What is an IP Address and What Does It Do? IP Address Examples
What is an IP Address and What Does It Do? IP Address Examples. An Internet Protocol address or IP address is a numeric address assigned to your computer on a network. When a computer wants to connect to another computer, it connects to that computer’s IP address. Every computer on the Internet has an IP (Internet Protocol) address. The IP address is used for data communication on the internet.
What is an IP Address and What Does It Do?
An IP address (Internet Protocol address) is a number that identifies the unique identity of a device on a network. The IP address is used for data communication on the internet and allows devices to communicate with each other.
Each device on the Internet communicates with other devices through its IP address. Data packets on the internet are routed to the correct address using the source and destination IP addresses. An IP address specifies the location of a device on the network so that communication can be established.
IP addresses are managed by the Internet Protocol (IP). There are two common versions of IP addresses: IPv4 (Internet Protocol version 4) and IPv6 (Internet Protocol version 6). IPv4 is an address format consisting of four decimal-point numbers (for example, 192.168.0.1). IPv6 is a longer address format consisting of hexadecimal numbers in groups of eight (for example, 2001:0db8:85a3:0000:0000:0000:8a2e:0370:7334). IPv4 is in widespread use, but there is also a transition to IPv6, which is becoming more widespread.
IP addresses provide a local or global identity to network devices. Websites, e-mail servers, network printers, computers, smartphones and many other devices on the Internet communicate and exchange data with each other through IP addresses. IP addresses are also assigned by Internet Service Providers (ISPs) to enable users to access the Internet.
IP Address Examples
There are two common versions of IP addresses: IPv4 (Internet Protocol version 4) and IPv6 (Internet Protocol version 6). IPv4 is an address format consisting of four decimal-point numbers. You can see examples of IP addresses below.
IPv4 Examples:
192.168.0.1
172.16.0.100
10.0.0.2
192.0.2.100
198.51.100.0
IPv6 Examples:
2001:0db8:85a3:0000:0000:8a2e:0370:7334
2001:0c00:abcd:0000:0000:ef01:2345:6789
2001:db8:0:1:1:1:1:1:1:1
2001:2e8:ffff:1:ffff:0:0:4
2001:0:3238:DFE1:63:0000:0000:FEFB
Real IP addresses are assigned by ISPs or network administrators and vary depending on the user’s network connections.
Where is the IP Address Written?
IP addresses are usually found in network configuration settings or in the details of network connections. The easiest way to find an IP address is to query various websites on the internet by typing “find my IP address”.
Apart from this easy way, you can follow the steps below to find the IP address on your computer or mobile device:
If you are on a computer with Windows operating system, go to the Start menu, select “Run” and open the Command Prompt by typing “cmd”. Then enter the command “ipconfig” and press Enter. This will show the IP address of your device.
If you are on a macOS computer, select “Applications” in the Top Menu bar, then open “Terminal” under “Services”. When the terminal opens, enter the command “ifconfig” and press Enter. This will show the IP address of your device.
If you are using a mobile device such as iOS or Android, go to the Settings menu. Then find and select “Wi-Fi” or “Network”. You will see the IP address next to the network you are connected to.
You may be interested 👇
👉 How to Recover Files With the Best Recovery Programs?
👉 What is a Proxy and What Does It Do?
👉 Click to follow the Student Agenda on Instagram
