11.3.

3 IPv4 Address Facts

Most networks today make use of the Internet Protocol (IP) for
communication. On an IP
network, each host device is assigned a unique
Layer 3 logical identifier called an IP address. The
IP address is used to
identify and locate each device on the network.

This lesson covers the following topics:

IPv4 configuration
IPv4 configuration methods
IPv4 classes
Special IPv4 addresses

IPv4 Configuration
Each host on a network must be assigned an IPv4 configuration. The IPv4
configuration consists
of four main components. The following table
describes each of these components:

Component Description

An IPv4 address is:

A 32-bit address that consists of four decimal numbers

(ranging from 0-255), each
separated by a dot (e.g.,
192.168.1.50).
Each decimal number is known as an octet, as it consists of
eight 1's and 0's.
The decimal values range from 0-255 because there are 256 (28)
IPv4 address
combinations of 1's and 0's
Composed of two components:
The host ID which is a unique value for each host
The network ID which identifies the network the
host is on. All hosts on the
network will have the same
network ID

The subnet mask also consists of four octets. Each

octet is usually either a 0 or 255, but not
always. The subnet mask
is used to identify the octets in the IPv4 address that are the host
ID and those that are the network ID.

Subnet mask
255 represents the network ID and 0 represents the host ID. For
example:

The subnet mask 255.255.0.0 indicates that the first two

octets in the IPv4
address are the network ID and the last two
octets are the host ID.

Default The default gateway is responsible for forwarding

data packets to destinations outside of
gateway the network.

For example, when a host requests a internet site, the request

is sent to the
gateway device which then forwards the request to
the appropriate destination.
 When the requested data comes back,
the gateway sends it to the requesting host
device.
The default gateway is typically a router that sits on the
edge of the network.

The IPv4 configuration specifies the address of the default gateway.

On a network, including the internet, computers

use IP addresses to identify each other and
specify where data
should go. However, it is much easier for users to use hostnames to
DNS server identify websites or other network devices.
address

The DNS server is responsible converting hostnames to IP addresses.

Part of the IPv4
configuration is specifying the address of the DNS
server.

IP Configuration Methods
Two methods can be used to configure hosts with IPv4 configurations. The
following table
describes these two methods:

Configuration
Description
Method

Each host must be manually configured. The main

benefit of static configuration is that
the IP configuration does
not change. The host retains the IP address even if the device is
shut down and rebooted. A static configuration is best used on
devices that are accessed
by other hosts, such as servers and
network printers.

The drawbacks of using a static configuration include:

Static
configuration Each device must be manually configured. This is very time
consuming with
larger networks.
It is easy to accidentally enter in the wrong information such
as the default
gateway or an incorrect subnet mask.
It is easy to duplicate addresses. Keep detailed documentation
of IP address
assignment.

Dynamic A dynamic configuration uses the Dynamic Host

Configuration Protocol (DHCP). This
configuration method uses a server that is
configured with the network's IP configuration information.

When a new device connects to the network, it sends a

broadcast message on
the network looking for the DHCP server.
The DHCP server then responds and provides the host with the
IPv4
configuration.

Using DHCP makes the configuration process much easier as the

process is automated
once the server has been configured.

Many SOHO wireless routers have DHCP

functionality and can serve as a

  DHCP server.

IPv4 Classes
IP addresses have a default class. The address class identifies the range
of IP addresses and the
default subnet mask used for the range. The
following table shows the default address class for
each IP address range.

First Number
Subnet
Class Address Range Octet of Private IP Range
Mask
Range Addresses

1–126
1.0.0.0 to

(00000001– 16,777,216 10.0.0.1 –

A 255.0.0.0

126.255.255.255 01111110 (224) 10.255.255.255

binary)

128–191
128.0.0.0 to

(10000000– 65,536 172.16.0.0 –

B 255.255.0.0

191.255.255.255 10111111 (216) 172.31.255.255

binary)

192–223
192.0.0.0 to

(11000000– 256 192.168.0.0 –

C 255.255.255.0

223.255.255.255 11011111 (28) 192.168.255.255

binary)

224–239
224.0.0.0 to

(11100000–
D N/A N/A Used for multicast
239.255.255.255 11101111
binary)

240–255
240.0.0.0 to

(11110000–
E N/A N/A Experimental/Research
255.255.255.255 11111111
binary)

Because IP addresses assigned to hosts must be unique, the use of IP

addresses on the internet
is controlled by organizations that ensure that
every organization is given its own range of IP
addresses to assign to
hosts:

The Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA) manages the assignment

of IP
addresses on the internet. IANA is operated by the Internet
Corporation for Assigned
Names and Numbers (ICANN).

IANA allocates blocks of IP addresses to Regional Internet Registries

(RIRs). An RIR has
authority over IP addresses in a specific region of the world.
 authority over IP addresses in a specific region of
the world.
An RIR assigns blocks of addresses to internet service providers
(ISPs).
An ISP assigns one or more IP addresses to individual computers or
organizations
connected to the internet.

Because each IP address on any network, including the internet, must be

unique, each IP class
has a reserved range for private IP addresses.

Public IP addresses are those that are used on the internet. These are
typically assigned
by the ISP.
Private IP addresses are used on internal networks only and are not
used on the
internet.
When a device on the internal network accesses the internet, that
data traffic is
sent using the public IP address.
Because private IP addresses are never used on the internet, users
in one private
network can have the same IP address as users in
another private network.

Special IPv4 Addresses

The following table describes some special IP addresses network
technicians must be aware of:

IP
Description
Address

Automatic
Private IP
A feature that allows a device to automatically
assign itself an IP address on the 169.254.0.0
Addressing
network when a DHCP
server or manual configuration is unavailable.
(APIPA)

169.254.0.0

This special address is also known as home or

localhost. This address is reserved by each
Loopback network interface card
(NIC) and is used for testing purposes. Ping requests can be sent to
127.0.0.1
this address and if returned means that the NIC is capable of
sending and receiving data
packets.

Broadcast The last valid IP address on a network is reserved

for broadcast functions. Any packet sent to
*.*.*.255
this address is sent to
all devices on the network subnet.

Network The first valid IP address on the network is

reserved for the network ID. This address is used
*.*.*.0
for routing
purposes to identify the network and is not usually assigned to a
host.

Because the network address and broadcast address

reserve the first and last valid IP
addresses, usually host IDs don't end
in a 0 or 255. But, there are instances where they

do.
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