Network Information - Special-purpose Networks

Special Networks

Most people are familiar with private networks like 10.0.0.0/8, commonly used in local networks. However, private IP ranges are just one part of a broader system of reserved IP address blocks, which serve specific purposes in the global Internet architecture.

These special-purpose network ranges include link-local addressing (169.254.0.0/16), loopback (127.0.0.0/8), multicast (224.0.0.0/4), and others noted below. Each has its own rules and use cases, defined by IETF standards and enforced by networking hardware and software.

When you use the Netify IP API, these networks will be flagged with the is_bogon property.

IP API

The data shown here is available in our Netify Data Feeds solution. The data is accessible via our IP API as well as downloadable datasets.

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Special

Benchmarking Network	198.18.0.0/15 is reserved for benchmarking and testing network devices. It is used in labs to simulate traffic without affecting real networks.
Documentation Network	Documentation networks are reserved for illustrating concepts and examples. These networks should not be used on the Internet or for routing.
Link Local Network	Link-local networks are used for Automatic Private IP Addressing (APIPA). Devices assign themselves an IP in this range when one cannot be obtained from a DHCP server.
Local Network	0.0.0.0/8 is a reserved IPv4 block used for special purposes, such as indicating "no specific address" in routing, source addresses during DHCP, or as a default route.
Loopback Network	127.0.0.0/8 is the IPv4 loopback address range used for testing and diagnostics, allowing a device to communicate with itself.
Multicast Network	224.0.0.0/4 is the IPv4 multicast address range used to send data to multiple hosts simultaneously in a network, commonly for streaming, conferencing, or discovery protocols.
Private Network	10.0.0.0/8, 172.16.0.0/12 and 192.168.0.0/16 are private IPv4 address blocks used in internal networks.
Reserved Network	240.0.0.0/4 is a network reserved for future use and not used in public internet routing.
Shared Network	100.64.0.0/10 is a shared IPv4 address block used for carrier-grade NAT (CGNAT), allowing multiple customers to share a single public IP address.
Special Purpose Network	192.0.0.0/24 is a reserved IPv4 block used for special purposes, such as protocol assignments and testing.