Internet Protocol

Vint Cerf Receives IEEE Medal of Honor

Vinton Cerf, widely known as the "Father of the Internet," has been awarded the IEEE Medal of Honor in 2023 for his contributions to the development of the Internet architecture and for his leadership in its growth as a critical infrastructure for society. more

Celebrating 35 Years of the DNS Protocol

In 1987, CompuServe introduced GIF images, Steve Wozniak left Apple and IBM introduced the PS/2 personal computer with improved graphics and a 3.5-inch diskette drive. Behind the scenes, one more critical piece of internet infrastructure was quietly taking form to help establish the internet we know today. November of 1987 saw the establishment of the Domain Name System protocol suite as internet standards. more

CIDR in Networking: Improved IP Routing Efficiency

CIDR (Classless Inter-Domain Routing) is a routing system in which network engineers can distribute IP addresses based on the size of their specific network. This is more efficient than the previous system, which assigned IP addresses depending on whether the size of a network fits into one of only three sizes: Class A, Class B, and Class C. more

The Changing Role of IP Addresses in the Architectural Evolution of the Internet

I work at APNIC, the Regional Internet Registry that serves the Asia Pacific Region. APNIC provides common infrastructure services for the region that support the unique assignment of IP address blocks to Internet network operators within our region through the operation of an address registry. In short, IP addresses are what we do. So, when there are discussions in technology circles about evolving the Internet's address model in varying ways,... more

Fifty Years On – What to Expect in the Next 50 Years of the Internet

When did the Internet begin? It all gets a bit hazy after so many years, but by the early 1970s, research work in packet-switched networks was well underway, and while it wasn't running TCP at the time (the flag day when the ARPANET switched over to use TCP was not until 1 January 1983) but there was the base datagram internet protocol running in the early research ARPA network in the US. Given that this is now around 50 years ago, and given that so much has happened in the last 50 years, what does the next 50 years have in store? more