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Possibly not the most technically accurate document I've ever written, but I'm hoping it makes something very complex a little more understandable.
 IPv4 Addresses
A typical IPv4 address looks like 188.74.74.184
An Internet Protocol Address is a bit like a telephone number for devices on the internet.
In much the same way as phone numbers, every device needs it's own number. Unfortunately, though, the current version 4 IP address system
can only support just over 4 billion devices. The current estimate suggests there are around 200 billion internet devices already -
which has required some 'technical magic' (NAT) - but this can't go on indefinitely.
IPv6 Addresses
A typical IPv6 address looks like 2a05:87c3:2001:b601:497:da74:2581:2ec3
We'll not talk about IPv5, as Apple were involved :-) The good news is that IPv6 is here and working, with the right setup.
IPv4 is 32bit, while IPv6 is 128it - that will support up to 340 trillion trillion trillion devices! All of the current mobile devices and PCs support IPv4 and IPv6,
but many ISPs and routers are still years behind.
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