15.3.5 Addressing In Perspective
Logical addressing is one of the key concepts underlying internetworking. Whereas MAC addresses identify devices within a single local network, IP addresses provide a hierarchical addressing system that allows routers to forward packets across many interconnected networks.
IPv4 provided the addressing foundation upon which the Internet was built, while IPv6 extends that capability to support future global growth. Regardless of the protocol version, the purpose remains unchanged: to provide every device with a logical address that enables information to be delivered efficiently across a worldwide internetwork.
Having established how devices are identified, the next section examines how routers use those addresses to forward packets from one network to another.
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