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IP stands for Internet Protocol, part of the TCP/IP protocol used on most Ethernet systems.
An IP address is a number, which represents a network within the Internet. Any domain name, such as open-site.org or hotmail.com, will be converted into an IP address, usually written in the form xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx, where xxx denotes a number up to 255.
Depending on the form of the IP number, the four sections will denote different things.
In a class A network, the first number is the network number, while the other three refer to a specific machine on that network. All the class A numbers are taken.
In a class B network, the first two numbers are the network number, while the other two denote the machine on that network.
In a class C network, the first three numbers are the network, and the last is the machine.
The class can be determined from the above four-numbered form (called 'dotted decimal') by examining the first number.
If this first number is in the range 0-127, it is a class A network. For the range 128-191, it is class B, and 192-223 denotes class C.
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