Computer geeks

Blanding_Boy · Oct 13, 2011

LAST EDITED ON Oct-13-11 AT 01:55PM (MST)[p]I know this isn't a hunting thread.... I like to think of my self as one but not really.....and have a question.

Is an IP address actually tied to a single computer or can it be multiple computers that are on the same netwrok?

For example.... I have a desktop at work that is connected to the internet via a T1 line. I also use my laptop wireless at work. I will also use my personal laptop at home. I'm assuming all 3 will show different IP addresses correct? What about Iphones? How specific is an IP address is what I'm trying to ask, will each device have its own?

Try to keep it simple please

Todd Black

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AndymanSavage · Oct 13, 2011

Every device on the network will have it's own IP address. Some are static and others can change every time the device is connected. A lot depends on the device and the way it grabs an address, some are dhcp and some manually need to be assigned an open address.

But to answer the question, Yes, every device has a specific and unique IP address while on the network at the same time. The server will not assign duplicate addresses, but you could manually give two devices the same IP and theyre would be network conflict and neither would likely work.

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AndymanSavage · Oct 13, 2011

Also, I'm an HP Channel MPS Managed Print Consultant and have never had to work on computers, so any real computer geeks feel free to add anything.....

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RJ · Oct 13, 2011

LAST EDITED ON Oct-13-11 AT 03:22PM (MST)[p]

Most likely you have a DSL/Cable router at home that distributes internal IP addresses to your devices within your home network (laptop, desktop, etc). These IP's are all different and probably something like 192.168.1.2 or 192.168.100.2. The outside internet does not see these IP addresses, however when you browse a website etc the IP address that it sees will be the one provided by your ISP. That IP will show up regardless of what device you are using from within your home network. Obviously there can be exceptions to this but if you are asking this question then you will most likely not know how to change that

So essentially your router will be assigned an "outside" or public IP address in most cases, the router will then assign "internal" or private ip addresses to devices inside your home network via a dhcp server that the outside world won't be able to see unless you change settings through the router itself.

Clear as mud?

Edit to add:

If you want to find out the ip address on one of your devices if it is running windows. Click start and then run (or just type into the blank line) and type in cmd and hit enter. A black command window will pop up. Once that pops up type in ipconfig and hit enter and that will provide your ip configuration for that device. I am willing to bet that if you do this on your home network it will be a 192.168.x.x number. At your work it is whatever you network administration has set up.

2lumpy · Oct 13, 2011

Andyman is right, as far as the environment you explained. Every machine needs a unique IP and if any two exist on the local network, the first one to start up controls the IP number and the second machine will get a message telling the user the IP number is already in use, if the second machine as the same number as the first.

Now then, in the deviant world in which we live, thar's people who, for any number of reasons, want to hid and cheat and cause the rest of us a boat load of trouble, so "IP cheating" "IP hiding" takes place, which is why the good guys have to go through a lot of time and trouble tracing IPs back to individual people. The IP system can is trickable and if your rotten enough and chose to cause problems you can hide in it.

DC

heartshot · Oct 13, 2011

I remember years back on this site this debate came up. People were trying to prove that that 3 different screen names were the same person because they all shared the same IP adress in their profile (click on the computer next their name)

It turned out that several members ended up sharing various duplicate IP addresses in the profiles even though they didn't know each other. Ever since then I do not trust the IP adress to be computer specific

For example 2lumpy has over 250 IP adresses listed in his profile. Does this mean he has used over 250 computers to access MM?

I think that there is someone on the www right now that has the same IP adress as I have right now.

Disclaimer: This is all just my opinion and I know nothing formal on this subject.

D13er · Oct 13, 2011

well...I know nothing about computers other than when founder bans your IP address you are screwed....

JB

VelvetyJones · Oct 13, 2011

bull butter D13er.
and no,not every computer has a different IP number,it was proved on here years ago,internet providers let several computers run on/and show the same Ip's

[font color = red size = red size = 10 face ="face"]TAKE NOTE:MY SIGNATURE WON'T PLEASE EVERYBODY SO DON'T EVEN READ BELOW IF YOU'RE EASILY OFFENDED BY EVERYDAY BS ON MM[/font]

Blanding_Boy · Oct 13, 2011

OK, that is what I thought so hypothetical question here...

Lets say a MM user (user x with email [email protected])has several of their IP addresses matching (identical numbers) to a different user (user y with email of [email protected]) then ???

A-either they are one in the same user/person OR

B--2 unique users are using the same computer?

C-Your an expert computer hacker that can mask and steal IP addresses.

Is that correct, any other options?

Todd Black

Visit our YouTube page
http://www.youtube.com/user/bulls4bto?feature=mhum

VelvetyJones · Oct 13, 2011

IP addresses ain't always accurate,especially on MM

[font color = red size = red size = 10 face ="face"]TAKE NOTE:MY SIGNATURE WON'T PLEASE EVERYBODY SO DON'T EVEN READ BELOW IF YOU'RE EASILY OFFENDED BY EVERYDAY BS ON MM[/font]

Blanding_Boy · Oct 13, 2011

velvety....What does that mean? Are they right 95% of the time, five out of every ten are wrong what? If user x shows 5 IP addresses on their profile and user Y shows 4 on theirs and 3 of them are the same (they match) are those good odds that user x and y are the same person or at least from the same a,b,c computers.

Todd Black

Visit our YouTube page
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VelvetyJones · Oct 13, 2011

not at all,
users using the same internet provider can show the same IP numbers(sometimes)
who you trying to figure out?

[font color = red size = red size = 10 face ="face"]TAKE NOTE:MY SIGNATURE WON'T PLEASE EVERYBODY SO DON'T EVEN READ BELOW IF YOU'RE EASILY OFFENDED BY EVERYDAY BS ON MM[/font]

D13er · Oct 13, 2011

which MM'er pissed you off B-boy??.....we'll help you find'em...lol

JB

2lumpy · Oct 13, 2011

I'm a tech support administrator for 3000 plus computers. I'm at a different computer every 20 minutes through the day, 260 days a year. I need to test internet configurations a dozen times a day by accessing web sites. Because I like to see what ya'll are doing and because I need to go to a web site to do my testing, one of the sites I usually check is MM. So, when I login, if I login, I could come to MM from anyone of 3000 different IP addresses. If I send a PM or any e-mail I could be sending it from a e-mail provider from anyone of those 3000 machine as well. So when I login using my password, 2lumpy has logged in using hundreds of different IP numbers.

Make sense?

DC

VelvetyJones · Oct 13, 2011

but even guys using the same computer day in,day out might have many different IP's

[font color = red size = red size = 10 face ="face"]TAKE NOTE:MY SIGNATURE WON'T PLEASE EVERYBODY SO DON'T EVEN READ BELOW IF YOU'RE EASILY OFFENDED BY EVERYDAY BS ON MM[/font]

2lumpy · Oct 13, 2011

One more think, just to complicate things even more. Some but not all of the 3000 computers us a dynamic IP address (DHCP) which means every time you turn one of those computers off and back on, it can get a different IP address than it had 5 minutes before.

Therefore, in theory, if 2lumpy is trouble shooting a computer using a DHCP IP addressing system, and I start it up and login into MM, then turn the computer off, and two minutes later, turn it back on and login into MM again, the same computer could and most likely will show 2lumpy has two different IP's, but MM can't tell if they came from the same computer or two different ones. In fact, in this senario, I logged in from the same machine.

Ugh,
DC

heartshot · Oct 14, 2011

That is a lot of computers 2lumpy.

So based on what RJ said in post #3 above, I would think it is possible that your Internet Service Provider (ISP)could assign an "outside" or public IP address that is identical to one that it previously assigned to someone else on a diffrerent day.?.?.

BlandingBoy: my opinionin - If 4/5 are the same, most likely they are the same person; however, I would never back that opinion up with money.

Are you trying to connect Velvet to Bbop to Bessy

2lumpy · Oct 14, 2011

Your right heartshot, the first 5 or 6 digits "could generally" get you in the right neighborhood but there are too many dynamics to how IP's are assigned or used to be 100% bullet proof sure that a IP number is always coming from the same computer or the same person. Not in the flexible networks we are dealing with today.

The thing to remember is there are some cleaver folks out there that know an IP can be incriminating so they do things to keep an IP from leading you back to them. A geek or less, can change his/her static IP every ten minutes if they want too, let alone the constant changing of IPs on DHCP and "public access" networks.

I think we are all pretty much saying the same thing, just trying to help BB understand what goes on with IP addresses.

DC

BuckSnort · Oct 15, 2011

There's gonna be a lot of azz kickin' if sageadvice figures out how to link IP addresses to physical addresses... LOL

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