Question

What aspect of ip addresses makes it necessary to have one address per network interface, rather than just one per host? in light of your answer, why does ip tolerate point-to-point interfaces that have nonunique addresses or no addresses?

Answer 1

Each network interface requires its own IP address to properly route traffic, as addresses identify both the host and the specific interface. IP tolerates nonunique addresses on point-to-point connections because these simple connections don't require complex routing based on addresses.

Step-by-step explanation:

The need for each network interface to have a distinct IP address arises from the fact that IP addresses are used to identify not just the host itself, but also the network interface through which it is connected to the network. This is crucial because a single host could have multiple interfaces, each connected to different networks, requiring unique identifiers to route traffic properly.

IP does tolerate point-to-point connections having nonunique addresses or no addresses in some cases because these connections are inherently simple, with only two endpoints, and thus do not require address-based routing. Instead, the connection itself is identified by its endpoints, and data sent across the connection doesn't have the same need for unique address identification as data traversing complex network paths.