Getting Started with IPv6 and Dual Stack on AWS

What’s your specific goal? If you’re just looking to serve services externally via IPv6, you might simplify things by using dual-stack in your public subnets while keeping everything else on IPv4. That way, only load balancers and the like will need IPv6 addresses, which won’t really affect your internal setup much.

Honestly, expect only about 40% of what you're hoping to achieve to be feasible. It's surprising how many AWS services and other tools don’t fully support IPv6. But it's really important that we transition away from IPv4, so hang in there!

AWS’s dual-stack support is pretty robust! I’ve used it extensively and find it much better than many other cloud providers. However, be aware that API availability can be a bit hit or miss. I recommend checking out a detailed primer I found on using IPv6 services in AWS; it walks through a lot of what you might encounter. Make sure to check it out for the latest updates on any API changes too! [awsipv6.neveragain.de](https://awsipv6.neveragain.de/)

IPv6 can be tricky but is definitely necessary! AWS has some solid documentation on dual stacks, so that's a great place to start. You should get comfortable with VPC and routing tables right away. And don't forget about security groups—those are crucial. Good luck!

I’ve set up dual stacks a couple of times in AWS, and honestly, it’s not as daunting as it seems. Just make sure your VPC and subnets are configured for IPv6 from the beginning; otherwise, you’ll have to redo things later. Pay special attention to security groups and rules for IPv6, as those often get overlooked. A tip: start in a non-production environment with a test VPC to experiment with routing, DNS, and outbound traffic—it’ll make everything click into place!