V6Gene: a scalable IPv6 prefix generator for route lookup algorithm benchmark

Most conventional IPv4-based route lookup algorithms are no more suitable for IPv6 packet forwarding due to the significantly increased 128-bit-long address. However, as a result of lacking of standard IPv6 route databases, it is hard to make benchmarks for the new generation IPv6-based algorithms developing/evaluation. In this paper, based on the studies of initial IPv6 prefix distributions and the associated RFC documents, we originally develop a scalable IPv6 prefix generator, called V6Gene, for IPv6-based route lookup algorithms benchmarking. According to the RFCs and other associated standards, V6Gene generates IPv6 route prefixes from the initially assigned LIR (local Internet registries) prefixes collected from the real world, simulating the process of future IPv6 address block allocation from the LIRs to their subscribers. V6Gene is totally flexible for generation of all kinds of route databases with different characteristics. It is simple for implementation and can be easily integrated within other IPv6 benchmark tools/systems.