Ipv4 how many bits

The network part also identifies the class of network that is assigned. In Figure 5—3 , the network part occupies two bytes of the IPv4 address.

This is the part of the IPv4 address that you assign to each host. The host part uniquely identifies this machine on your network. Note that for each host on your network, the network part of the address is the same, but the host part must be different. Local networks with large numbers of hosts are sometimes divided into subnets. If you choose to divide your network into subnets, you need to assign a subnet number for the subnet. The main differences are A bit is a zero or one. We will see how the ip layer enables efficient, scalable routing.

The building block of computer language. Girish Kurra. Ipv4 Cs Notes. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.

We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. Do not sell my personal information. However, if you're curious about how computers see IPs, or if you need a quick brush-up on binary math, read on.

You know that an IP address is numbers that represent a device on a network, as a mailing address represents your home's location. But in order to actually assign and use IP addresses, you must understand the format of these "numerical identifiers" and the rules that pertain to them. Let's first concentrate on how humans read and write IP addresses. To us, an IP address appears as four decimal numbers separated by periods.

For example, you might use You probably noticed that the four numbers making up an IP are always between 0 to Have you ever wondered why? You may also have heard people referring to the four numerical values in an IP address as "octets". Octet is, in fact, the correct term for describing the four individual numbers that make up an IP address. But doesn't it seem odd that a word whose root means "eight" describes a number from 0 to ? What does "eight" have to do with those values?

To understand the answers to these questions, you have to look at an IP address from your computer's viewpoint. Computers see everything in terms of binary. In binary systems , everything is described using two values or states: on or off, true or false, yes or no, 1 or 0. A light switch could be regarded as a binary system, since it is always either on or off. As complex as they may seem, on a conceptual level computers are nothing more than boxes full of millions of "light switches.

A computer can turn each bit either on or off. Your computer likes to describe on as 1 and off as 0. By itself, a single bit is kind of useless, as it can only represent one of two things.

Imagine if you could only count using either zero or one. Alone, you could never count past one. On the other hand, if you got a bunch of buddies together who could also count using zero or one and you added all your buddies' ones together, your group of buddies could count as high as they wanted, dependent only on how many friends you had.

Computers work in the same way.