A nice overview of the transition mechanism between Internet protocol version 4 (IPv4) and Internet protocol version 6 (IPv6) is provided in this well-written book. More detail on the internal mapping of the architectures, with respect to specific characteristics and functionalities of the design protocol, would have added strength to the text.

The chapters on security and Internet control message protocol (ICMP) are well done; they will be useful to every network specialist. Issues like duplicate address detection (DAD), encryption, and integration with external services are presented in the right perspective and format.

Hagen’s coverage of the material is planned very well, and he provides a good introduction to the topic, suitable for all types of computer science professionals. The sequence of chapters, and the relevance of the titles under each chapter, is perfectly designed, to the author’s credit.

A substantial portion of the book is devoted to presenting some general concepts of IP, networking, and the Internet. Though this introduction is welcome, it is included at the cost of shrinking the coverage of the book’s main theme, IPv6.

Requests for comments (RFCs) and IPv6 resources are listed at the end of the book; these are useful additions to the text. The general coverage, organization, printing, and presentation deserve much appreciation.