The history of IPv4 dates back to the early 1980s when the internet was a private network solely used by the military. Just like you need to dial a phone number to reach someone, your computer (or computing device, such as a smartphone or tablet) needs an IP address to reach other devices on the network.

Bottom line: Understanding IP addressesĪn Internet Protocol (IP) address is like a phone number for your computer.

Why you might want to know your IP address.

How to find your IP address on Windows 11.

How to find your IP address on a Mac (OS X 10.5 and later).

Internal IPv4 addresses (local/private).

In fact, it could even lead them to you thanks to geolocation data, although to pinpoint your actual location it would probably be necessary to demand the information from your ISP – with a search warrant. It’s an unlikely scenario, but if someone had your IP address it is possible that they could hack you, so be wary about telling it to anyone. You might need to know your IP address when setting up certain types of software, Why would anyone need to know your IP address If someone refers to your IP address they probably mean the external one, but we’ll show how to find out both in this article. This will always be in IPv4 form (four numbers separated by dots) and will nearly always be .X, with the Xs varying from device to device. A group of offline computers linked on a private network would use internal IP addresses to talk to each other, and your Wi-Fi router will use internal IP addresses to speak to the various devices that connect to it.

Internal (or private, or local). This address is not disclosed to the internet – it’s only used within your home network, and applies to a single device.

This can appear in either IPv4 (four numbers separated by dots, for a total of around 8-12 digits) or IPv6 (eight numbers separated by digits, for around 30 digits) form. This is how the internet at large locates and contacts you it is assigned to you by your ISP when you first go online, and can apply to a device or to an entire network that connects to the internet via a single point.

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