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'''IPv4 (Internet Protocol version 4)''' is the version of internet protocol which defines IP addresses in a 32-bit format. It has been the general standard to deliver information between devices connected to the Internet.<ref>[http://www.ehow.com/about_5497801_history-ip-internet-address.html ehow.com]</ref>

'''Internet Protocol version 4 (IPv4)''' is the version of internet protocol which defines IP addresses in a 32-bit format. It has been the general standard to deliver information between devices connected to the Internet.<ref>[http://www.ehow.com/about_5497801_history-ip-internet-address.html ehow.com]</ref> The last blocks of IPv4 addresses were allocated by [[IANA]] to the [[RIR|Regional Internet Registries]] in February, 2011. While IPv4 supply has dwindled over the years, supplies have reached a critical point in most regions of the world. As of 24 September 2015, [[ARIN]] (American Registry for Internet Numbers) reported that it had run out of its free pool of IPv4 addresses.<ref>[https://www.arin.net/announcements/2015/20150924.html ARIN IPV4 FREE POOL REACHES ZERO] Retrieved 2 December 2015.</ref> While the dwindling addresses will not impact Internet users too greatly, [[ISP]]s have increasingly felt the pressure to modify their technologies to suit [[IPv6]]. <ref>[http://www.wired.com/2015/09/north-america-just-ran-old-school-internet-addresses/ North America Just Ran Out] Retrieved 28 Sep 2015.</ref>

==Background==

==Background==

==IPv4 Address Allocation==

==IPv4 Address Allocation==

The Internet Assigned Numbers Authority ([[IANA]]) allocates parts of the IPv4 address space according to the established needs of Regional Internet Registries: [[AfriNIC]] (Africa, portions of the Indian Ocean), [[APNIC]] (Portions of Asia, portions of Oceania), [[ARIN]] (Canada, many Caribbean and North Atlantic islands, and the United States), [[LACNIC]] (Latin America, portions of the Caribbean), and [[RIPE NCC]] (Europe, the Middle East, Central Asia). The Regional Internet Registries are responsible for the assignment of IPv4 addresses to operators and users of the Internet within their regions.<ref>[ftp://ftp.ripe.net/rfc/rfc3330.txt ftp.ripe.net]</ref>

The [[IANA|Internet Assigned Numbers Authority]] allocates parts of the IPv4 address space according to the established needs of [[RIR|Regional Internet Registries]]:  

* [[AfriNIC]] - Africa, portions of the Indian Ocean

* [[APNIC]] - Most of Asia, Oceania

* [[ARIN]] - Canada, many Caribbean and North Atlantic islands, and the United States

* [[LACNIC]] - Latin America, portions of the Caribbean

* [[RIPE NCC]] - Europe, the Middle East, Central Asia

 

The Regional Internet Registries are responsible for the assignment of IPv4 addresses to operators and users of the Internet within their regions.<ref>[ftp://ftp.ripe.net/rfc/rfc3330.txt ftp.ripe.net]</ref>

==IPv4 Exhaustion==

==IPv4 Exhaustion==

On February 2011,the Number Resource Organization ([[NRO]]) announced that the free pool of available IPv4 addresses has been fully depleted. on January 31, IANA allocated two blocks of IPv4 address space to APNIC. The action triggered a global policy to allocate the remaining IANA pool equally between the five Regional Internet Registries ([[RIR]]).IANA assigns IPv4 addresses to the RIRs in blocks that equate to 1/256th of the entire IPv4 address space. Each block is referred to as a “/8″ or “slash-8″. <ref>[http://www.nro.net/news/ipv4-free-pool-depleted www.nro.net]</ref> In 2009, [[ICANN]] ratified a global policy agreed upon by the RIRs stipulating that when the IANA IPv4 free pool reached five remaining /8 blocks, It will be simultaneously and equally distributed to the five RIRs.

In February, 2011, the [[NRO|Number Resource Organization]] announced that the free pool of available IPv4 addresses had been fully depleted. On January 31, IANA had allocated two blocks of IPv4 address space to [[APNIC]]. The action triggered a global policy to allocate the remaining IANA pool equally between the five [[RIR|Regional Internet Registries]]. IANA generally assigns IPv4 addresses to the RIRs in blocks that equate to 1/256th of the entire IPv4 address space. Each block is referred to as a “/8″ or “slash-8″. <ref>[http://www.nro.net/news/ipv4-free-pool-depleted www.nro.net]</ref> In 2009, [[ICANN]] ratified a global policy agreed upon by the RIRs stipulating that when the IANA IPv4 free pool reached five remaining /8 blocks, It will be simultaneously and equally distributed to the five [[RIR]]s.

The last five blocks of IPv4 addresses were allocated to the five RIRs during a ceremony and meeting of the RIRs which was held in Mimi, Florida. According to ICANN, the allocation of the final IPv4 addresses is analogous to the last crates of a product leaving a manufacturing  

The last five blocks of IPv4 addresses were allocated to the five RIRs during a ceremony and meeting of the RIRs which was held in Miami, Florida. According to ICANN, the allocation of the final IPv4 addresses is analogous to the last crates of a product leaving a manufacturing warehouse and going to the regional stores or distributions centers, where they can still be distributed to the public. Once they are gone, the supply is exhausted. In this case, the RIRs will distribute the last IPv4 addresses to [[ISP|Internet Service Providers]], universities, governments, telecommunications companies and other enterprises. [[Raúl Echeberría]], Chairman of the NRO emphasized, "It’s only a matter of time before the RIRs and Internet Service Providers (ISPs) must start denying requests for IPv4 address space". He also pointed out that, "Deploying [[IPv6]] is now a requirement, not an option."<ref>[http://www.icann.org/en/news/releases/release-03feb11-en.pdf www.icann.org]</ref>

warehouse and going to the regional stores or distributions centers, where they can still be distributed to the public. Once they are gone, the supply is exhausted. In this case, the RIRs will distribute the last IPv4 addresses to Internet Service Providers, universities, governments, telecommunications companies and other enterprises. Raul Echeberría, Chairman of the NRO emphasized, "It’s only a matter of time before the RIRs and Internet Service Providers (ISPs) must start denying requests for IPv4 address space. He also pointed out that, "Deploying [[IPv6]] is now a requirement, not an option.” <ref>[http://www.icann.org/en/news/releases/release-03feb11-en.pdf www.icann.org]</ref>

 

By April 2011, APNIC, Asia's RIR, had depleted all but a small subsection of its IPv4 allocation. These remaining addresses were placed on hold for start-up network operators. APNIC was the first RIR to deplete its free pool of Internet address space.<ref>[http://www.networkworld.com/news/2011/041411-apnic-ipv4-gone.html Asia out of IPv4 addresses, networkworld.com]</ref> Geoff Huston, adjunct research fellow at the Centre for Advanced Internet Architectures at Swinburne University of Technology, estimates that Europe's RIR, [[RIPE NCC]], will run out of its remaining IPv4 address space on July 22, 2012. [[ARIN]], North America's RIR, is expected to run out in 2013.<ref>[http://www.pcworld.com/businesscenter/article/247213/5_major_changes_facing_the_internet_in_2012.html 5 Major Changes Facing the Internet in 2012]</ref>

==References==

==References==

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[[Category:Glossary]]

[[Category:Glossary]]