially those of the next generation Internet, is vital for the innovative development of the Internet in the future.
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Core Internet Technologies
Are the Internet Architecture
The core technology of the Internet is its architecture. The architecture aims to study the functional composition and corresponding relationships of various parts of the Internet. It resembles an hourglass, where the network layer—TCP/IP serves as a bridge, ensuring global connectivity and is the core of the architecture. It supports various general technologies that are applied across different industries; it also underpins various communication technologies. Throughout the evolution of the Internet, it can be seen that the Internet maintains its core while adapting to various changes at higher and lower levels. This is the brilliance of the Internet and the source of its vitality.
The architecture of the Internet continuously innovates during its development. In its development, the Internet faces several major challenges, such as scalability, security, real-time performance, high performance, mobility, and manageability. There is significant room for innovation within the Internet architecture.
Among all these challenges, the most strategic challenge is scalability—connecting the Internet to a larger space. If this is not achieved, all subsequent features become irrelevant, making it a critical point. IPv4 was replaced by IPv6 precisely because the originally designed IP addresses were insufficient.
The Internet architecture possesses strong vitality. We once asked the Internet inventor, Dr. Vint Cerf, why the Internet has such strong vitality. He stated that the longevity of the Internet is closely related to the needs at its inception. First, the Internet was not designed for any specific applications but to independently transmit each data packet. Second, it can operate over any communication technology. Third, the network must be decentralized and simple, allowing innovation at the network’s edge without changing the network for new applications and services. The network itself must be simple, efficient, and reliable. Fourth, it must be sufficiently scalable. However, the original requirement proposed in 1983 was for ten million addresses, which now seems entirely inadequate. Fifth, it must be open to new protocols, technologies, and applications. Looking back at the history of Internet development, four of these five points have been realized and have become significant reasons for the enduring success of the Internet, while the fourth point regarding IPv4 address design being insufficient is the reason for the emergence of IPv6.
IETF is the core technology and standards organization for the Internet, and its published international Internet standards RFC reflect the contributions of various countries to core Internet technologies. Countries such as the US and Europe place significant emphasis on researching Internet architecture, with competition intensifying. Currently, among the 9,507 RFCs published by IETF, only 167 have been led by Chinese scientists. Before 2004, this number was merely 1. From 1 to 167, it can be said that China has made significant progress in breakthroughs in core Internet technologies over the past 20 years. However, in terms of proportion, the number of RFCs led by China remains very limited. This also means that in the field of core Internet technologies, China’s technological investment, contributions, and discourse power are still far from sufficient, and we must recognize this reality and continue to strive.
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30 Years of the Chinese Internet
Review of Core Technology Innovations: 1994-2024
Since the Internet entered China in 1994, the country has placed great emphasis on tackling core technologies. In the national 9th Five-Year Science and Technology Program, efforts were laid out for the research and development of core router technologies. Starting in 2004, China began a 20-year journey of innovation and development for the next-generation Internet based on IPv6. During the research and construction of IPv6, we gained a true understanding of IETF, how Internet technologies are generated and developed, and how to contribute to the global core Internet technology field, achieving self-reliance and strength in Internet technology.
Currently, we have built three generations of the Internet: the China Education and Research Network (CERNET), CERNET2, and FITI backbone networks, deepening our understanding of the Internet, with many insights and experiences.
Looking back at the 30 years of Internet development in China, significant achievements have been made. However, in terms of core Internet technologies, the level of emphasis is still far from sufficient. In the future, China’s Internet development must anchor its main line, adhere to correct innovation, and increase investment in core Internet technologies.
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Insights from the Russia-Ukraine Conflict
on Innovations in Core Internet Technologies
The Russia-Ukraine conflict especially highlights the importance of innovation in core Internet technologies. The security threats in cyber warfare are closely related to core Internet technologies. In the Russia-Ukraine conflict, the security of the Internet routing system has become a focal point, attracting significant attention from the international community. In April 2022, the Routing Security Initiative supported by the Internet Society emphasized three major technical challenges in routing security systems: source address spoofing, route hijacking, and route leaks. Among these, source address spoofing is the most severe security risk for the Internet. We have been focusing on resolving this major issue for 20 years, proposing the Next Generation Internet Source Address Validation Architecture (SAVA), and establishing the SAVI working group in IETF to address the validation issues at the Internet’s “access” end. In June 2022, with a broad consensus on the importance of routing system security issues recognized by the international community, Tsinghua University led the establishment of the SAVNET working group in IETF, dedicated to solving “intra-domain” and “inter-domain” validation issues, continuing to promote technological innovation and standard formulation for the true source address validation architecture of the Internet. Currently, our team has contributed two-thirds of the related technologies in the global RFCs. Recently, the SAVA project also received the First Class National Science and Technology Progress Award.
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Reflections on 20 Years of Innovation and Development of the Next Generation Internet IPv6
The next generation Internet based on IPv6 has been innovating and developing for 20 years, bringing us some reflections. In summary, the next generation Internet based on IPv6 is the infrastructure engine for human survival and development in new spaces. The architecture of the next generation Internet based on IPv6 is the core technology of IPv6 innovation development. The important content of IPv6 innovation development is self-reliance in core technologies for the next generation Internet. Persisting in tackling global challenges and meeting national needs is the fundamental guarantee for IPv6 innovation development. Winning the critical battle for IPv6 core technologies is the key to overcoming difficulties in IPv6 innovation development. Adhering to openness and inclusivity, while maintaining correct innovation, is the sure path to success in IPv6 innovation development. Maintaining international cooperation and participation is the necessary path for IPv6 innovation development, and integrating production, education, research, and application is the continuous driving force for IPv6 innovation development.
“To achieve Chinese-style modernization, we must overcome the hurdle of the Internet.” On March 6, General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized this at the 14th National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference. At the recent National Science and Technology Conference, General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized the strategic goal of building a strong science and technology nation by 2035, strengthening top-level design and overall planning, once again sounding the clarion call for advancing in science. Now, the significant tasks of innovation for the next generation Internet based on IPv6 are before us, and we hope more people will engage in IPv6 innovation development, focusing not only on large-scale deployment and application but also on core technologies!
This article is based on the report by Academician Wu Jianping, Deputy Director of the Expert Committee for Promoting IPv6 Large-scale Deployment and Application and Professor at Tsinghua University, at the Third China IPv6 Innovation Development Conference.