[colug-432] no new tunnels from SixXS

[Rick Troth]

I just learned that SixXS is no longer doling out tunnels. Sad, but
expected.
Since _most ISPs now offer native IPv6_, most wwould-be SixXS customers
don't need SixXS anymore.

Here's the story.
I was on their site looking for something else and happened to click the
"Request tunnel" link. Got this:


      SixXS is in Call-Your-ISP-for-IPv6 mode

    Currently SixXS is /not/ accepting signups, nor tunnel or subnet
    requests.

    We are doing this action to ensure that instead of going the easy
    way of using our service for IPv6 connectivity, you instead *Call
    your ISP for IPv6*.

    This in the hope that they finally realize that it is 2016 already,
    that IPv6 is 20 years old, IPv4 adresses have run out, and that they
    really should have deployed IPv6 natively to their users during the
    last decade instead of waiting till the last modem ever.

    Thus: *Call your ISP for IPv6*!



Got the same message from their "Request subnet" link. The related
article on the SixXS site is ...

    https://www.sixxs.net/news/2015/#callyourispforipv6-1201


The up-side is that many (most? all?) _ISPs now provide native IPv6_.
SixXS long term goal has always been to see the project shut down, no
longer needed.
Their mode change is intended to close a supposed loophole. (SixXS team
believes some network providers are blowing off IPv6 support because up
to now consumers could "call SixXS for IPv6!" ... politics!)

The down-side is that you might have to take extra steps for _static
IPv6 addressing_.
That's more of a problem with consumer service (history of dynamic
addressing) than with commercial service.
Consumer internet tends to be dynamic. (But is that necessary w/ IPv6?)
Tunnels tend to be static.

A couple years ago, I was trying to re-build AICCU on Linux/390. I
reached out to Jeroen Massar (one of the SixXS principals and AICCU
author). He commented that it seemed silly since mainframes are more
likely to have commercial internet service including static IPv6. I
didn't tell him that it's standard with Linux/390 distros. Never had
time to complete that port and used an Hurricane Electric (HE) tunnel on
the system in question. HE tunnels require manual intervention, but if
your IPv4 address is stable the tunnel is too.

    SixXS
    https://www.sixxs.net/


    Hurricane Electric
    https://www.tunnelbroker.net/


I haven't checked with HE to see if they're still offering new tunnels.

-- R; <><



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