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IP Address (Internet Protocol Address): This number is an exclusive
number all information technology devices (printers, routers, modems, et al) use
which identifies and allows them the ability to communicate with each other on a
computer network. There is a standard of communication which is called an Internet
Protocol standard (IP). In laymans terms it is the same as your
home address. In order for you to receive snail mail at home the sending party
must have your correct mailing address (IP address) in your town (network)
or you do not receive bills, pizza coupons or your tax refund. The same is true
for all equipment on the internet. Without this specific address, information
cannot be received. IP addresses may either be assigned permanently for an Email
server/Business server or a permanent home resident or temporarily, from a pool
of available addresses (first come first serve) from your Internet Service
Provider. A permanent number may not be available in all areas and may
cost extra so be sure to ask your ISP.
Domain Names (Domain Name System-DNS): This allows the IP address to be
translated to words. It is much easier for us to remember a word than a series
of numbers. The same is true for email addresses.
For example, it is much easier for you to remember a web address name such as
whatever.com than it is to remember 68.191.11.5 or in the case of email it is
much easier to remember anonymous@whatever.com than anonymous@68.191.11.5
Dynamic IP Address: An IP address that is not static and could change at
any time. This IP address is issued to you from a pool of IP addresses allocated
by your ISP or DHCP Server. This is for a large number of customers that do not
require the same IP Address all the time for a variety of reasons. Your computer
will automatically get this number as it logs on to the network and saves you
the trouble of having to know details regarding the specific network
configurations. This number can be assigned to anyone using a dial-up
connection, Wireless and High Speed Internet connections. If you need to run
your own email server or web server, it would be best to have a static IP.
Static IP Address: An IP address that is fixed and never changes. This is
in contrast to a dynamic IP address which may change at any time. Most ISP's a
single static IP or a block of static IP's for a few extra bucks a month.
IP version 4: Currently used by most network devices. However, with more
and more computers accessing the internet, IPv4 addresses are running out
quickly. Just like in a city, addresses have to be created for new neighborhoods
but, if your neighborhood gets too large, you will have to come up with an
entire new pool of addresses. IPv4 is limited to 4,294,967,296 addresses.
IP version 5: This is an experimental protocol for UNIX based systems. In
keeping with standard UNIX (a computer Operating System) release conventions,
all odd-numbered versions are considered experimental. It was never intended to
be used by the general public.
IP version 6: The replacement for the aging IPv4. The estimated number of
unique addresses for IPv6 is 40,282,366,920,938,463,463,374,607,431,768,211,456.
The old and current standard of addresses was this: 192.168.100.100 the new way
can be written different ways but means the same and are all valid:
* 1080:0000:0000:0000:0000:0034:0000:417A
* 1080:0:0:0:0:34:0:417A
* 1080::34:0:417A
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