The IP subnet mask plays a crucial role in determining the network and host portions of an IP address. It is a binary pattern that is applied to an IP address to divide it into network and host components. In this context, the bits set to 1 in the subnet mask indicate the network portion of the IP address, while the bits set to 0 represent the host portion.
To understand this concept, let's delve into the structure of an IP address. An IP address is a 32-bit binary number divided into four octets. Each octet is represented by a decimal number ranging from 0 to 255, separated by periods. For example, 192.168.0.1 is a commonly used IP address.
The subnet mask is also a 32-bit binary number, just like the IP address. It is used to determine the boundaries between the network and host portions of the IP address. The bits set to 1 in the subnet mask define the network portion, while the bits set to 0 represent the host portion.
When applying the subnet mask to an IP address, a logical AND operation is performed between the IP address and the subnet mask. This operation effectively masks out the host portion of the IP address, leaving only the network portion intact.
For example, let's consider the IP address 192.168.0.1 with a subnet mask of 255.255.255.0. In binary representation, the IP address is 11000000.10101000.00000000.00000001 and the subnet mask is 11111111.11111111.11111111.00000000.
Performing a logical AND operation between the IP address and the subnet mask yields the network address. The result is 11000000.10101000.00000000.00000000, which in decimal form is 192.168.0.0. This indicates that the network portion of the IP address is 192.168.0, while the host portion is 0.1.
In this example, the bits set to 1 in the subnet mask (255.255.255.0) determine the network portion, which is the first three octets of the IP address (192.168.0). The remaining octet (0.1) represents the host portion.
By using different subnet masks, it is possible to divide an IP address into smaller or larger subnetworks. For instance, a subnet mask of 255.255.255.128 would divide the IP address into two subnetworks, each with a range of 128 host addresses.
The bits set to 1 in the IP subnet mask indicate the network portion of the IP address, while the bits set to 0 represent the host portion. By performing a logical AND operation between the IP address and the subnet mask, we can determine the network and host portions of the IP address.
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