IP Address
IP Address. Every computer node and host attached to the Internet must have a unique Internet protocol (IP) address. For a message to be sent, the IP addresses of both the sending and the recipient nodes must be provided. Currently, IP addresses are represented by a 32-bit data packet. The general format is four sets of numbers separated by periods. The decomposition of the code into its component parts varies depending on the class to which it is assigned. Class A, class B, and class C coding schemes are used for large, medium, and small networks, respectively. To illustrate the coding technique, the IP address 128.180.94.109 translates into