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Address Scope

IPv6 addresses have scope, which identifies the application suitable for the address. Unicast and multicast addresses support scoping.

Unicast addresses support two types of scope: global scope and local scope. There are two types of local scope: link-local addresses and site-local addresses. Link-local unicast addresses are used within a single network link. The first ten bits of the prefix identify the address as a link-local address. Link-local addresses cannot be used outside a network link. Site-local unicast addresses are used within a site or intranet. A site consists of multiple network links, and site-local addresses identify nodes inside the intranet. Site-local addresses cannot be used outside the site.

Multicast addresses support 16 different types of scope, including node, link, site, organization, and global scope. A 4-bit field in the prefix identifies the scope.

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