IP Addresses

An identifier for a computer or network enabled device on a TCP/IP network. Networks using this protocol route messages based on the unique IP address of the destination. The format of an IP address is a 32-bit numeric address written as four numbers separated by periods. Each number can be zero to 255. For example, 1.160.10.240 could be an IP address.

Within an isolated network, you can assign IP addresses at random as long as each one conforms to some basic standards. However, connecting a private network to the Internet requires using registered IP addresses (called Internet addresses) to avoid duplicates.

The numbers in an IP address are used in different ways to identify a particular network and a host on that network. Four regional Internet registries -- RIPE NCC, ARIN, LACNIC and APNIC -- assign Internet addresses from the following classes.

As the number of internet users has increased the number of available IP addresses is dropping. To head off this shortage a new IP scheme called CIDR is gradually replacing the system based on classes A, B, and C and is tied to adoption of IPv6.

TCIP Defined: (pronounced as separate letters) It is short for Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol. This is a collection of protocols used to connect computers and networt ready equipment to the Internet. TCP/IP uses several protocols, the two main ones being IP and TCP. TCP/IP is built into the UNIX operating system and is used by the Internet. Even network operating systems that have their own protocols, such as Netware, also support TCP/IP.

IPv6 Short for Internet Protocol next generation, a version of the Internet Protocol (IP) reviewed in IETF standards committees to replace IP version 4. The official name of IPng is IPv6, where the v6 stands for version 6. The current version of IP is version 4, so it is sometimes referred to as IPv4.