Literally every device that can access the internet has an IP address, whether it’s a smartphone, computer, notebook, or even a smart television.

In theory, this is easy to understand. However, there is a lot of nuance when it comes to internet protocol (IP) addresses and how they can be used.

For instance, did you know that IPs are not unlimited, even though they are just long sequences of numbers? There is an entire market surrounding IPs, which directly impacts dedicated servers, among other things.

By the end of this text, you will learn everything you need to know about IP management and how it can affect your server strategy.

How do IP addresses work?

Imagine the internet as a massive, sprawling city with billions of homes, offices, and businesses.

Just like every building in a city needs an address to receive visitors or mail, every device on the internet needs its own "address" to send and receive data.

This unique identifier is called an IP address (Internet Protocol address) and there are two main types of IP address.

Classic IPv4 IPs look like this: 123.123.123.123, with over four billion unique addresses possible. However, as more and more objects join the internet, IPv4 is running out of space. Four billion is not that big a number when you think about it.

For this reason, there are also IPv6 addresses, which are way longer and way more complex. This new format can provide trillions of unique address options that are way less aesthetically pleasing, like 2001:0db8:85a3:0000:0000:8a2e:0370:7334.

Both IPv4 and IPv6 addresses are provided by the Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA).

What is DNS and how it connects IPs

When a user types a website address, like “www.latitude.sh”, their device doesn't immediately recognize these letters as a destination on the internet.

The Domain Name System (or DNS) is a translator of letters to numbers: it turns the words that make a website domain into numbers; in other words, it turns the letters into an IP address.

You never see the numbers because the DNS works only between the computer and the server. The end-user has no need to know that www.google.com is actually 142.250.189.206 (it's true, just paste this number on any browser and check it out).

Humans don't talk to each other using numbers but computers only do that. That's why DNS has a pivotal role in translating numbers into letters back and forth, allowing computers to understand each other and humans who own websites to communicate with each other.

Are IP addresses unique?

Websites and online services that need to be consistently reachable don't usually change their IPs. As you've just seen with the Google example (this number hasn't changed in years).

In general, you can say IP addresses are unique. There are nuances, though. We must first look back at how they are assigned to any device.

Each and every device must have a unique IP address for the internet to work orderly. But that applies mostly to the global level of public addresses.

On smaller, private networks, such as in your home or office, devices can have IP addresses that might look identical to those in other homes or offices.

These are private IP addresses. Each private network has its own "pool" of addresses, and while devices in one network may share the same IP numbers with devices in another network, they don’t conflict because they’re not visible outside that local network.

With IPv4 addresses, the uniqueness rule is slightly challenged. There are only about 4.3 billion possible IPv4 addresses, which has become limiting given the explosion of internet-connected devices.

To extend the life of IPv4, a technique called Network Address Translation (NAT) is used, where multiple devices on a private network can share a single public IP address when they access the internet.

NAT translates the local IPs of individual devices within a private network to the one public IP seen by the outside world, enabling many devices to share the same public address while remaining uniquely identifiable on their local network.

To address the limitations of IPv4, IPv6 was developed, providing trillions upon trillions of possible addresses. With IPv6, the uniqueness problem is effectively solved for the foreseeable future.

Each device can have a truly unique IP address, eliminating the need for NAT and making it easier for each device to communicate directly with the internet without needing address translation.

How many IP addresses are there?

As previously mentioned, IPv4, the original version of the Internet Protocol, uses a 32-bit address format. This means that an IPv4 address is composed of four numbers separated by dots (e.g., 192.168.1.1), with each number ranging from 0 to 255.

In total, IPv4 provides around 4.3 billion unique addresses (specifically, 2³², or 4,294,967,296). It sure does look like a big number but it is not enough for how many people use the internet today. Remember there are around 8.2 billion humans in the world.

For IPv6 addresses, the number is way bigger. IPv6 was introduced with a 128-bit address format. This expanded address length allows for an astronomically larger number of unique IP addresses: approximately 340 undecillion (or 3.4 x 10³⁸).

In both IPv4 and IPv6, some addresses are reserved for specific purposes and are not available for general use.

For example, certain IP ranges are set aside for private networks (e.g., 192.168.0.0 - 192.168.255.255 in IPv4) and for multicast and experimental addresses. Additionally, loopback addresses (like 127.0.0.1 in IPv4) are used internally by devices for testing.

Are IP addresses considered PHI?

IP addresses can sometimes be considered Protected Health Information (PHI) under certain privacy regulations, such as the U.S. Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), but whether they qualify depends on the context in which they are used.

If an IP address is collected by a healthcare provider or health-related app along with health information (e.g., medical records, treatment details, or diagnoses), it becomes part of a set of data that could reveal an individual’s identity and health status.

This linkage to health information is what qualifies the IP address as PHI.

Since IP addresses can be used to identify a user’s device and sometimes their general location, they may potentially reveal the person’s identity, especially when combined with other data.

This is why IP addresses, when associated with health information, are often treated as PHI under HIPAA.

An IP address alone, without any health information or personal data linking it to an individual, typically would not be considered PHI. For example, if a website collects IP addresses purely for web analytics and not in conjunction with any health data, HIPAA would not apply.

Since IP addresses can sometimes lead to the identification of an individual, they are treated with caution when involved in healthcare contexts.

Protecting IP addresses as PHI helps safeguard patients' privacy by preventing unauthorized identification, location tracking, and potential misuse of their health-related data.

IP management at Latitude.sh

At Latitude.sh, we take the allocation and management of IP addresses seriously to ensure efficiency, security, and fairness in their distribution.

As a provider committed to high standards and responsible resource usage, we assign two types of IPs to our servers: Management IPs and Additional IPs.

Each Latitude.sh server comes with a dedicated management IPV4 and an IPV6 by default. These IPs are assigned during server deployment and are crucial for administrative access, such as logging in via SSH.

In addition to management IPs, Latitude.sh allows customers to request additional IP addresses. These additional IPs are account-specific and can be moved between servers as needed, offering flexibility for various configurations.

Unlike management IPs, additional IPs remain attached to your account even if the server instance they were linked to is deleted. This enables more advanced network configurations without the risk of losing critical IP resources.

When your server setup requires extra IPs, requesting them is straightforward. From your Latitude.sh dashboard, navigate to your project, select "IP addresses," and click on "Request IPs."

Fill out the request form with details, including the purpose for each additional IP address, to help expedite approval. Once submitted, our team reviews and processes your request, notifying you by email upon approval.

Given the global scarcity of IPv4 addresses, we require justification for all additional IP requests. This practice ensures that IP addresses are only allocated to those who genuinely need them.

Our policy aligns with industry standards, as Latitude.sh itself must provide justification when acquiring new IP blocks.

To justify an IP request, you should demonstrate an immediate need for at least 80% of the IPs requested. Valid use cases include nameservers and SSL certificates, but not email. We may ask for domain names or specific usage details to verify your IP needs.

Latitude.sh is dedicated to responsible IP address management, balancing client needs with sustainable resource usage to ensure reliable and efficient server operations.

If you have questions about our IP allocation or justification process, our support team is ready to assist through our ticketing system.

Create a free account on Latitude.sh to get started!