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Core Protocols of IPv6

A version of this page is also available for

Windows Embedded CE 6.0 R3

4/8/2010

IPv6 is a connectionless, unreliable datagram protocol used primarily for addressing and routing packets between hosts. For information about IPv6 packets, see IPv6 Packets.

The following table shows the core protocols of IPv6.

Protocol Description

Internet Control Message Protocol for IPv6 (ICMPv6)

Internet Control Message Protocol for IPv6 (ICMPv6) enables hosts and routers that use IPv6 communication to report errors and send simple echo messages.

Multicast Listener Discovery (MLD)

Multicast Listener Discovery (MLD) enables you to manage subnet multicast membership for IPv6. MLD is a series of three ICMPv6 messages that replace the Internet Group Management Protocol (IGMP) that is used for IPv4.

Neighbor Discovery (ND)

Neighbor Discovery is a series of five ICMPv6 messages that manage node-to-node communication on a link. Neighbor Discovery replaces Address Resolution Protocol (ARP), ICMPv4 Router Discovery, and the ICMPv4 Redirect message and provides additional functions.

See Also

Concepts

Internet Protocol (IP) for IPv6
Internet Group Management Protocol (IGMP)