Internet Addressing Scheme

Internet Addressing Scheme

       

       The internet has more than a  million computers attached to it. In order to communicate, every computer connected to the internet has a unique address whose format is defined by the IP addressing system. An IP address is number that represents a single unique computer on the internet. IP addresses are similar to telephone numbers in that each computer (or telephone) must have its own unique IP address (telephone number). Like telephones, there is a directory system called the Domain Name System or DNS that can convert a name, such as ""www.microsoft.com." into a correct sponding  numeric IP address.

Machine Addressing

Each computer on the network is called a host, and has a name and a  number  that identifies it. The IP addressing system uses: 

a. Letter addressing system

b. Number addressing system

Letter Addressing System

Few examples of letter addressing are:

1. cbseindia.org

2 Hotmail.com

 The last three letters of the address are important because they provide information about the kind of organization to which the address belongs. Some of the abbreviations used are listed here:

.edu    Educational Institutions

.com   Commercial Organizations

.org    Non-profit organizations

.net     Networking organizations

The letter addressing system also uses country codes comprising tow letters. Examples of country codes are:

ca  for Canada

jp  for Japan

in  for India

http://www.microsoft.co.in here the last in suggests that it is based in India (.in)

The letter addressing system is called the DNS.

Number Addressing System

A numeric address called IP address is made up of four numbers, each less than 256, joined together by periods, such as 192.12.248.73.  or   121.45.341.81

Note: IP is the identifier for a particular machine (computer)  on a specified network.