IP Addresses, IPv4 vs IPv6, and CIDR— Simplified

Joy Joel
4 min readDec 15, 2022

Every device or location on a network must have an address. This means it may be found by referring to its identification in a predetermined address system.

What is IP?

IP stands for Internet Protocol, a set of rules governing how devices on a network communicate with one another.

An IP (Internet Protocol) address is a numerical identifier assigned to each device connected to a computer network that communicates using the IP protocol. An IP address serves as a unique identifier for a single device on a network.

Most networks use IP in conjunction with TCP (Transmission Control Protocol). It also enables the creation of a virtual link between an endpoint and a source. It defines the format of data sent over the network, including the addressing scheme used to define network devices and the methods used to ensure that data is reliably delivered from one device to another.

IP is a critical component of the internet, and it is the underlying technology that allows devices to connect and exchange information with one another. It is the primary protocol used on the internet, and it serves as the foundation for other protocols such as TCP and UDP.

An IP address is also known as an IP number or an Internet address.

Today, there are two major IP versions in use: IPv4 and IPv6. Both IP versions use the same core ideas and regulations, but the size of the address space and the…

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Joy Joel

Abba’s Daughter| DevOps Engineer|Technical Writer