Internet Protocol, Classes

& Subnet Mask

ALLEN A. LLORCA
 Subnet Mask
 A subnetwork or subnet is a logical subdivision of an IP network.
The practice of dividing a network into two or more networks is
called subnetting.

Divide a network to smaller networks (subnets)

Reasons
Reduce network traffic
Improve network performance
Management
Allocate host bits for subnet bits
Make use of subnet masks
 Subnet Mask

Default Subnet Masks

Class A 255.0.0.0
Class B 255.255.0.0
Class C 255.255.255.0
Number of usable IP addresses
Example of subnet
Subnet Mask Scenario
 The Internet Protocol
Internet Protocol and describes a set of standards and
requirements for creating and transmitting data packets,
or datagrams, across networks.
The Internet Protocol (IP) is part of the Internet layer of the
Internet protocol suite.
In the OSI model, IP would be considered part of the
network layer.
IP is traditionally used in conjunction with a higher-level
protocol, most notably TCP.
 IP versions
Two versions of IP in use today, IPv4 and IPv6.
The original IPv4 protocol is still used today on both the
internet, and many corporate networks.
IPv6 was developed by the Internet Engineering Task
Force (IETF), and was formalized in 1998. In addition, there
were changes to improve the efficiency of IP packet
headers, as well as improvements to routing and security.
 IPv4 addresses
 IPv4 addresses are actually 32-bit binary numbers
 An IP address is, as such, generally shown as 4 octets of numbers
from 0-255 represented in decimal form instead of binary form.
 For example, the address 168.212.226.204

 An IPv4 address is typically expressed in dotted-decimal notation,

with every eight bits (octet) represented by a number from one to
255, each separated by a dot. An example IPv4 address would look
like this:
IPv4 addresses
 Two parts of IPv4 addresses
 Host: It uniquely identifies a device/machine in the network that we can assign to each
host. It takes 8 bits of the address. The host part will remain the same but the network part
of the IP address will change.
 Network: It uniquely identifies the network and its class. It also takes 8 bits of the address.
 Classification of IP Address
1. Static
 The static IP addresses usually never change but they may vary as a result of network
administration. They are a permanent Internet address that provides a simple and reliable
way for communication.
 The Internet Service Provider (ISP) usages these details to communicate through the
devices. The best examples of Static IP Address is DNS Server(Domain Name Service).
However, Statistic IP Address is less secure in comparison to Dynamic IP Address due to its
assignment.
 Classification of IP Address
2. Dynamic
 When we connect any devices like mobile, computers, etc to the internet then Internet
Service Provider (ISP) provides an IP address from the range of available IP addresses to
the device through which we can connect, send and receive information.
 Next time when we again connect the same device to internet ISP will provide different IP
addresses but from the same available range of IP addresses.
 Since the IP address keeps on changing every time we connect to the internet so such an
IP address is termed as Dynamic IP address. Example of Dynamic IP Address is DHCP
server(Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol)
 Uses and Classes of IP Addresses

Class A address
Class B address
Class C address
Class D address
Class E address
Classes
Classes
 Class A IP Address
 Class A: The IP Address in this class ranges from 0 – 126 with a subnet mask of 255.0.0.0.
 It supports approx.16 million hosts on each of 127 networks.
 Mostly used by Internet Service Providers (ISP)

The first octet, 124, identifies the network number

 Class B IP Address
 Class B ranges from 128 – 191 with a subnet mask of 255.255.0.0.
 It supports approx. 65,000 hosts over each of 16,000 networks.
 Used by medium and large-sized networks in enterprises and organizations.

The first 2 bits of a Class B address are always 10 (one and zero).
 Class C IP Address
 Class C: IP Address ranges from 192 – 223 with a subnet mask of 255.255.255.0.
 It has 254 hosts on each of the 2 million networks.
 This class address is most common and used in small business and home networks

The first three octets identify the network number.

Every network that uses a Class C IP address can have assigned up to 28 (minus 2), or 254,
possible IP addresses to devices that are attached to its network
 Uses of IP Address
 To assign Static/Dynamic IP addresses to new devices in a network in
order to have communication.
 Different protocols like DNS, DHCP, etc. work on the concept of IP
Address.
 Proper tracking, security and monitoring of millions of devices in the
network.
 Source routing features which allow the sender of a packet to specify
which route the packet should take on the way to its destination.
 IP Addresses Based Network
 Public: A public IP address is an address assigned to a computing device to allow direct
access over the Internet. An email server, email server and any server device directly
accessible from the Internet are public IP address which is globally unique and can only
be assigned to a unique device.
 Private: Private IP address is assigned to computers within your private space without
letting them directly exposed to the Internet.
For example, if we have multiple computers, mobile devices within your home you may
want to use private IP addresses to address each computer within your home. Private IP
address starts with :
 Network Address Translation (NAT)
 It enables private IP networks that use unregistered IP addresses to connect
to the Internet. NAT operates on a router, usually connecting
two networks together, and translates the private (not globally
unique) addresses in the internal network into legal addresses, before
packets are forwarded to another network.
 References:
https://networkel.com/ip-address-classes/
https://www.educba.com/how-do-ip-addresses-work/
IP address - Definition and Details (paessler.com)
Public and Private IP addresses - Homenet Howto