A visual simulation interactive platform and method supporting IPv4 / IPv6 dual stack network

Abstract

The application discloses a visual simulation interaction platform and method supporting IPv4 / IPv6 dual stack network, relates to the field of IPv4 / IPv6 dual stack network configuration, and comprises the following steps: obtaining a user's topology construction operation on a virtual network device, and establishing an initial network topology; generating an IPv4 address and an IPv6 address for an interface; automatically injecting corresponding IPv4 direct connection routes and IPv6 direct connection routes in a routing table of the virtual network device; calling IPv4 protocol stacks and IPv6 protocol stacks in parallel and independently to process data packets; capturing information of IPv4 data streams and IPv6 data streams in real time, and simultaneously presenting transmission states of the two kinds of data streams in a visual interface by using different visual elements. The visual interaction realizes rapid construction of an IPv4 / IPv6 dual stack network topology, effectively reduces the operation complexity of dual stack network simulation, and improves simulation authenticity and observability.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of IPv4 / IPv6 dual-stack network configuration, specifically to a visual simulation and interactive platform and method that supports IPv4 / IPv6 dual-stack networks. Background Technology

[0002] Dual-stack IPv4 / IPv6 networks are the core implementation method for the current network upgrade transition from IPv4 to IPv6. They are widely used in various network scenarios such as carrier networks, enterprise intranets, and campus networks. Simulation verification of dual-stack networks is a crucial step in network design, deployment, teaching, and troubleshooting. It can simulate the topology construction, protocol operation, and data flow transmission status of dual-stack networks in a virtual environment, providing reliable preliminary verification data for actual network deployment. Visual simulation interaction technology, with its intuitive interface and real-time status presentation, has become an important support for improving the efficiency of dual-stack network simulation and lowering the operational threshold. Relying on technologies such as virtual network device modeling, protocol stack simulation, and graphical interaction, it enables full-process virtual verification of dual-stack networks from topology construction to operational status analysis, representing an important development direction in the current network simulation field.

[0003] The current network is at a critical stage of transitioning from IPv4 to IPv6. Dual-stack technology, as a core transition solution, requires network devices to run two protocol stacks simultaneously. However, existing simulation technologies have shortcomings: First, the configuration is complex and has a low degree of automation. Users need to manually complete the IPv4 and IPv6 address allocation and routing configuration through command lines, which is cumbersome and error-prone, resulting in high technical barriers and low deployment efficiency. Second, the visualization capabilities are weak. Simulation tools mostly display the status in text or tables, which cannot intuitively distinguish between IPv4 and IPv6 data streams transmitted in parallel on the same link, and it is difficult to truly reflect the working process of parallel interaction of the two protocol data in a dual-stack network. Summary of the Invention

[0004] To address the aforementioned technical issues, a visual simulation and interactive platform and method supporting IPv4 / IPv6 dual-stack networks are provided. This technical solution solves the problems of complex configuration, low automation, and weak visualization capabilities mentioned in the background technology.

[0005] To achieve the above objectives, the technical solution adopted by this invention is as follows: A visual simulation and interactive method supporting IPv4 / IPv6 dual-stack networks includes: Based on network simulation requirements, user operations on virtual network device topology construction are obtained through a visual interactive interface, and an initial network topology containing at least two virtual network devices is established. Based on the interactive dual-stack enable operation performed by the user on the virtual network device interface, both IPv4 and IPv6 addresses are generated for the interface simultaneously. Based on the IPv4 and IPv6 addresses generated by the interface, the corresponding IPv4 direct-connect routes and IPv6 direct-connect routes are automatically injected into the routing table of the virtual network device. Based on the destination address type of the data packets sent by the virtual network device, the IPv4 protocol stack and IPv6 protocol stack are invoked in parallel and independently to process the data packets, simulating the real behavior of a physical dual-stack device. During the simulation, information on IPv4 and IPv6 data streams is captured in real time, and the transmission status of the two data streams is presented simultaneously using different visual elements in the visualization interface.

[0006] Preferably, establishing an initial network topology comprising at least two virtual network devices specifically includes: Based on the user's interactive operations in the network topology design area, select virtual network device icons from the device model library and place them in the designated positions on the workspace canvas; The virtual network device includes at least: a router, a switch, a firewall, a server, and a terminal host; Based on the user's double-click operation on the device icon, an interface property configuration panel pops up, receiving the user's settings for basic device parameters and protocol configuration options; The basic parameters include at least: device name, activation status, number of interfaces, and initial configuration file; Based on the user's connection operation between different device icons, establish a virtual link connection between the specified interfaces of the selected device and assign link type parameters to the virtual link; The link type parameters include at least: link bandwidth, latency, packet loss rate, and link medium type; Based on the established device nodes and virtual links, generate the graph data structure of the initial network topology; The graph data structure uses devices as nodes and links as edges, recording the attribute information of each node and the connection relationship of each edge; The initial network topology graph data structure is stored and displayed graphically in a visual interactive interface for user confirmation and subsequent operations.

[0007] Preferably, the process of simultaneously generating IPv4 and IPv6 addresses for the interface specifically includes: Based on the graph data structure of the initial network topology, when the user selects the "Enable Dual Stack" option in the interface property configuration panel, the following operations are performed: Based on the preset IPv4 network segment and IPv6 prefix information of the virtual network to which the interface belongs, an unused IPv4 address is automatically allocated from the global IPv4 address pool and the address is marked as occupied. At the same time, the MAC address of the virtual network device to which the interface belongs is read, and the IPv6 link local address of the interface is automatically generated using the EUI-64 algorithm; Based on the preset IPv6 prefix and the interface identification information generated by the MAC address, the IPv6 global unicast address of the interface is automatically generated. Configure the generated IPv4 and IPv6 addresses to the IPv4 and IPv6 protocol stacks of the interface respectively, complete the dual-stack protocol binding of the interface, and establish a virtual network interface with dual-stack communication capabilities.

[0008] Preferably, the automatic injection of corresponding IPv4 directly connected routes and IPv6 directly connected routes into the routing table of the virtual network device specifically includes: Based on the IPv4 address and subnet mask assigned to the interface, obtain the IPv4 directly connected network segment information and add a directly connected route to the IPv4 routing table of the virtual network device. Based on the IPv6 address and prefix length assigned to the interface, obtain the IPv6 directly connected network segment information and add a directly connected route to the IPv6 routing table of the virtual network device. The directly connected route entry includes: target network segment, next-hop address and outgoing interface information, wherein the next-hop address is set as a directly connected identifier; Check the interface configuration status of the peer device connected to the current interface. If the peer interface has completed dual-stack configuration and the IP addresses are in the same network segment, then: For IPv4 networks, the Address Resolution Protocol is automatically triggered to complete MAC address resolution; For IPv6 networks, the Neighbor Discovery Protocol is automatically triggered, routing requests are sent and routing advertisements are received, and neighbor relationships are established. If the user has enabled the dynamic routing protocol option in the interface property configuration panel, the current interface will be automatically added to the corresponding dynamic routing protocol process, and the corresponding protocol configuration statement will be generated.

[0009] Preferably, the step of processing data packets by invoking the IPv4 and IPv6 protocol stacks in parallel and independently, based on the destination address type of the data packets sent by the virtual network device, specifically includes: Based on the completed dual-stack interface configuration and route injection virtual network device, when the device application layer generates data to be sent, the data packet is distributed to the corresponding protocol stack for processing according to the address family type of the target IP address; If the target IP address is of type IPv4, the established IPv4 routing table is queried to determine the next-hop address, the Address Resolution Protocol is invoked to query, IPv4 header encapsulation is performed, the checksum is obtained, and the encapsulated IPv4 data packet is sent to the link layer. If the target IP address is of type IPv6, query the established IPv6 routing table to determine the next-hop address, call the neighbor discovery protocol, perform IPv6 header encapsulation, and send the encapsulated IPv6 packet to the link layer; When a virtual network device receives a data packet from the link layer, it identifies the protocol type of the data packet based on the Ethernet type field. If the type field value is 0x0800, the packet is dispatched to the IPv4 protocol stack for processing; if the type field value is 0x86DD, the packet is dispatched to the IPv6 protocol stack for processing. The IPv4 and IPv6 protocol stacks maintain independent protocol state tables, routing tables, and neighbor tables within the simulation engine, and the data streams of the two protocols are processed in parallel without interference.

[0010] Preferably, the step of simultaneously presenting the transmission states of two data streams using different visual elements in the visualization interface specifically includes: Based on the virtual network devices that have completed packet transmission and reception processing, monitor the packet transmission and reception events of each virtual network device in real time and capture key information of each packet; The key information for each data packet includes: source IP address, destination IP address, protocol type, data packet length, and timestamp; Based on the captured data packet information and combined with the initial network topology map data structure, the source device, destination device, and link path traversed by the data packet in the topology map are determined. Based on real-time captured packet information, dynamic data flow animations are generated on the corresponding links in the visualized network topology data structure: For IPv4 data streams, dynamic lines of the first color are used to represent them. The direction of the lines is consistent with the direction of data packet transmission. The thickness of the lines is positively correlated with the size of the data packets, and the speed of the lines is positively correlated with the transmission rate. For IPv6 data streams, a dynamic line of the second color is used to represent them, and the mapping rules for the direction, thickness, and speed of the line flow are consistent with those for IPv4 data streams. When IPv4 and IPv6 data streams exist simultaneously on the same link, dynamic lines of two colors are displayed in parallel with a fixed spacing between them to avoid visual overlap, intuitively showing the state of parallel transmission of two protocols in a dual-stack network. Based on the user's click on the data stream line, a data packet details window pops up, displaying the complete header information of the data packet, including all fields of the IPv4 header and / or all fields of the IPv6 header and transport layer header information.

[0011] Furthermore, this solution proposes a visual simulation and interactive platform supporting IPv4 / IPv6 dual-stack networks, used to implement the aforementioned visual simulation and interactive method for supporting IPv4 / IPv6 dual-stack networks, including: The network topology module is used to obtain the user's topology construction operation on the virtual network device through a visual interactive interface according to the network simulation requirements, and to establish an initial network topology containing at least two virtual network devices. The dual-stack auto-configuration module is used to generate both IPv4 and IPv6 addresses for the interface based on the interactive dual-stack activation operation performed by the user on the virtual network device interface; automatically inject the corresponding IPv4 direct-connect routes and IPv6 direct-connect routes into the routing table of the virtual network device; and process the data packets by calling the IPv4 protocol stack and IPv6 protocol stack in parallel and independently according to the destination address type of the data packets sent by the virtual network device, simulating the real behavior of a physical dual-stack device. The visualization module is used to capture information about IPv4 and IPv6 data streams in real time during the simulation process, and to present the transmission status of the two data streams simultaneously using different visual elements in the visualization interface. The model library module, which is connected to the visualization module and the dual-stack simulation module, is used to store the basic parameters and icons of various virtual network devices for user interaction and access. The storage module is connected to the visualization module, the address generation module, the direct connection routing module, and the dual-stack simulation module, respectively, and is used to store device icons, address generation rule base, user project files, and simulation logs.

[0012] Preferably, the dual-stack automatic configuration module includes: The address generation unit is used to generate both IPv4 and IPv6 addresses for the interface based on the interactive dual-stack enable operation performed by the user on the virtual network device interface. A direct-connect routing unit, wherein the direct-connect routing unit is used to automatically inject corresponding IPv4 direct-connect routes and IPv6 direct-connect routes into the routing table of the virtual network device; The dual-stack simulation unit is used to process data packets by calling the IPv4 protocol stack and the IPv6 protocol stack in parallel and independently according to the destination address type of the data packets sent by the virtual network device, thereby simulating the real behavior of a physical dual-stack device.

[0013] Compared with the prior art, the beneficial effects of the present invention are as follows: This invention provides a visual simulation and interactive platform and method supporting IPv4 / IPv6 dual-stack networks, and proposes an interactive operation-based automatic configuration method for dual-stack protocols. When the user performs an interactive dual-stack activation operation on the virtual network device interface, IPv4 address allocation, IPv6 address generation, and dual-stack direct connection route injection are completed simultaneously. This simplifies the complex process that traditionally required dozens of command lines for manual configuration into a single operation, significantly reducing the technical threshold and configuration error rate of dual-stack networks. Furthermore, this invention constructs independent IPv4 and IPv6 protocol processing methods, allowing them to run in parallel without interference. This invention accurately simulates the working mechanism of two protocol stacks sharing the same physical interface in a physical dual-stack device, without relying on simplified models or protocol conversions. Even in complex dual-stack protocol interaction scenarios, it can realistically reproduce the entire process of data packet transmission and reception through independent protocol processing. Furthermore, this invention uses dual-color dynamic line technology to present the transmission status of the two data streams in real time. Blue lines represent IPv4 data streams, and orange lines represent IPv6 data streams, allowing users to intuitively observe the parallel transmission process of the two protocols in a dual-stack network. This avoids the shortcomings of traditional simulation tools that present the status in text form and cannot distinguish between the two protocol data streams. Attached Figure Description

[0014] Figure 1 This is a flowchart of a visualization simulation interaction method for supporting IPv4 / IPv6 dual-stack networks according to the present invention. Figure 2 This invention provides a flowchart for establishing an initial network topology that includes at least two virtual network devices. Figure 3 This invention provides a flowchart for simultaneously generating IPv4 and IPv6 addresses for an interface. Figure 4 The flowchart of the present invention is shown below, which shows the process of automatically injecting the corresponding IPv4 direct-connect routes and IPv6 direct-connect routes into the routing table of a virtual network device. Figure 5 This is a flowchart illustrating the parallel and independent invocation of the IPv4 and IPv6 protocol stacks for packet processing in this invention. Figure 6 This invention presents a flowchart of the transmission status of two data streams simultaneously using different visual elements in a visual interface. Detailed Implementation

[0015] The following description is intended to disclose the invention and enable those skilled in the art to implement it. The preferred embodiments described below are merely examples, and other obvious variations will occur to those skilled in the art.

[0016] Reference Figure 1 As shown, a visualization simulation interaction method supporting IPv4 / IPv6 dual-stack networks includes: Based on network simulation requirements, user operations on virtual network device topology construction are obtained through a visual interactive interface, and an initial network topology containing at least two virtual network devices is established. Based on the interactive dual-stack enable operation performed by the user on the virtual network device interface, both IPv4 and IPv6 addresses are generated for the interface simultaneously. Based on the IPv4 and IPv6 addresses generated by the interface, the corresponding IPv4 direct-connect routes and IPv6 direct-connect routes are automatically injected into the routing table of the virtual network device. Based on the destination address type of the data packets sent by the virtual network device, the IPv4 protocol stack and IPv6 protocol stack are invoked in parallel and independently to process the data packets, simulating the real behavior of a physical dual-stack device. During the simulation, information on IPv4 and IPv6 data streams is captured in real time, and the transmission status of the two data streams is presented simultaneously using different visual elements in the visualization interface.

[0017] It can be explained that this solution provides a visual simulation and interactive platform and method that supports IPv4 / IPv6 dual-stack networks, thereby solving the problems of complex configuration, low visualization, and inability to intuitively present the parallel transmission status of data streams of the two protocols in existing technologies. This solution addresses the cumbersome, protocol-coupled, and non-visual nature of traditional dual-stack simulation configuration by designing a visualization-driven automated simulation process. First, in the simulation setup phase, to lower the user's operational threshold and quickly establish a platform, this solution allows users to construct the virtual network topology through interactive operations via a visual interface, automatically generating and storing graph data structures to provide a unified data carrier for subsequent dual-stack configuration. Second, in the dual-stack configuration and routing establishment phase, considering the error-prone and inefficient nature of traditional manual step-by-step configuration, this solution automates the generation and binding of IPv4 / IPv6 addresses based on the user's interactive dual-stack activation operation on the interface, simultaneously injecting direct-connect routes into both protocol stacks, establishing the basic logic for dual-stack communication, and replacing traditional manual parameter input. Finally, in the simulation operation and visualization phase, to achieve intuitive monitoring of the dual-stack network status, this solution simulates the real behavior of physical devices through parallel and independent dual protocol stack processing, while simultaneously capturing data flow information in real time. The transmission status of IPv4 and IPv6 data flows is dynamically presented with differentiated visual elements, allowing users to intuitively perceive the network operation without relying on command lines or specialized configuration knowledge.

[0018] Reference Figure 2As shown, establishing an initial network topology containing at least two virtual network devices includes: Based on the user's interactive operations in the network topology design area, select virtual network device icons from the device model library and place them in the designated positions on the workspace canvas; The virtual network device includes at least: a router, a switch, a firewall, a server, and a terminal host; Based on the user's double-click operation on the device icon, an interface property configuration panel pops up, receiving the user's settings for basic device parameters and protocol configuration options; The basic parameters include at least: device name, activation status, number of interfaces, and initial configuration file; Based on the user's connection operation between different device icons, establish a virtual link connection between the specified interfaces of the selected device and assign link type parameters to the virtual link; The link type parameters include at least: link bandwidth, latency, packet loss rate, and link medium type; Based on the established device nodes and virtual links, generate the graph data structure of the initial network topology; The graph data structure uses devices as nodes and links as edges, recording the attribute information of each node and the connection relationship of each edge; The initial network topology graph data structure is stored and displayed graphically in a visual interactive interface for user confirmation and subsequent operations.

[0019] This can be explained by the fact that, in order to provide users with an intuitive and convenient network topology building environment, enabling them to quickly build virtual network models that meet simulation requirements, this solution needs to construct an initial network topology data structure containing at least two virtual network devices. Specifically: Topology construction is a fundamental operation in network simulation. Its core lies in mapping the physical network's devices and connections to a virtual space. This solution provides a graphical representation of this mapping process through interactive operation. Users can build the network topology simply by using the mouse, without writing any code or configuration files. The device model library pre-loads various device templates from mainstream network equipment manufacturers. Each template contains the device's real parameters, including the number of interfaces, processing power, and supported protocols. When users interact with devices from the library, the corresponding default configurations are automatically loaded, ensuring that the initial state of the virtual device is consistent with the real device. Secondly, virtual links... Establishing a virtual link requires considering both its physical and logical characteristics. Users can establish a connection by clicking on the specified interfaces of two devices in sequence. The system automatically checks whether the interface types match and whether the interface is already in use. If the check passes, a virtual link is established. For link parameter settings, users can double-click the link icon after establishing the connection to configure it in detail, such as setting the link bandwidth to 1000Mbps, latency to 2ms, and packet loss rate to 0.01%, to simulate the transmission characteristics of a real network environment. The interface type matching detection includes checking whether the media types of the two interfaces are consistent (e.g., both are Ethernet interfaces), whether the interface rates are compatible, and whether the interfaces are already in use. It should be noted that the protocol configuration options include a dual-stack enable checkbox, which is used to enable the device's support for the corresponding protocol stack. When the dual-stack enable checkbox is checked, it indicates that the device has dual-stack communication capability. The address allocation of the specific interface needs to be completed in the subsequent interface configuration. It should be noted that the generation of the graph data structure is the digitization of network topology construction, providing a data foundation for subsequent simulation operations. The information stored by each device node includes device ID, type, coordinate location, interface list, current configuration, etc.; the information stored by each link edge includes link ID, devices and interfaces at both ends, link parameters, current status, etc. This data structure design facilitates the simulation engine to quickly query the connection relationships between devices and supports efficient packet forwarding calculations.

[0020] Reference Figure 3 As shown, generating both IPv4 and IPv6 addresses for the interface simultaneously includes: Based on the graph data structure of the initial network topology, when the user selects the "Enable Dual Stack" option in the interface property configuration panel, the following operations are performed: Based on the preset IPv4 network segment and IPv6 prefix information of the virtual network to which the interface belongs, an unused IPv4 address is automatically allocated from the global IPv4 address pool and the address is marked as occupied. At the same time, the MAC address of the virtual network device to which the interface belongs is read, and the IPv6 link local address of the interface is automatically generated using the EUI-64 algorithm; Based on the preset IPv6 prefix and the interface identification information generated by the MAC address, the IPv6 global unicast address of the interface is automatically generated. Configure the generated IPv4 and IPv6 addresses to the IPv4 and IPv6 protocol stacks of the interface respectively, complete the dual-stack protocol binding of the interface, and establish a virtual network interface with dual-stack communication capabilities.

[0021] This can be explained by the fact that traditional dual-stack network configuration requires users to manually enter IPv4 and IPv6 configurations separately, manually inputting IP addresses, subnet masks, or prefix lengths. This process is cumbersome and prone to errors. This solution simplifies the complex dual-stack configuration process into a single operation through interactive operation and an automatic configuration unit. Users only need to check the "Enable Dual-Stack" option in the interface property configuration panel to automatically complete all address generation, thus achieving automation and intelligence in dual-stack network configuration and effectively reducing the user's operational burden and configuration error rate. Specifically, for IPv4 address generation, this solution adopts a global IPv4 address pool management mechanism: during project initialization, an IPv4 address pool is established based on user-defined global parameters; users can also temporarily specify network segment parameters during each dual-stack configuration operation, dynamically adding the network segment to the address pool management scope; during address allocation, by maintaining an available IP address resource pool, when a device interface needs an IP address, an unused address is automatically selected from the pool and allocated to that interface; when the interface no longer needs the address (e.g., the user unchecks the dual-stack option, deletes the interface, or deletes the device), the address is automatically recycled back to the pool, marked as unused, and made available for reuse by other interfaces; For IPv6 address generation, this scheme distinguishes between two types: link-local addresses and global unicast addresses. Link-local addresses are a mandatory requirement of the IPv6 protocol, used for neighbor discovery and routing protocol interaction on the same link. Their generation uses the standard EUI-64 algorithm: the interface's MAC address is split in half, FFFE is inserted to form a 64-bit interface identifier, and the seventh bit is flipped. This process is fully automated and requires no user intervention. For virtual device interfaces without MAC addresses, a virtual MAC address conforming to the EUI-64 standard is automatically generated, ensuring the uniqueness and standardization of IPv6 address generation. Global unicast addresses require a user-defined IPv6 prefix. In this embodiment, 2001:db8:: / 32 is provided by default as the document prefix, which users can modify to other prefixes according to their actual needs.

[0022] Reference Figure 4 As shown, the automatic injection of corresponding IPv4 directly connected routes and IPv6 directly connected routes into the routing table of the virtual network device includes: Based on the IPv4 address and subnet mask assigned to the interface, obtain the IPv4 directly connected network segment information and add a directly connected route to the IPv4 routing table of the virtual network device. Based on the IPv6 address and prefix length assigned to the interface, obtain the IPv6 directly connected network segment information and add a directly connected route to the IPv6 routing table of the virtual network device. The directly connected route entry includes: target network segment, next-hop address and outgoing interface information, wherein the next-hop address is set as a directly connected identifier; Check the interface configuration status of the peer device connected to the current interface. If the peer interface has completed dual-stack configuration and the IP addresses are in the same network segment, then: For IPv4 networks, the Address Resolution Protocol is automatically triggered to complete MAC address resolution; For IPv6 networks, the Neighbor Discovery Protocol is automatically triggered, routing requests are sent and routing advertisements are received, and neighbor relationships are established. If the user has enabled the dynamic routing protocol option in the interface property configuration panel, the current interface will be automatically added to the corresponding dynamic routing protocol process, and the corresponding protocol configuration statement will be generated.

[0023] This can be explained by the fact that, to ensure the virtual network device has complete routing capabilities and can correctly forward packets from both protocols after the dual-stack interface configuration is completed, this solution automatically injects the corresponding IPv4 and IPv6 directly connected routes into the virtual network device's routing table. This achieves full automation from address configuration to route injection, providing a complete routing foundation for subsequent dual-stack simulation operations. Specifically: Directly connected routes are the most basic routing information for network devices, used to indicate the network segments that the device can directly access. This solution injects directly connected routes immediately after address configuration to ensure that the device can recognize and respond to communication requests from this network segment. For IPv4 networks, the Address Resolution Protocol (ARP) is automatically triggered to resolve IP addresses to MAC addresses and establish the data link layer mapping required for communication. For IPv6 networks, the Neighbor Discovery Protocol (NNP) replaces the ARP in IPv4 and adds route discovery functionality. By automatically detecting the status of peer interfaces, when it is confirmed that the peer interface is configured and in the same network segment, the NNP settings are triggered, routing requests are sent, and route advertisements are received. This enables the dual-stack interface to quickly establish neighbor relationships with peer devices and obtain necessary network configuration information. The dynamic routing protocol option can be pre-selected by the user in the interface property configuration panel. When the user has enabled this option when configuring dual stack, the current interface will be automatically added to the corresponding dynamic routing protocol process after the address configuration and direct route injection are completed. In this embodiment, OSPFv2 protocol is used for IPv4 dynamic routing and OSPFv3 protocol is used for IPv6 dynamic routing. The two protocols run independently and do not interfere with each other, avoiding the tedious operation of manual configuration by the user later. It should be noted that each virtual network device automatically creates an independent IPv4 routing table and IPv6 routing table during initialization. The routing table is initially empty and is gradually filled with routing entries through direct route injection or dynamic routing protocols.

[0024] Reference Figure 5 As shown, the parallel and independent invocation of the IPv4 and IPv6 protocol stacks for packet processing includes: Based on the completed dual-stack interface configuration and route injection virtual network device, when the device application layer generates data to be sent, the data packet is distributed to the corresponding protocol stack for processing according to the address family type of the target IP address; If the target IP address is of type IPv4, the established IPv4 routing table is queried to determine the next-hop address, the Address Resolution Protocol is invoked to query, IPv4 header encapsulation is performed, the checksum is obtained, and the encapsulated IPv4 data packet is sent to the link layer. If the target IP address is of type IPv6, query the established IPv6 routing table to determine the next-hop address, call the neighbor discovery protocol, perform IPv6 header encapsulation, and send the encapsulated IPv6 packet to the link layer; When a virtual network device receives a data packet from the link layer, it identifies the protocol type of the data packet based on the Ethernet type field. If the type field value is 0x0800, the packet is dispatched to the IPv4 protocol stack for processing; if the type field value is 0x86DD, the packet is dispatched to the IPv6 protocol stack for processing. The IPv4 and IPv6 protocol stacks maintain independent protocol state tables, routing tables, and neighbor tables within the simulation engine, and the data streams of the two protocols are processed in parallel without interference.

[0025] It can be explained that, based on the completion of dual-stack interface configuration and route injection, the virtual network device already possesses the prerequisites for the complete protocol stack operation. This solution, based on this, implements the packet sending and receiving processing flow, specifically including: In physical network devices, dual-stack implementation is actually two independent protocol stack modules sharing the same physical interface. This solution ensures that the IPv4 protocol stack and IPv6 protocol stack have their own independent data structures, state machines and algorithm implementations within the simulation engine, with no cross-coupling between them, thus ensuring that the running state of one protocol will not affect the other protocol. In the packet transmission and reception process, in the sending direction, the transmission and reception of packets are automatically completed by the protocol stack according to the address family type bound when the socket is created; in the receiving direction, the transmission and reception decision is based on the Ethernet type field encapsulated by the data link layer (0x0800 for IPv4 and 0x86DD for IPv6), and the packets are handed over to the corresponding protocol stack for processing. For the IPv4 protocol stack, its routing table has been established through directly connected route injection during the address configuration step. During packet transmission, the ARP cache is maintained through the Address Resolution Protocol (ARP) to resolve the next-hop IP address to the MAC address, completing the data link layer encapsulation. For the IPv6 protocol stack, its routing table has also been established. During packet transmission, the neighbor cache is dynamically maintained through the Neighbor Discovery Protocol (RS / RA triggered beforehand and NS / NA subsequent procedures) to complete the resolution of IPv6 addresses to MAC addresses. All protocol modules are implemented in accordance with the IETF RFC documents, ensuring the accuracy of the simulation.

[0026] Reference Figure 6 As shown, the method of simultaneously presenting the transmission states of two data streams using different visual elements in the visualization interface includes: Based on the virtual network devices that have completed packet transmission and reception processing, monitor the packet transmission and reception events of each virtual network device in real time and capture key information of each packet; The key information for each data packet includes: source IP address, destination IP address, protocol type, data packet length, and timestamp; Based on the captured data packet information and combined with the initial network topology map data structure, the source device, destination device, and link path traversed by the data packet in the topology map are determined. Based on real-time captured packet information, dynamic data flow animations are generated on the corresponding links in the visualized network topology data structure: For IPv4 data streams, dynamic lines of the first color are used to represent them. The direction of the lines is consistent with the direction of data packet transmission. The thickness of the lines is positively correlated with the size of the data packets, and the speed of the lines is positively correlated with the transmission rate. For IPv6 data streams, a dynamic line of the second color is used to represent them, and the mapping rules for the direction, thickness, and speed of the line flow are consistent with those for IPv4 data streams. When IPv4 and IPv6 data streams exist simultaneously on the same link, dynamic lines of two colors are displayed in parallel with a fixed spacing between them to avoid visual overlap, intuitively showing the state of parallel transmission of two protocols in a dual-stack network. Based on the user's click on the data stream line, a data packet details window pops up, displaying the complete header information of the data packet, including all fields of the IPv4 header and / or all fields of the IPv6 header and transport layer header information.

[0027] The data flow lines are generated based on packet transmission and reception events from virtual network devices. Whenever a virtual network device sends or receives a packet, the event information is transmitted in real-time to the visual interactive interface. This interface determines the complete path traversed by the packet based on its source and destination addresses, combined with the constructed initial network topology data structure, and generates a dynamic particle or line on the corresponding link, moving from the source to the destination. Color coding is a crucial method for observing data flows and visually demonstrating the parallel transmission of two protocols in a dual-stack network. In this embodiment, IPv4 data flows are represented in blue, and IPv6 data flows in orange. These two colors are clearly different in hue, allowing even users with color vision deficiencies to distinguish them effectively. For links carrying both data flows simultaneously, lines of different colors are drawn on either side or above and below the link to avoid overlapping and information confusion. A mapping mechanism of thickness and speed further enhances the expressive dimension of the information. Larger data packets result in thicker lines, allowing users to intuitively perceive high-volume transmission; higher transmission rates result in thinner lines. The faster the speed, the more intuitively users can perceive the network load status. Through this multi-dimensional information encoding method, users can obtain rich network status information simply by visual observation. When users need to understand the detailed information of a certain data packet, they only need to click on the corresponding dynamic line to retrieve the complete information of the data packet from the data packet record of the virtual network device and present it in the form of a window. The window includes not only IP layer header information, but also transport layer header information such as TCP or UDP, which meets the in-depth analysis needs of professional users. This solution transforms the dual-stack protocol processing and packet forwarding process into an intuitive and interactive visual presentation, enabling users to observe and understand the operating status of the dual-stack network in real time.

[0028] Furthermore, based on the same inventive concept as the aforementioned visualization simulation interaction method supporting IPv4 / IPv6 dual-stack networks, this solution proposes a visualization simulation interaction platform supporting IPv4 / IPv6 dual-stack networks, comprising: The network topology module is used to obtain the user's topology construction operation on the virtual network device through a visual interactive interface according to the network simulation requirements, and to establish an initial network topology containing at least two virtual network devices. The dual-stack auto-configuration module is used to generate both IPv4 and IPv6 addresses for the interface based on the interactive dual-stack activation operation performed by the user on the virtual network device interface; automatically inject the corresponding IPv4 direct-connect routes and IPv6 direct-connect routes into the routing table of the virtual network device; and process the data packets by calling the IPv4 protocol stack and IPv6 protocol stack in parallel and independently according to the destination address type of the data packets sent by the virtual network device, simulating the real behavior of a physical dual-stack device. The visualization module is used to capture information about IPv4 and IPv6 data streams in real time during the simulation process, and to present the transmission status of the two data streams simultaneously using different visual elements in the visualization interface. The model library module, which is connected to the visualization module and the dual-stack simulation module, is used to store the basic parameters and icons of various virtual network devices for user interaction and access. The storage module is connected to the visualization module, the address generation module, the direct connection routing module, and the dual-stack simulation module, respectively, and is used to store device icons, address generation rule base, user project files, and simulation logs. The dual-stack automatic configuration module includes: The address generation unit is used to generate both IPv4 and IPv6 addresses for the interface based on the interactive dual-stack enable operation performed by the user on the virtual network device interface. A direct-connect routing unit, wherein the direct-connect routing unit is used to automatically inject corresponding IPv4 direct-connect routes and IPv6 direct-connect routes into the routing table of the virtual network device; The dual-stack simulation unit is used to process data packets by calling the IPv4 protocol stack and the IPv6 protocol stack in parallel and independently according to the destination address type of the data packets sent by the virtual network device, thereby simulating the real behavior of a physical dual-stack device.

[0029] In summary, the advantages of this invention are: it enables rapid construction of IPv4 / IPv6 dual-stack network topology through visual interaction, effectively reducing the operational complexity of dual-stack network simulation and improving the simulation realism and observability.

[0030] The foregoing has shown and described the basic principles, main features, and advantages of the present invention. Those skilled in the art should understand that the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments. The embodiments and descriptions in the specification are merely principles of the invention. Various changes and modifications can be made to the invention without departing from its spirit and scope, and all such changes and modifications fall within the scope of the claimed invention. The scope of protection claimed by the appended claims and their equivalents is defined.

Claims

1. A visual simulation and interactive method supporting IPv4 / IPv6 dual-stack networks, characterized in that, include: Based on network simulation requirements, user operations on virtual network device topology construction are obtained through a visual interactive interface, and an initial network topology containing at least two virtual network devices is established. Based on the interactive dual-stack enable operation performed by the user on the virtual network device interface, both IPv4 and IPv6 addresses are generated for the interface simultaneously. Based on the IPv4 and IPv6 addresses generated by the interface, the corresponding IPv4 direct-connect routes and IPv6 direct-connect routes are automatically injected into the routing table of the virtual network device. Based on the destination address type of the data packets sent by the virtual network device, the IPv4 protocol stack and IPv6 protocol stack are invoked in parallel and independently to process the data packets, simulating the real behavior of a physical dual-stack device. During the simulation, information on IPv4 and IPv6 data streams is captured in real time, and the transmission status of the two data streams is presented simultaneously using different visual elements in the visualization interface.

2. The visualization simulation interaction method for supporting IPv4 / IPv6 dual-stack networks according to claim 1, characterized in that, The establishment of the initial network topology, which includes at least two virtual network devices, specifically includes: Based on the user's interactive operations in the network topology design area, select virtual network device icons from the device model library and place them in the designated positions on the workspace canvas; The virtual network device includes at least: a router, a switch, a firewall, a server, and a terminal host; Based on the user's double-click operation on the device icon, an interface property configuration panel pops up, receiving the user's settings for basic device parameters and protocol configuration options; The basic parameters include at least: device name, activation status, number of interfaces, and initial configuration file; Based on the user's connection operation between different device icons, establish a virtual link connection between the specified interfaces of the selected device and assign link type parameters to the virtual link; The link type parameters include at least: link bandwidth, latency, packet loss rate, and link medium type; Based on the established device nodes and virtual links, generate the graph data structure of the initial network topology; The graph data structure uses devices as nodes and links as edges, recording the attribute information of each node and the connection relationship of each edge; The initial network topology graph data structure is stored and displayed graphically in a visual interactive interface for user confirmation and subsequent operations.

3. The visualization simulation interaction method for supporting IPv4 / IPv6 dual-stack networks according to claim 2, characterized in that, The process of simultaneously generating IPv4 and IPv6 addresses for the interface specifically includes: Based on the graph data structure of the initial network topology, when the user selects the "Enable Dual Stack" option in the interface property configuration panel, the following operations are performed: Based on the preset IPv4 network segment and IPv6 prefix information of the virtual network to which the interface belongs, an unused IPv4 address is automatically allocated from the global IPv4 address pool and the address is marked as occupied. At the same time, the MAC address of the virtual network device to which the interface belongs is read, and the IPv6 link local address of the interface is automatically generated using the EUI-64 algorithm; Based on the preset IPv6 prefix and the interface identification information generated by the MAC address, the IPv6 global unicast address of the interface is automatically generated. Configure the generated IPv4 and IPv6 addresses to the IPv4 and IPv6 protocol stacks of the interface respectively, complete the dual-stack protocol binding of the interface, and establish a virtual network interface with dual-stack communication capabilities.

4. The visualization simulation interaction method for supporting IPv4 / IPv6 dual-stack networks according to claim 3, characterized in that, The automatic injection of corresponding IPv4 direct-connect routes and IPv6 direct-connect routes into the routing table of the virtual network device specifically includes: Based on the IPv4 address and subnet mask assigned to the interface, obtain the IPv4 directly connected network segment information and add a directly connected route to the IPv4 routing table of the virtual network device. Based on the IPv6 address and prefix length assigned to the interface, obtain the IPv6 directly connected network segment information and add a directly connected route to the IPv6 routing table of the virtual network device. The directly connected route entry includes: target network segment, next-hop address and outgoing interface information, wherein the next-hop address is set as a directly connected identifier; Check the interface configuration status of the peer device connected to the current interface. If the peer interface has completed dual-stack configuration and the IP addresses are in the same network segment, then: For IPv4 networks, the Address Resolution Protocol is automatically triggered to complete MAC address resolution; For IPv6 networks, the Neighbor Discovery Protocol is automatically triggered, routing requests are sent and routing advertisements are received, and neighbor relationships are established. If the user has enabled the dynamic routing protocol option in the interface property configuration panel, the current interface will be automatically added to the corresponding dynamic routing protocol process, and the corresponding protocol configuration statement will be generated.

5. The visualization simulation interaction method for supporting IPv4 / IPv6 dual-stack networks according to claim 4, characterized in that, The process of processing data packets by invoking the IPv4 and IPv6 protocol stacks in parallel and independently, based on the destination address type of the data packets sent by the virtual network device, specifically includes: Based on the completed dual-stack interface configuration and route injection virtual network device, when the device application layer generates data to be sent, the data packet is distributed to the corresponding protocol stack for processing according to the address family type of the target IP address. If the target IP address is of type IPv4, the established IPv4 routing table is queried to determine the next-hop address, the Address Resolution Protocol is invoked to query, IPv4 header encapsulation is performed, the checksum is obtained, and the encapsulated IPv4 data packet is sent to the link layer. If the target IP address is of type IPv6, query the established IPv6 routing table to determine the next-hop address, call the neighbor discovery protocol, perform IPv6 header encapsulation, and send the encapsulated IPv6 packet to the link layer; When a virtual network device receives a data packet from the link layer, it identifies the protocol type of the data packet based on the Ethernet type field. If the type field value is 0x0800, the packet is dispatched to the IPv4 protocol stack for processing; if the type field value is 0x86DD, the packet is dispatched to the IPv6 protocol stack for processing. The IPv4 and IPv6 protocol stacks maintain independent protocol state tables, routing tables, and neighbor tables within the simulation engine, and the data streams of the two protocols are processed in parallel without interference.

6. The visualization simulation interaction method for supporting IPv4 / IPv6 dual-stack networks according to claim 5, characterized in that, The method of simultaneously presenting the transmission states of two data streams using different visual elements in the visualization interface specifically includes: Based on the virtual network devices that have completed packet transmission and reception processing, monitor the packet transmission and reception events of each virtual network device in real time and capture key information of each packet; The key information for each data packet includes: source IP address, destination IP address, protocol type, data packet length, and timestamp; Based on the captured data packet information and combined with the initial network topology map data structure, the source device, destination device, and link path traversed by the data packet in the topology map are determined. Based on real-time captured packet information, dynamic data flow animations are generated on the corresponding links in the visualized network topology data structure: For IPv4 data streams, dynamic lines of the first color are used to represent them. The direction of the lines is consistent with the direction of data packet transmission. The thickness of the lines is positively correlated with the size of the data packets, and the speed of the lines is positively correlated with the transmission rate. For IPv6 data streams, a dynamic line of the second color is used to represent them, and the mapping rules for the direction, thickness, and speed of the line flow are consistent with those for IPv4 data streams. When IPv4 and IPv6 data streams exist simultaneously on the same link, dynamic lines of two colors are displayed in parallel with a fixed spacing between them to avoid visual overlap, intuitively showing the state of parallel transmission of two protocols in a dual-stack network. Based on the user's click on the data stream line, a data packet details window pops up, displaying the complete header information of the data packet, including all fields of the IPv4 header and / or all fields of the IPv6 header and transport layer header information.

7. A visual simulation and interactive platform supporting IPv4 / IPv6 dual-stack networks, characterized in that, A visual simulation interaction method for implementing a network supporting IPv4 / IPv6 dual-stack networks as described in any one of claims 1-6, comprising: The network topology module is used to obtain the user's topology construction operation on the virtual network device through a visual interactive interface according to the network simulation requirements, and to establish an initial network topology containing at least two virtual network devices. The dual-stack auto-configuration module is used to generate both IPv4 and IPv6 addresses for the interface based on the interactive dual-stack activation operation performed by the user on the virtual network device interface; automatically inject the corresponding IPv4 direct-connect routes and IPv6 direct-connect routes into the routing table of the virtual network device; and process the data packets by calling the IPv4 protocol stack and IPv6 protocol stack in parallel and independently according to the destination address type of the data packets sent by the virtual network device, simulating the real behavior of a physical dual-stack device. The visualization module is used to capture information about IPv4 and IPv6 data streams in real time during the simulation process, and to present the transmission status of the two data streams simultaneously using different visual elements in the visualization interface. The model library module, which is connected to the visualization module and the dual-stack simulation module, is used to store the basic parameters and icons of various virtual network devices for user interaction and access. The storage module is connected to the visualization module, the address generation module, the direct connection routing module, and the dual-stack simulation module, respectively, and is used to store device icons, address generation rule base, user project files, and simulation logs.

8. A visual simulation and interactive platform supporting IPv4 / IPv6 dual-stack networks according to claim 7, characterized in that, The dual-stack automatic configuration module includes: The address generation unit is used to generate both IPv4 and IPv6 addresses for the interface based on the interactive dual-stack enable operation performed by the user on the virtual network device interface. A direct-connect routing unit, wherein the direct-connect routing unit is used to automatically inject corresponding IPv4 direct-connect routes and IPv6 direct-connect routes into the routing table of the virtual network device; The dual-stack simulation unit is used to process data packets by calling the IPv4 protocol stack and the IPv6 protocol stack in parallel and independently according to the destination address type of the data packets sent by the virtual network device, thereby simulating the real behavior of a physical dual-stack device.

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