Fermi question · Technology

About how many distinct addresses are possible in the 32-bit IPv4 address space?

Make a fast, defensible estimate before you reveal the reference answer. Think in factors, not exact recall.

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What is your estimate?

addresses

Use a positive number. Commas and scientific notation are okay.

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Reference answer

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≈ 4.29 billion addresses

Fermi estimates are judged by scale, so a reasonable approximation can still earn a strong score.

One way to estimate it

A 32-bit field has two choices for each bit, so the address-space size is 2³².

  1. Bits32
  2. Possible values2³²
  3. Estimate≈ 4.3 × 10⁹ addresses

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