The Internet on your device is powered by IP addresses assigned to you by your service provider. An IP address functions similarly to your physical address. Today, we’ll look at how dynamic IP addresses work and why a business or company needs them. In addition, we will discuss the application of dynamic IP addresses.
What is a Dynamic IP Address?
A dynamic IP address is the form of an internet protocol address that changes with time. It is entirely different from the static IP address, which doesn’t change with time and remains the same no matter what happens. Well, most home users have dynamic IP addresses because of their cost efficiency, and it is easier for the Internet Service Provider (ISP) to allocate the dynamic IP addresses to their customers.
There is a pool of IP addresses allocated by the ISP to your home network. From those IP addresses, your device pulls up the address. After that, the IP address is returned to the pool, and a new IP address is given to a device. This change of IP address can take place in a day, week, or month. It depends on the ISP provider and how they have configured the IP address allocation system.
This changing of IP addresses makes it a bit hard to access the system when you are not around it remotely. So, if you are away from the device and want to connect with it using the Internet, you must know the exact dynamic IP address of the system at the time of making the connection.
Working of Dynamic IP Address
At the very beginning, the architects of the Internet didn’t think about having an IP address that was unlimited. Besides this, there were not enough IP numbers that could be distributed to internet users. But then, with the increase of internet connectivity, problems with the limited number of IP addresses started to surface.
When a system requests a dynamic IP address from DHCP, it is given a temporary IP address that allows the system to connect with the Internet for that specified session or amount of time. Once the connection has been powered off, that temporary IP address is sent back to the DHCP and into the pool of addresses so another device can get it from the DHCP.
Likewise, even if a system makes an immediate connection with the router, there’s still a very tiny chance that the IP address it gets from the DHCP will be the same. Once the dynamic IP address is assigned to the system, it contacts the DNS service and tells it what the dynamic IP address is.
Why is there a need to use Dynamic IP Address?
The need for using a dynamic IP address is that it allows users to access the devices that are using the home network to connect with other devices with ease. If you have a new device and you want to use the Internet on it, then having a dynamic IP address allows the device to make a connection using the dynamic IP address, which is taken from the pool of addresses present in the Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP). Also, dynamic IP addresses are the ones that need the least amount of configuration for the device to start using the Internet.
On the other hand, a static IP address will require you to have an extra setup and an additional fee for getting hands-on with the static IP address in the first place. The Dynamic IP addresses don’t have any additional cost to them. Also, each ISP provider has a fixed number of static IP addresses, which it can give to the customers due to the limitation of a 32-bit number. With Dynamic IP addresses, one does not have to go through this issue due to new addresses being pulled out from the pool frequently.
Benefits of Using Dynamic IP Address
Given below are some of the significant benefits which you get with Dynamic IP addresses.
Cost
If we compare the price of acquiring a static IP address with that of acquiring a dynamic IP address, we will find that it is pretty cost-effective. The main reason behind its cost-efficiency is that dynamic IP addresses have fully automated configuration, making it an economical option for everyone.
Security
With a dynamic IP address, the same device will have different IPs instead of a single static IP. As a result, there is a low risk of being attacked via the Internet. On the other hand, it becomes difficult for a hacker to target your network and the specific devices as the address keeps on changing. Also, you can take the security up a notch by adding a VPN or a firewall to keep your IPs hidden from website tracking.
Configuration
There is no manual configuration that needs to be done with a dynamic IP address. The entire process of configuring the dynamic IP address is done by the DHCP server. Whenever it is necessary for the DHCP to change the IP address, it performs the changeover on its own, and the user doesn’t need to take any action.
Flexible
A dynamic address is always more flexible in terms of implementation. Both are setting it up, and administering it is pretty easy. On the other hand, dynamic IP addresses can be used more than once. As a result, if a device is connected to the Internet using a dynamic IP address and is turned off, the same dynamic IP address will be assigned to some other device on the network.
Ease Of Use
Whenever a user connects to a new device, the dynamic IP address will be assigned to it automatically. In some cases, the same IP address can be reused. Thus, there’s no problem with addressing conflicts in the network.
Disadvantages of using Dynamic IP Addresses
Now let’s talk about the other side of the coin, which is the disadvantages of using a Dynamic IP address.
Hosting is a Task
As we told earlier in this blog that Dynamic IP addresses change with time. Thus, most DNS have problems with it when it comes to hosting. Indeed, there are dynamic DNS services that resolve most of the issues, but they come at a high price tag. Thus, it is not recommended to host websites using dynamic IP addresses.
Reliability
When it comes to dependability, dynamic IP addresses are the ones to avoid because they experience frequent outages. This causes a disconnection, making it a difficult choice for people who enjoy playing online video games.
Tracking
With dynamic IP addresses, it becomes impossible to track down the real-world location because the geo-location service was launched with dynamic IP addresses, resulting in the feature completely stopping working.
No Remote Access
All the devices that are connected to the Internet using dynamic IP addresses cannot be accessed by the user from a remote location that is outside the network. As a result, if you are someone who constantly needs to connect with their system for work-related projects, then it is better to go with a static IP address than a dynamic one.
Difference between Dynamic IP Address and Static IP Address
Discussed below is a key part of this blog, which is the difference between static and dynamic IP addresses.
Static IP address
- The static IP address is provided by the Internet Service Provider.
- Static IP does not change with time, so when you are purchasing the static IP, you have to be careful and must know why you need it in the first place.
- Static IP can’t be changed once it is given, so once attackers know your IP address, they can find different ways to get through the security as IP will remain the same throughout the usage.
- It is hard to designate the static IP address to the user.
- The devices that are using static IP addresses can be easily traced on the Internet.
- When it comes to stability, a static IP address is more stable than a dynamic one.
- The cost to maintain the static IP address is relatively high and getting it from the ISP also costs a lot.
- You can use a static IP address in cases where your computational data isn’t confidential.
Dynamic IP address
- The dynamic IP address is assigned to a user by the Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP).
- The tendency of dynamic IP addresses to change frequently.
- In addition to this, the risk of being hacked by an attacker is relatively low as the address keeps on changing, making it hard for the attacker to track down the device using the same IP address.
- It is easy for an ISP to designate the dynamic IP address as the whole process is automated.
- Likewise, the devices which are designed to work with dynamic IP addresses are made in such a way that it is hard to locate them over the Internet.
- The cost of maintaining the dynamic IP address is relatively low. As a result, most internet users have dynamic IP addresses instead of static ones.
- Lastly, dynamic IP addresses are used in those areas where the data needs to be protected from attackers.
How to find your Dynamic IP Address?
So now, in the end, you must be wondering whether you have a static IP address or a dynamic one. Well, what’s a better way to answer this question than to help you find out by yourself?
First, if you are a regular user of a DSL or ISP service, then it is most likely that you are connected to the Internet via a dynamic IP address. But it is not a sure thing, as many providers do assign static IP addresses to their customers. So the easiest way to know if you have a dynamic IP address is by making a call to your ISP provider and asking them if they have assigned you a static or dynamic IP address.
The second method to find out if you have a dynamic IP address is by going to the Command Prompt on your system with admin rights. Once the command prompt is open, type in the command ipconfig/all and press the enter button on the keyboard.
Once the text on the command prompt stops popping out, scroll down to the text that reads “DHCP Enabled.” Read the text that is next to it. If it says “No,” that means you are working with a static IP address. On the other hand, if the text written next to the line says “Yes,” then you have a dynamic IP address. Keep in mind that this only works for Windows operating systems.
To know the type of IP address you have in MacOs, you must locate system preferences > Network > Advanced. Once you are there, go to TCP/IP and find the button which says configure IPv4. If by clicking on it, you see the word Manually, then it is a static IP address. On the other hand, if it is written USING DHCP, then it is a dynamic IP address.
Conclusion
So this is what dynamic IP addresses are all about; as previously discussed, dynamic IP addresses have some security issues. With a router, firewall, security suite, or VPN, a user can obscure their network and make it more difficult for hackers to take advantage of the vulnerabilities that are present in dynamic IP addresses.