What Happens if We Run out of Internet Addresses?

The existing architecture of Internet addresses has been in place for almost 40 years. The web address you see in your browser's address bar (the URL) is a transcription of the "real" Internet address, 4 sets of numbers known as the "IP Address." The problem is that there are only about 4 billion possible combinations for IP addresses. And, you guessed it, we're about to hit that limit. It's projected to happen sometime in the early part of 2012.

So what happens next? Implementation of IPv6. This is a new protocol that increases the number of possible IP addresses exponentially. In reality, it's not really new; it was developed in the late 1990s as Internet administrators saw this problem developing. The IPv6 system will provide 340 undecillion possibilities. In case you missed class on the day that your high school math teacher covered this number, it means 340 times 10 to the 36th power (You're welcome).

So what does the transition mean for the average Internet user, or business? We'll answer that next time.