Mobile Internet Protocol
The Mobile Internet Protocol (Mobile IP) was defined by the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF). It is an intermediate solution to the problems of network devices changing their location. Stronger procedures are being developed as part of the IETF's IPv6 project to renew standards for the Internet Protocol.
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Purpose
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An IP Address is closely linked to the network upon which the device being addressed resides. The Internet Protocol was written when computers were large and immobile. It did not account for the possibility of someone picking up their computer, taking it to a different part of the world and connecting it into the Internet expecting it to receive data as usual. Mobile IP resolves this problem by the concepts of forwarding and "care-of" addresses.
Function
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Traffic will arrive at a network gateway addressed to one of the computers behind it on the Local Area Network. However, the gateway can't reach it at its traditional address if the computer has gone. When the computer arrives at its new destination and connects to its new Local Area Network, it recognizes that it is not in its usual place. It requests a temporary IP address from the network's router and then contacts its home router, telling it where to forward data.
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Features
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Mobile IP is meant to address situations where a computer is moved to a different location for a few weeks but is expected to return. The computer will be assigned a new permanent IP address on its new network if it is permanently moved.
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References
- Photo Credit laptop image by Jorge Figueiredo from Fotolia.com
