Tech & Passion

What is the IP address? Static IP vs. dynamic IP & IPv4 vs. IPv6

Posted By LATERAL on Nov 6, 2019

One of the most common terms used in the digital world is the IP address. It is a unique numerical address that is used for communication. But, how to use the address? Get to know more about this term in the following article.

IP Address: What Is It Actually?

The Internet Protocol address or mainly known as IP address is actually an identifying number which is used for a piece of network hardware. This address will make it possible for internet users to pinpoint a specific device from the total number of billion devices you can find on the internet.

Just like the mailing address which is needed by the email users to send messages or files to another user, IP address is needed by a computer to have communication with the other devices.

The IP addresses that are currently available can be an IPv4 address and IPv6 address. Generally, the IP address used now consists of four numbers in which each of them can have one to three digits. There will be a single dot (.) used to separate these numbers and they can range from 0 up to 255. If you look at the number clearly, most of the IP addresses will look like this following example: 151.101.65.121.

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However, some other IP addresses will look completely different like this one: 2001:0DB8:0234:AB00:0123:4567:8901:ABCD. Unlike looking for a physical address in which a phone book or something like that is needed to find someone’s name, DNS servers are required by your computer devices help them get a hostname to find their IP address.

Types of IP Addresses

There are two classifications of IP addresses, they are static IP addresses and dynamic IP addresses.

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1. Static IP Address

As the name suggests, the static IP address generally never changes. However, the address can be changed in a certain condition, for example, if it is requested by the network administration.

This kind of IP address mainly works as a permanent address for the internet. It also serves to provide a more reliable and simpler way for a device to communicate with the other.

The internet users will be able to get more details related to the location of the computers to include city, region, country, and continent. the Internet Service Provider (ISP) serves to provide non-technical information such as the precise longitude and latitude of the country where the computer is located.

The ISP can only reserve the parts of the addresses assigned to enable the devices to share among their own subscribers. This happens since the static IP address only comes with a limited number only. There are many websites that can help you to find your own IP address.

2. Dynamic IP Address

Unlike the static IP address that almost never changes, the dynamic IP address is the contemporary one. The address is especially is generally utilized in computer devices each time they are connected to the internet.

However, the dynamic IP address is actually taken from a pool of Internet Protocol addresses which are shared over various devices at once. The address is also considered to be more secure than IP static address which is relatively easier to track.

Both the static and dynamic IP addresses which are available now come with two versions, they are IP version 4 (IPv4) and IP version 6 (IPv6). The two versions also have many features that will benefit the most for the internet users.

1. IP Version 4

This version of Internet Protocol was originally found in 1981. The IP version 4 doesn’t change much up to now since it was defined for the first time more than 3 decades ago. What makes you have to consider well before picking up this kind of version is that there are many IP addresses now.

The number of the addresses is much bigger than the IP version 4 could supply. This version uses the IP address of 32 bit or in the other words, the optimum number of the address is 4.211.52.22.

However, this number is little than the total amount of IP addresses that are currently available now and reaches more than 4 billion. This IPv4 is commonly formatted as four 8-bit fields in which each of them represents the byte of the address’ version.

The bytes of the IP version 4 is then divided into two parts, they are network and host part. The network part is the unique number especially created for your network. It also serves to identify the network class assigned.

Meanwhile, the host part is identified as the part of Internet Protocol address that can be assigned to each host. It functions to identify your network’s machine.

2. IP Version 6

This is the latest version of the IP address that is developed by the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF). The better performance of this IP version will soon replace the domination of Internet Protocol version 4.

It uses bigger bytes than the previous version of IP address, that is 128-bit. Thus, it is possible for this latest version to supply more IP addresses and represented by four hexadecimal digits which are separated into 8 groups. Each of the group is also supported by colons.

There are many features that the internet users can enjoy from this version of Internet Protocol address, include:

• It provides relatively faster routing.
• It has better mobility feature.
• Provides more security for networks and applications.
• This version offers better end-to-end connectivity.
• It comes with better capabilities for Multicast and Anycast.
• It requires simpler administration than the previous version.
• It enables a smoother transition from IPv4 to IPv6 due to the key designs used.

Benefits to Manage Your IoT Devices with VPS

Posted By LATERAL on Nov 6, 2019

The Internet of Things (IoT) is making dreams come true. What used to be reality in movies and series people watched in television is now real. Everything is interconnected and can be accessed from anywhere, by anyone with granted access to them.

It makes easier to do any house chores, to check what is on the fridge and to have a lot of electronic devices working at the same time, while you do something else. In order to host the resources necessary for the IoT devices, one could go for a good VPS.

It’s possible to manage all of them using a virtual server, completely configured and set up by the owner.

• Freedom from Third Parties

Rather than paying for a service or letting other unknown third parties access your data, owning a VPS is a very practicable and cheap way to have complete access to your IoT devices.

A VPS is entirely configured by the buyer, who is responsible for selecting the applications, how they will work and how much resource is needed and allocated to have all the devices working properly.

• Monitor and Control

With root access to the VPS and the core system files, one can schedule automatic tasks that check every single IoT device with a specified routine.

It’s possible to monitor their functionality and scan for issues without having to manually do it, all thanks to the use of the VPS.

• Your Own MQTT Broker

With a functional VPS, it’s time to have an application that makes the management of IoT devices an easy task.

The developers of IoT created the MQTT protocol, which means Message Queuing Telemetry Transport, responsible for exchanging messages between machines, an important aspect of the remote control of IoT devices.

Its main feature is the support of asynchronous communications, receiving all sort of transmitted data at once.

• Suits Your Needs

By using a VPS to install IoT management applications, one may use them for all sort of necessities and requirements.

Take someone at their own house, for example. It’s possible to control electrical household items without leaving the room or the sofa. It’s very much practical and would help in many house appliances.

In the industry or enterprise, it could help to better manage the working area and the functionality of machines. It’s really applicable to any possible scenario. All that by simply ignoring third-party services and using your own VPS.

• Customize to Your Needs

Now that it’s clear that one gets freedom from other companies by setting up its own VPS, it’s also mandatory to state how important the customization feature of a VPS it.

Differently from cloud services, it’s possible to edit and control every single aspect of the server, by using a virtual one. In resume, the IoT devices will be installed on a platform that is specifically customized to their use, either by the user itself or by a hired management team.

• Reliability

Since a VPS service separates an exclusive partition of a physical server, no one will have access to the data and functionality of your IoT device management. More important, errors and crashes from other servers won’t have any effect in the uptime of it.

Most of the possibilities are all related to your own use and configuration of the VPS, not being under the influence of how other users interact with the server.

• Low-cost and Efficient

VPS are known for being much cheaper than dedicated servers and almost similar to shared hosting in terms of costs.

The only reason to have anything more robust, like the third-party services offered by big companies, is when an industry needs thousands of IoT devices connected and functioning at the same time.

If that’s not the case, the current hardware power of most VPS being offered online is more than enough.

• Manage it Easily

While the IoT devices can be ruled and controlled through an application of your choice, a broker that will take care of communication between machines, the interface regarding the server is also important.

Fortunately, most cheap VPS providers have a great user-friendly panel in which all basic functioning and aspects of your virtual server can be controlled.

• Extra Safety

As everything within the range of the VPS is controlled by the user, so is the incrementation of security.

Most people won’t have to worry about it, as they most probably won’t even be threatened by something of such importance but encrypting the access to the IoT devices through the network is an option.

By using a cryptography defense, the chances that any trial of invasion would succeed are really reduced.

It’s clear that managing all the IoT devices in your house or business is efficient and easy with a VPS. The question left is where to purchase your own virtual server and how much of hardware power will be necessary.

Once these decisions are clearly taken, there are no more worries. Start controlling every single thing around you with the internet connection and the safety of owning it all in your VPS.