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Define IP address and subnetting.

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IP Address:

An IP (Internet Protocol) address is a numerical label assigned to each device connected to a computer network that uses the Internet Protocol for communication. IP addresses serve two main purposes:

  1. Host or Network Identification: An IP address uniquely identifies a device (such as a computer or a router) on a network. It allows data to be sent from one device to another on the same network or across different networks.
  2. Location Addressing: IP addresses help in routing data across the internet. Each device connected to the internet has a unique IP address, which is used by routers to determine the path that data packets should take to reach their destination.

IP addresses are generally of two types: IPv4 (Internet Protocol version 4) and IPv6 (Internet Protocol version 6). IPv4 addresses are composed of four sets of numbers separated by dots, like 192.168.1.1, while IPv6 addresses are much longer and written in hexadecimal, like 2001:0db8:85a3:0000:0000:8a2e:0370:7334.

Subnetting:

Subnetting is the process of dividing a large IP network into smaller sub-networks called subnets. This is done for several reasons:

  1. Efficient Use of IP Addresses: Subnetting allows organizations to use their allocated IP address space more efficiently by breaking it into smaller, more manageable chunks.
  2. Improved Network Performance: Smaller subnets can help in reducing broadcast traffic and make network management more efficient, leading to better overall performance.
  3. Enhanced Security: Subnetting aids in implementing security measures by logically separating different parts of a network. This makes it more difficult for unauthorized users or malicious software to move freely within a network.

Technical Details of Subnetting:

When subnetting, you borrow bits from the host portion of the IP address to create subnets. The subnet mask is used to determine the network and host portions of the IP address. For example, in a subnet mask like 255.255.255.0, the first 24 bits are allocated for the network, and the remaining 8 bits are for hosts. If you wanted to create subnets, you would borrow some bits from the host portion, like making it 255.255.255.192, leaving 6 bits for hosts and creating four subnets.

In CIDR (Classless Inter-Domain Routing) notation, you might see something like 192.168.1.0/26, where /26 indicates the number of bits allocated for the network (26 bits) and the remaining bits for hosts.