IP address

The uniqueness of user addresses, which today is provided by IP technology, is important for both the global Internet space and local networks.

Each IP address has two parts: a network number and a host number. To access the global Internet, an internal IP address is not enough: this requires an external IP provided by the provider.

Different regions have their own Internet Registrars (RIRs). For example, in Africa it is AfriNIC, and for North America it is ARIN. Regional RIRs receive large blocks of addresses from IANA and distribute them to providers, who in turn issue unique IP addresses to connected users.

It is important to understand that an IP address is not assigned to a single device or router/router, but to a general network connection. So, each router port can have its own IP, and there can also be several of them in the end node: by the number of network connections. In addition, in isolated networks, the IP number can be arbitrarily assigned by the administrator - from the provided database of RIR numbers.

History of the creation of the TCP/IP protocol

The development and improvement of the IP protocol is inextricably linked with the history of the global Internet. It all started with the ARPANET computer network in 1969, which united four spaced research centers in the United States of America.

The ARPANET network was recognized as a promising direction, and in the same year received its own server, which was installed at the University of California, Los Angeles. The computer technology of those times was far from modern PCs: the terminal serving the ARPANET had only 12 kilobytes of RAM.

In 1971, the first e-mail program was developed in the United States. By 1973, email technology had become international, and cable links were established between the US, UK, and Norway. To send letters to the other hemisphere, a transatlantic telephone cable laid along the ocean floor was used.

Until the end of the 70s, the global information network was used primarily for sending and receiving text messages (letters), as well as for advertising mailings and publishing announcements in text form (without graphics).

The birthday of the IP protocol is considered to be 1981, when RFC 791 finally approved the standards for its operation. Before the introduction of these standards, unique numbers were assigned to connected devices and networks arbitrarily - without centralized control, and since 1981 a single global standard has come into force, understandable to computer systems around the world.

In January 1983, the ARPANET began operating over TCP/IP, and established the name of the Internet that is still used today. From now on, each Internet address is processed automatically and contains information about the approximate location of the owner. Therefore, since 1983, each computer has been assigned two addresses: digital and domain.

Benefits of TCP/IP

Introduced in the 1980s, IP uses 32 bits divided into four eight-bit octets. Each of them is displayed in decimal form and is separated from adjacent octets by a dot.

In general, an IP address looks like this: 127.23.89.100. The first three bits of information in the IP number are defined as the class of the address: A, B, C. Each of them uses its own octets in the network identifier, reducing the possible number of hosts in higher order classes.

The benefits of using TCP/IP technology:

Versatility of application.
The ability to create cross-platform links between heterogeneous networks.
Ability to retransmit data packets - connection oriented.
Prevent network congestion, including additive/multiplicative AIMD reduction.
Detecting errors by calculating data checksums.

The main advantage of IP switching is the global distribution of the network and the absence of a single control center that could become a bottleneck in the system. IP, by its very nature, is protected from congestion, and always uses the maximum bandwidth of network communications.

To date, there is no alternative replacement for it. IP switching is ubiquitous not only in computer systems, but also in telephony and television.

Finding out IP is very simple ─ a free service will solve this problem in a second!

Knowing your IP address, you can remotely connect to your computer and access the files and folders you need. IP may also be required when connecting several PCs to a common local network, and some sites and administrators specify it for security purposes.

In addition, by IP you can track if unauthorized persons have connected to your computer. IP information is not secret, but many users do not know where it is displayed.

How to find out your IP (internal and external)

Each computer connected to the network is assigned a unique IP address. If it is a local (closed) network, it is assigned by the administrator, and if it is a global one, by the provider, automatically.

The IP address can be dynamic, and change with the next distribution of available numbers from the RIR database. That is, if you recognized and wrote down the number today, this does not mean that it will remain the same tomorrow or in a week / month.

Based on this, Internet users from time to time need to clarify their IP address. In modern operating systems, this can be done using a special command in the console:

ipconfig - for Windows.
ifconfig - for MacOS or Linux.

The program will display the internal IP address assigned to your computer. In order to find out the external IP with which you access the Internet, you can use a special online service. Open it in a browser tab and the current IP address will be displayed automatically - without entering personal data and other actions on your part.

Why you need to know your IP address

What you definitely shouldn't do is share your unique IP address with third parties. With this information at their disposal, attackers can gain access to your personal data with all the ensuing consequences. Here are just some of the threats that a loss of IP privacy can entail:

Your social media profiles can be used to distribute prohibited content, for which you, not attackers, will be criminally liable.
Knowing your IP address can track your exact location.
Your computer may be used for mining cryptocurrencies or for other resource-intensive processes that will constantly load the system and slow down its performance.
You can access all devices that are connected to your router/router through the IP address. For example, to a smartphone, from where you can extract personal data.

Third parties (even acquaintances and relatives) should not know the IP address, but you yourself need to know this number if your goal is:

Hide your online activity from your ISP.
Mask confidential information, including when conducting financial transactions.
Bypass geographic restrictions.
Avoid government oversight.
Use torrent trackers.
Open prohibited sites without the risk of exposure.

In order to perform all these actions, you will have to hide your IP address. To do this, there are several effective tools that are not prohibited by law and are distributed free of charge.

How to hide your IP address

VPN (virtual private network) services are constantly being developed and improved to mask users' IP addresses. Many of them are still free, and work according to the following principle:

Create special GRE packages (Generic Routing Encapsulations) on the computer.
Through them, they process and send application requests (primarily browsers) to VPN servers.
Receive responses from VPN servers, decrypt them and present them to the user.

Despite the complexity of these operations, they are carried out within seconds and fractions of seconds, and with a high connection speed, the user may not always notice the difference between a direct site download - through the source IP address, and a multilayer one - through a VPN service. In addition to VPN, you can also use:

Proxy server. Allows you to make indirect Internet requests without using your own IP address.
Tor Browser. Unlike a regular browser, it provides multi-layer routing with encrypted data transfer.

Given the constant introduction of more and more new restrictions, it makes sense to use not one, but several tools at once that mask your unique IP address. If any of them is temporarily unavailable or blocked, fallback / alternative options will come to the rescue.

Use a convenient free service to determine the IP address without registration. May the anonymity be with you!

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