Question

In IPv4, a subnet mask is used to determine _______.

a. the network portion of an IP address
b. the host portion of an IP address
c. the destination MAC address
d. the source MAC address

Answer 1

A subnet mask is used to determine the network portion of an IP address.

Step-by-step explanation:

In IPv4, a subnet mask is used to determine the network portion of an IP address. The subnet mask is a 32-bit value that is applied to an IP address to divide it into a network address and a host address. The bits that are set to 1 in the subnet mask identify the network part, while the bits set to 0 represent the host part.

For example, if an IP address is 192.168.1.10 and the subnet mask is 255.255.255.0, the first three octets (192.168.1) represent the network portion, and the last octet (10) represents the host portion.

The subnet mask helps routers and other devices determine how to forward packets within a network and across different networks.