{"id":48014,"date":"2024-07-17T07:00:00","date_gmt":"2024-07-17T14:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dhblog.dream.press\/blog\/?p=48014"},"modified":"2025-05-21T16:30:08","modified_gmt":"2025-05-21T23:30:08","slug":"ipv4-vs-ipv6","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www-dev.dreamhost.com\/blog\/ipv4-vs-ipv6\/","title":{"rendered":"IPv4 Vs. IPv6: What\u2019s The Difference?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The internet is facing an IP address crisis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When IPv4 was created in the 1980s, it was designed to give each computer connected to the Internet an IP address.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n

\n\t\n\t\t<\/svg>\n\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t<\/svg>\n\t<\/a>\n

IP Address<\/h3>\n

An IP address is a unique numerical identifier for devices on a network. It shows where a device is located and facilitates communication between devices using network protocols.<\/p>\n \n Read More <\/a>\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

However, there can only ever be 4.3 billion unique IPv4 addresses, and we already have eight billion people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And that\u2019s a problem.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

We still heavily rely on IPv4, a system that is exhausted and running on workarounds due to handling a massive 80% of internet traffic today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thankfully, IPv6 was built to solve this.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

IPv6 offers a virtually limitless address space, with 340 undecillion addresses<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Currently, over 45%<\/a> of users access Google using an IPv6 address, and this number has been growing fairly consistently. Many countries<\/a>, such as France (74%), Germany (71%), and India (71%), are already adopting IPv6 on a large scale.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But why hasn’t everyone jumped onto this technology? And what are the fundamental differences between these two competing systems?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Let’s explore the differences between IPv4 vs. IPv6 \u2014 the internet’s present and future.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What Is IPv4?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\"A<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Internet Protocol version 4 (IPv4) is the veteran system of the internet. Since its introduction in the early 1980s, IPv4 has reliably delivered data packets (your emails, messages, videos, etc.).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But IPv4 uses 32-bit addresses, which look like this: 192.168.0.1<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Each number, separated by dots, can range from 0 to 255. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This gives us almost 4.3 billion unique addresses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It was more than enough for the early internet but isn’t even close to enough today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Think about it:<\/strong> we are 8+ billion<\/a> people on Earth, and many of us have multiple devices connected to the internet. If we give every smartphone, laptop, and smart refrigerator an IPv4 address, there just wouldn’t be enough IPv4 addresses.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This shortage is a significant reason why an upgrade became necessary.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What Is IPv6?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\"A<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Developers started creating Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6) in 1994. It was designed to address the potential exhaustion of available addresses. However, back then, it seemed like a complex overkill since we did not expect the internet to expand so quickly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now, IPv6 is a necessity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

IPv6 uses 128-bit addresses, providing an astronomically humongous address space of approximately 340 undecillion (2128<\/sup> or 3.4×1038<\/sup>) unique addresses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To grasp the enormity of the IPv6 address space, let’s consider some comparisons:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Stats<\/figure>\n\n\n\n