» » What is the IP address? (part1)


What is an IP Address (Part1)

- some basic information about IP address
- what the IP address look like?
- what  is the different between private and public ip address ?




What is an IP Address ( easy definition )
  • IP address ( Internet Protocol address )
  • every device must have a unique IP address
  • it is used to identify  your computer or device on your network or to the internet and  to allow a host on one network to communicate with a host on a different network

IP address Versions

1-      IPv4 (IP version 4)
       It consists from 32 bits   .  ex : 192.168.1.1
2-      IPv6 (IP version 6)
       It consists from  128 bits  .  ex :   2001:db8:0:1234:0:567:8:1

What is an IP Address ( advanced definition )

When talking about IP address in general  ,it refers  to IPv4.
An IP address consists of 32 bits of  information. These bits are divided into four sections ( octet )  or ( bytes )
IP address version 4 =  32 bits = 4 bytes = 4 octet
Bit = One digit; either a 1 or  0
Byte =  8 bits
Octet = 8 bits. Base-8 addressing scheme

IPv4 addresses are represented in  : -

      1- dot-decimal notation
      2- Binary 



IP addresses types :-

There are 2 types of IP addresses
1-      Public addresses – routable addresses
  • It is assigned by your Internet Service Provider (ISP) and you can not  control it 
  • not free (you must pay for this service to your ISP)
  • you  can not access the internet without having one

 2-      Private addresses – non routable addresses –  network address
  • It  is used to communicate between networked devices, like pc's , routers or mobile devices
  • free
  • you can not access the internet with this IP address

see also : what is the IP address?  (part2 ) to know more
see also : DHCP
 
check this video to know your IP address