IPv4
Internet Protocol version 4 (IPv4) is the foundational protocol for addressing and routing data across the Internet, enabling global connectivity through a 32-bit address space.
IPv4 is the fourth version of the Internet Protocol, serving as the backbone for most Internet communications since its introduction. It defines a 32-bit addressing scheme, supporting approximately 4.3 billion unique addresses, and enables devices worldwide to communicate over interconnected networks.
Key features of IPv4 include unicast, broadcast, and multicast communication, packet switching, and support for both public and private address spaces. Network Address Translation (NAT) allows multiple devices within a private network to share a single public IP address, extending the usability of the limited address pool.
Challenges with IPv4 include address exhaustion, inefficient classful addressing (mitigated by CIDR), and complexities introduced by NAT. The transition to IPv6 is underway to address these limitations, but IPv4 remains widely deployed and essential for global Internet operations.