Final batch of IPv4 addresses assigned, exhaustion sets in

The last remaining IPv4 adresses have been handed out, marking the final death throes of the current internet protocol.

The final batches of Regional Internet Registries (RIRs) were allocated at a ceremony in Florida, with each of the five RIRs holding around 16 million addresses.

This may sound like a lot, but experts believe that these addresses will be used up within five years.

Addressing the issue

Now, before we all start worrying that the end of the internet is nigh, this has been predicted for a while and IPv6 is just around the corner.

This new IP ups the original 32-bit IPv4 addressing scheme to a much more malleable 128-bit number system.

To be fair, Vint Cerf, who came up with IPv4 wasn't to know that the web would be so popular that 4.3 billion addresses would be used us in such a timeframe.

There are some calling for the introduction of IPv6 to be speeded up, though, with this news highlighting just how close we are to running out of room on the web.

While many network providers are working hard on IPv6 adoption, Leslie Daigle, the Internet Society's Chief Internet Technology Officer, thinks more needs to be done, saying: "We hope the milestone announced today sparks other organisations to plan for and deploy IPv6 as part of a strategy to ensure they are connected to a growing future Internet that is as dynamic and vibrant as today's.

Via Computer World