Special IP Addresses
There are a couple of frequently seen IP addresses that are used to describe common computers. These are in effect “reserved” and are not used for network communication between networks – but can be used for device communication on the same network.
127.0.0.1 – Is reserved as a “home” IP for any given computer running a web server. It is the default value that can be configured to a different value if so desired. A common way of testing a newly installed web server’s functionality (from basic page serving to dynamic calls from PHP, ASP etc) is to copy this IP address into your browser window. If your browser is properly served a file, then your web server is properly configured.
192.168.0.1 – This IP is commonly seen as the default number assigned to a router, or DHCP server. The router then starts incrementally assigning IP addresses to computers within its control. If you computer is behind a router (wireless or not) it has likely been assigned 192.168.0.2, or a number ending in .3, .4, .5 and so on, depending on how many devices are on your network. This is extremely common for home networks, but not as common for large office networks that manage IP addresses differently. Using this set of numbers allows your route to share one IP address across many computers. This number string is used only for internal networks – so if you copy 192.168.0.1 into your browser you will likely only connect to your router. If you chose another number incrementally from there you can connect to other computers on your network. However you can never use a 192 address to connect to a machine from outside a network,
192.168.1.1 – Seen in the same situations as 192.168.0.1
This is a very brief document describing IP addresses, and what they are, that is meant to be non-technical and understandable to those unfamiliar with the protocol. For advanced information about IP Addresses as well as related information on DNS please visit the following:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internet_Protocol
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Domain_name_system
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