[ppml] IPv6 addresses really are scarce after all

[Jonathan Barker]

michael.dillon at bt.com wrote:
>> The definition of a small network is pretty much "single 
>> subnet". Yes, I understand very well that the average home of 
>> the future will have a mixed wiring. Of course, my own home 
>> does have Ethernet and Wi-Fi. In the not so distant future, 
>> it will have several Wi-Fi networks operating on different 
>> frequencies, some form of power-line networking, and some 
>> rooms may have their own high speed wireless wiring using UWB 
>> or some similar technology. But I am pretty much convinced 
>> that all of these will be organized as a single subnet.
>>     
>
> You are remarkably trusting. You do all your homebanking on the same
> subnet as your teenage children who are studying Hacking 101 in the
> privacy of their bedroom? And when guests come over for dinner, you have
> no objection to them taking their laptop to the bathroom in order to
> surf for child porn over your wireless network.
>   
Umm.... Most people have trouble figuring out how to connect their HD TV 
systems. A media center is advanced... Subnetting a house to prevent 
sniffing? That will be reserved for the households headed by Mensa 
members, and or/ IT professionals who use encryption on their online 
banking sessions anyway. Besides, if someone in the house want the 
online banking info - they'll just go get the bankcard from the parent's 
wallet - then they'll have what they need to just reset the password 
themselves. Or better yet, just lift a few 20s out of there the old 
fashioned way. Laptop to the bathroom for porn... that made me lol. If 
they want that - they'll probably use their mobile broadband connection, 
rather than try to log on to the local wireless network. Of course, if 
my houseguest is taking a laptop to the bathroom - I'm going to be 
asking "What's up?" anyway.
> The fact is that a lot of people will WANT subnets in the home. They
> will want a router/firewall that will isolate each of the children's
> bedrooms so that they cannot mess with your bank account or with their
> brother's/sister's romantic chat sessions. Many people will want all
> wireless access to go through a router. Many will have an in-law suite,
> and want to seamlessly integrate their relative's existing network via a
> simple router connection. And the family jewels, that Raid 5 server
> cluster that holds all the family photos and videos, will be behind
> another router/firewall. When the kids host a LAN party, the gamers will
> connect to the family network via a router/firewall with limited
> Internet access for only the necessary protocols. Subnets multiply for
> architectural and security reasons.
>   
No. People won't do that. Getting people to put WEP / WPA on their 
access points is hard enough. Firewall and password is all we can hope 
for there.
> Multiple subnets per home is *NOT* a waste of anything. It is an
> invitation to dreamers and inventors to make better network things for
> the home market. It is an enabler of business activity, an enabler of
> competition.
>   
It's not a waste. If they're /124 subnets. :-)

Jonathan