VSU is first university in Eastern Visayas to become iPv6 ready

The Visayas State University flagship campus in Baybay City has just completed its latest upgrade in web and online services by being the first university in the region to be certified as iPv6-ready.

IPv6 is the next-generation Internet Protocol (IP) address standard intended to supplement and eventually replace IPv4, which is the protocol many Internet services still use today. 

IP is basically a set of rules for routing and addressing packets of data so that they can travel across networks and arrive at the correct destination. Without it, this would lead to chaos as devices would be sending data randomly, with no way to ensure that it would reach its desired destination.

Every computer, mobile phone, home automation component, and any other device connected to the Internet needs a numerical IP address to communicate between other devices. The original IP address scheme, called IPv4, is currently running out of addresses due to its widespread usage from the proliferation of so many connected devices.

Now that VSU is iPv6 ready, it would provide us with an additional layer of security to support the predicted growth of connected devices in the implementation of the Internet of Things (IoT). 

The term IoT refers to the collective network of connected devices and the technology that facilitates communication between devices and the cloud, as well as between the devices themselves.

Over the past few years, IoT has become one of the most important technologies of the 21st century because it allows us to connect everyday objects like kitchen appliances, cars, thermostats, and baby monitors to the internet via embedded devices that make way for seamless communication between people, processes, and things.

With our growing number of students and local internet users within VSU, readying our basic information and communication technology (ICT) infrastructure with this new internet protocol will allow us to reduce the resources required to continue to support legacy IPv4 devices, which can also simplify network management and troubleshooting for our local IT management team. 

Mr. Norman O. Villas together with Engr. Sean O. Villagonzalo of the Information and Communication Technology Management Center (ICTMC) have been working on VSU’s iPv6 readiness since last year by coordinating with the Department of Science and Technology - Advanced Science and Technology Institute (DOST-ASTI) through a project called the Philippine Research, Education and Government Information Network (PREGINET).

PREGINET is the only Regional Education Network (REN) in the Philippines, which interconnects and catalyzes research among academic, government, and research institutions.It has links to several overseas RENs including the Asia-Pacific Advanced Network (APAN), Asian Internet Interconnection Initiatives (AI3), and Trans-Eurasia Information Network 3 (TEIN-CC).

For VSU in particular, readying our systems to iPv6 means not only addressing the exhaustion and depletion of iPv4 addresses but also future-proofing our internet infrastructure for long-term viability which will also lead to enhanced network efficiency and performance.

Doing so will also mean improving VSU’s cyber security while also supporting cutting-edge research in networking technologies that would provide students and researchers with a modern platform for experimentation and innovation. 

Lastly, the university’s readiness for iPv6 will enable the integration of IoT devices in educational settings such as smart classrooms, connected laboratory equipment, and campus-wide environmental monitoring.

“We cannot wait for the technology to overtake us before we adapt to it. That’s why in ICTMC, we’re trying to look ahead and prepare the university for basic IT infrastructure that will be needed to push for our future digital transformation plans,” Mr. Villas explained.

The first data center housed in a state university here in the region is also nearing completion. This is strategically located at the back of the current building of the Department of Computer Science and Technology (DCST).

The current VSU administration hopes to continue pushing for improvements in internet infrastructure that will soon lead to greater digital transformation in support of the day-to-day operations of the university.

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