What are Internet Protocol Addresses?

Question

Please explain.

Answer 1

In order to connect to the Internet or view web pages, each computer uses a distinct IP (Internet Protocol Address to identify themselves. For example, www.yahoo.com's IP is: 216.109.112.135. It's the same principal that you have for a phone number, part of it identifes which city or area you're located in and the rest uniquely identifies your phone. In the computer world the area or city number is replaced by a network number and then the remaining represents you as a unique client. The computer uses a special address called the sub-net mask which helps the computer determine which part of the address is the network and which is the actual host.

When surfing the Internet to yahoo.com for example, your computer asks the DNS (Domain Name Server) what is the IP address of Yahoo.com. The DNS responds, well it's 216.109.112.135. Your computer then says OK I'll tell my router to find , 216.109.112.135 (Yahoo.com). The router is a network device that connects other networks and directs traffic and your requests to other networks based on the IP address. Sometimes the router says, Oh send the request to this network because Yahoo.com is a member of that network. And then sometimes the router will say I don't know, but ask this router at this network, they might know where to send the request. Once it's found, Yahoo will send a response back to your computer based on your IP address that you sent with the request, just like a return address on a letter. That in a nutshell is how the Internet Protocol address works in moving traffic on the Internet.