Most of us have often heard the term IP address from one or the other of our technicians whenever we had a connectivity issue or it was anything related to the internet and just wondered what it could be. This article is going to brief you everything about IP address and what is their significance? An IP address was discovered after the internet users in the early years felt the need of finding out a way that could help them identify the different computer systems so they could be connected together easily whenever it was required. These work just like our telephone numbers. If we dial the same number, we hear the same person.
Similarly, every time you dial the same number, you will get the same computer! Just like our telephone number or our residential address has information about our location, 192.168.o.1 login page an IP address of a computer has all the information about the computer and it makes it easier to connect to that computer.
The IP (internet protocol) addresses are assigned to any device that is capable of being connected to an internet connection (like a mobile phone, computer, printer, console, GPS etc.) and includes 32-bit numbers that are used for identifying a network and addressing it. Out of all the 32 bits, the numbers that are mentioned are called the ‘octets’ as they have 8 positions and they use the binary system of numbers, i.e. these bits or the numbers can be either 1 or 0 or on or off as they are called.
What is a Bad IP?
A bad IP is just a way of signifying a problem. For instance, if an IP starts with 169, this means that the user will encounter problems accessing the internet. An IP address that starts with 169 is actually a signal given by the router or the modem that there is a problem with the internet services that needs to be resolved.
If you ever face a problem like this, you must seek help from the IT people present to help you at your workplace. At home, turn off your router and unplug it for a couple of minutes before you plug it back and turn it on. If all of the above does not seem to work, you should call a professional who is trained to resolve such connectivity issues where there is a problem between the router and the computer.
IPv4 and 192.168.0.1:
You must have come across IPv4 and 192.68.0.1 very often, whenever the discussions were on about IP addresses. IPv4 is the very first standard recognized for IP addresses and 192.168.0.1 is one of the most common IP address. The IP addresses that we all use at home often range between 192.168.0.1 to 192.168.0.255 and thus are the most commonly recognized.
An IP address is formed with a combination of four blocks of numbers mentioned in a sequence. Every block in the address can have a number anywhere between the value of 0 and 255, which gives every block a possibility of having 256 values in total. Four different blocks with the possibility of 256 different values equaled to billions of unique IP addresses which was more than enough in the early internet era in the 1970s when the popularity and use of the computer were not so widespread. But today with over millions of internet users and businesses having multiple internet connections, we are not even close to the requirement. This is where the dynamic IP addresses and the Subnets come into the picture!
Dynamic and Static IP Address
Dynamic and static IP addresses are self-explanatory to a great extent, referring to the meaning of words. The IP addresses that we use around are all dynamic i.e. that means they are not fixed but are used in rotation. It is impossible that each one of ushave a different and unique IP address. Had that been the case, we would have run out of them long ago. The internet providers assign the IP addresses on a rotation basis which means they assign an IP address that is free, and not the same one every time (which is also impossible). All the IP addresses are not in use at the same time, so when one IP address is not used by an individual, it is assigned for use to the other one.
Just on the contrary, an IP address that does not change at all is a Static IP address. These are generally issued to businesses and are reserved for them. However, for a small cost, an individual can also get one from their internet provider.