What Is An IPv4 Address? What You Need To Know About IPv4 IP Addresses
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An IP (Internet Protocol) address is a unique number or label assigned to a device to make it easily identifiable on a network. This allows devices to communicate easily on a network.
The 2 popular versions of IP addresses are IPv4 and IPv6 addresses.
IPv4 stands for Internet Protocol version 4 while IPv6 stands for Internet Protocol version 6.
What Is An IPv4 Address?
An IPv4 address is a 32-bit number that is represented in a dotted decimal notation. It basically consists of four numbers separated by dots, such as 192.0.2.15.
It is currently the most popular version of IP addresses in use.
How Do IPv4 Addresses Work?
IPv4 addresses simply work by providing a unique identifier for each device on a network.
Here is a step by step process showing how IPv4 addresses work…
When a device wants to communicate with another device on the internet, it uses the destination device's IPv4 address to route the data packets.
- Device 1 sends a request to its router, which includes the IPv4 address of Device 2.
- The router forwards the request using Device 2's IPv4 address to route the packets.
- Packets are routed through the internet
- Device 2 receives the packets
Classes Of IPv4 Addresses
There used to be 5 classes of IPv4 addresses. Each class actually had a maximum number of hosts that can be supported on a network.
Here are the classes
- Class A: Max 16,777,216 hosts
- Class B: Max 65,536 hosts
- Class C: Max 256 hosts
- Class D: For multicasting
- Class E: Reserved for future use
It is worthy of note that classful networks (Classes of IPv4 Addresses) have become obsolete since 1993, and are now replaced by classless networks (CIDR).
CIDR stands for Classless Inter-Domain Routing. It is basically a method of allocating IP addresses and routing IP packets. CIDR was introduced to replace classful networking because it had become inefficient.
Private IPv4 Addresses
Private IPv4 addresses are a range of IP addresses which are reserved for use within private networks. These IP addresses cannot be accessed directly from outside the network so they are not routable on the internet. They are usually assigned by a router or network administrator.
Private IPv4 addresses include:
- 10.0.0.0 to 10.255.255.255
- 172.16.0.0 to 172.31.255.255
- 192.168.0.0 to 192.168.255.255
Limitations of IPv4 Addresses
As great as IPv4 addresses are, they come with some limitations.
Exhaustion
A popular limitation of IPv4 addresses is the number of possible addresses. The truth is all possible IPv4 addresses have already been assigned and exhausted. Hence the need for the recent introduction of IPv6 addresses.
Security Risks
Another limitation worth mentioning is security. IPv4 addresses can be vulnerable to security attacks. They can be easily spoofed or hijacked and this makes them vulnerable to security breaches or attacks.
What Is An IPv6 Address? The Introduction Of IPv6 Addresses
With the limitations of IPv4 addresses, the internet is gradually making a transition to IPv6
An IPv6 address is a 128-bit “number”, so IPv6 provides us with a virtually unlimited number of IP addresses.
Major Differences Between IPv4 & IPv6
What are the major differences between an IPv4 and IPv6 address?
- Length: A major difference is the length of both addresses. An IPv4 address is just 32 bits long but an IPv6 address is 128 bits long.
- Format: The format in which they are presented is another noteworthy difference. IPv4 addresses are presented in dotted decimal format while IPv6 addresses use an hexadecimal format, separated by colons (:)
- Address Space: Due to the fact that they are 128 bit long, IPv6 definitely has a much larger address space than IPv4. This allows for many more unique addresses.
- No Risk Of Exhaustion: Since IPv6 provides us with virtually unlimited addresses, there is no risk of exhaustion.
- More Secure: IPv6 is more secure than IPv4. It has built-in support for IPsec (Internet Protocol Security) and has better security features.
Conclusion
In conclusion, IPv4 addresses remain crucial to the internet since they make it easy for devices to network and communicate with unique IP addresses. Though they are still widely used, their limitations have brought about the introduction of IPV6 addresses which are gradually being more recognized as a better option.
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