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What is an IP address?

IP addresses are allocated to any device participating in a computer network – both private networks and the public internet.   

IP addresses can either be internal/private or external/public.  An external/public IP address is one that is accessible from the internet.  An internal/private IP address is one that is accessible only from the internal institutional network.

Only external/public IP addresses are suitable for providing institutional access to licensed commercial e-resources because they are the only ones that are accessible from the internet.

IP addresses are either static or dynamic.  A static IP address is one that is fixed and never changes.  Dynamic addresses are assigned every time users log on to the network or internet.

Only static IP addresses are suitable for providing institutional access to licensed commercial e-resources because they don't change.

Find out more about IP addresses