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An Easy Explanation Of IPv4

IPv4 is the fourth version of the Internet Protocol or IP. It provides the backbone of the modern internet. What is a protocol and how does it help make the internet work? Keep reading to find out.

A protocol allows two computers to exchange information in a well defined way. In the case of IP, the protocol specifies how packets of information are to be exchanged between different computers.

Briefly, one computer breaks the message up into pieces that are called "packets". Each packet consists of a header section and a data section. The header section has information in it that helps other computers get the packet to where it is supposed to go. The data section contains a piece of the actual data that is being transmitted.

After creating the packets, the computer sends them out onto the network. Other computers called routers examine the headers and decide which computer to send them to. This will either be another router or, if the router has a direct connection to it, the destination computer. The Internet Protocol makes no guarantee that a packet will arrive at its destination or that, if it arrives, it will do so without duplication or in the right order.

Once the packets arrive at the destination computer, the header information is stripped from the packets and they are put back together to create the transmitted data. But what does the destination computer do if all of the packets didn't arrive? This is where the Transmission Control Protocol, or TCP, comes in.

TCP does keep track of the order of packets and requires the destination computer to acknowledge that they are received. This is why one often sees the phrase TCP/IP. So why two protocols instead of just one? Arranging it like this allows for flexibility. If you are broadcasting a video to millions of people for example, you may not care if a packet or two get lost and don't want your server to deal with all of the acknowledgements. In this case, you can still use IP but don't need to use TCP.

This flexibility is highly indicative of the design philosophy that went into the internet and is one of the reasons that it has been so successful. Breaking it down into small parts makes it easier to create solutions to new problems by using much of what already exists and adding just a few small parts. IPv4 is just one small but critical part of what makes the internet work.

IPv4 Networks, Internet Protocol Providers and IP Prices

May 22, 2012, 9:23:36 am, America/Chicago