IP address is a common term if you have a computer or device connected to the Internet.
This number is a whole number on all information technology devices (printers, routers, modems, etc.), which identifies and permit them to communicate on a computer network with each other.
IP Address (Internet Protocol Address)
Moreover, there is a standard of communication known as an Internet Protocol (IP) standard. In layman’s terms, it is similar to a home address. Therefore, the sending party must have the correct mailing address (Internet Protocol address) in the town (network) to receive snail mail at home or receive bills, pizza coupons or tax refund. The same is true for everything on the Internet. However, there are some exclusions of the information without a particular address.
Consequently, IP addresses is assigned permanently for any Email server or a Business server as a permanent home address. It can be even temporarily, from a pool of available addresses (first come first serve) from Internet Service Provider. An endless number may be unavailable in some areas and cost extra, so you must ask ISP to be sure of the service.
Domain Name System (DNS): The IP address gets translated to recognizable words. It becomes much easier for a common man to remember a comment than a short series of numbers. The same is valid for email addresses.
For instance, it is far easier to use to remember a web address name like whatismyip.com than to get ready for something like 192.168.1.1. Similarly, it is convenient to remember email@somedomain.com than email@192.168.1.1, in the case of email.
Types of IP Addresses
Dynamic IP Address: The IP address which is not static and may change at any time is called a Dynamic IP address. This IP address issued to a client from a pool of IP addresses allocated by the ISP or DHCP Server.
This is for many customers who do not require the same IP Address. It is a necessary whole time for a wide range of reasons. However, the computer will automatically get this number as it logs on to the network and saves you the trouble of knowing details regarding the specific network configurations—assignment of this number to anyone using a dial-up connection, wireless and high-speed internet connections. If you need to run your email server or web server, it would be best to have a static IP.
Static IP Address: An IP address never changes and is fixed. This is opposed to a dynamic IP address which may vary at any time. Most ISP’s have a unique static IP or any block of static IPs for some extra monthly bucks.
Older and Current IP versions
IP version 4: It is used currently in most of the network devices. However, IPv4 addresses are running out quickly with more and more computers accessing the Internet. Addresses have been created for new neighbourhoods just like in a city. However, if your neighbourhood gets too large, you will have to develop an entirely new criteria pool of addresses. IPv4 is limited currently to 4,294,967,296 addresses.
IP version 5: This is Supposed to be an experimental protocol for UNIX based systems. All odd-numbered versions is considered experimental in keeping with standard UNIX (a computer Operating System) release conventions. These were never supposed to be released for the general use of the public.
IP version 6: This is considered as the replacement for the IPv4. The unique addresses which IPv6 can provide is estimated to be 340,282,366,920,938,463,463,374,607,431,768,211,456 which is actually 2^128.
The old and current standard of addresses was this: 192.168.100.100. The new form is written in different ways but means the same and are all valid:
1) * 1080:0000:0000:0000:0000:0036:0000:419A
2) * 1080:0:0:0:0:36:0:419A
3) * 1080::36:0:419A
What do you mean by Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6)?
First and foremost, Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6) is the replacement for IPv4. Due to the exhaustion of IPv4 and the ever-expanding Internet of Things (IoT), IP version 6 will permit many more devices to connect to the Internet seamlessly. Here’s what you need to know as the new version of IP addresses rolls out.
The version 6 address consists of eight groups with four hexadecimal digits in groups separated by colons. For example, an IPv6 can be 2600:1005:b062:61e4:74d7:f292:802c:fbfd. Whereas, IPv4 addresses look much varied. For example, an IPv4 would be 74.123.254.255. Four octets separated from each other by decimals. Likewise, each octet ranges from 0 to 255. Likewise, comparing IPv4 to IPv6 makes it easy to see how IPv6 provides substantially more available addresses.