Have you ever wondered how a website we type into a computer ends up showing up on our screen? We think of it like a dumbwaiter—a button is pushed and the dumbwaiter comes down from another floor. For casual use this image is fine, but if you are considering hosting a website or setting up a network, it is important to know how it works a bit more intimately.
An IP address (Internet protocol address) is how your specific network device is identified by the other computers and equipment on the network. Think of it like your house address. It’s a unique sequence of four sets of numbers. Every website address represents an IP address. When you plug in a website, your computer is accessing information on the server that IP address represents.
Without IP addresses your computer wouldn’t know where to access the webpage you are looking for, nor would websites be able to deliver the information to you. This is also how websites can region-lock portions of their website, like movie streams.
From time to time a typical computer IP address will change. A normal user won’t ever notice. But if you want to host a website, you need to know how to get a static IP address.
A static IP address, also called a “fixed” IP address, is an IP address that doesn’t change. You can then rest assured that if you set up a website or network, you will have the same IP address other computers on the network can access.
If you simply plug “how do I get a static IP address” into a search engine you’ll find multiple sites trying to sell you something. However, it is possible find out how to get a free fixed IP address by going into your system. You can find detailed instructions online for both Windows and Macintosh computers on how to get a fixed IP address.
Users outside of the United States may encounter websites which don’t work right on their computers—various websites have region locked content. You need a USA IP address in order to access them. Your best solution is to check out a proxy located in the US. A proxy masks your location and makes it look like everything you’re viewing is from the location of the proxy.
With all of this Internet stuff going on, it might be good to set up a firewall on your computer. A firewall protects you from malicious Internet attacks. While they can be expensive to acquire, pfSense is a free open source program that anyone can download. It features many of the perks of a full firewall and, as such, can be difficult to configure. There is a pfSense tutorial available for people who need help.
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