CompTIA Tech+ (FC0-U71)InfrastructureHard

A network engineer explains to a client that the organization's new addressing scheme uses 128-bit addresses instead of the older 32-bit scheme, dramatically increasing the number of available unique addresses. Which addressing scheme is the engineer describing?

  1. AIPv6
  2. BIPv4
  3. CMAC addressing
  4. DCIDR
Show answer & explanation

Correct answer: A. IPv6

IPv6 uses 128-bit addresses, providing approximately 3.4 x 10^38 unique addresses, vastly more than IPv4's 32-bit scheme, which provides about 4.3 billion (2^32) addresses. MAC addressing uses a 48-bit hardware identifier unrelated to IP versioning, and CIDR is a notation method for subnetting, not an addressing scheme itself.

Why the other options are wrong

  • B. IPv4 uses 32-bit addresses, the older and more limited scheme.
  • C. MAC addressing is a 48-bit hardware identifier, unrelated to IP versioning.
  • D. CIDR is a subnetting notation method, not an addressing scheme with a fixed bit length.

IPv6 Addressing

The newer Internet Protocol version using 128-bit addresses, vastly increasing available unique addresses compared to IPv4's 32-bit scheme.

  • 128-bit address length (vs IPv4's 32-bit)
  • Written in hexadecimal, separated by colons
  • Provides approximately 3.4x10^38 addresses

Memory trick: IPv6 = 'six' times bigger jump, from 32-bit to 128-bit addresses.

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