The files making up a website are hosted on a server. This server is connected to by Internet Protocols or IPs. Every computer connected to the public Internet has a unique IP, typically looking like this:
758.71.35.420
As you can see an IP address is communicated with sets of numbers seperated by decimals. IPs are separated into different blocks, designated by their hosting provider.
Class C IP Address
There are five classes of IP ranges. Class A, B, C, D and E. Each class allows for a different range of IP addresses.
The sets of numbers in an IP are split into two sections: Net and Host. The Net section contains the first set of numbers. It’s used to identify the network that a computer belongs to. Host (sometimes referred to as Node) identifies the actual computer on the network. The Host section always contains the last octet. There are five IP classes plus certain special addresses. The one we’re talking about is again, that Class C.
Class C addresses are commonly used for small to mid-size businesses. For our terms, an octet is a grouping of eight bits. IP addresses with a first octet ranging from 192 to 223 are part of this class. Class C addresses also include the second and third octets as part of the Net identifier. The last octet is used to identify each host.
Class Address Range Supports
Class A 1.0.0.1 to 126.255.255.254 Supports 16 million hosts on each of 127 networks.
Class B 128.1.0.1 to 191.255.255.254 Supports 65,000 hosts on each of 16,000 networks.
Class C 192.0.1.1 to 223.255.254.254 Supports 254 hosts on each of 2 million networks.
Class D 224.0.0.0 to 239.255.255.255 Reserved for multicast groups.
Class E 240.0.0.0 to 254.255.255.254 Reserved.
Why is Class C Important?
Search engines take a close look at the servers hosting your site. To combat spamming, sites on the same server are viewed as being on the same server. Search engines have removed linking power from one site to another if they are on the same class C IP.
In other terms, two sites on the same host will only be as powerful as one. While there is no penalty, there is a deteriment to their power to help each other.
When conducting your search engine marketing campaign ensure you are persuing links on sites with unique class C IP addresses for maximum promotion power.
