Class B Networks

Understanding Class B IPv4 network capacity

This is an easy networking fundamentals question that tests your grasp of IPv4 address structure and how the classful addressing scheme partitions bits between network and host identifiers. It appears regularly in networking interviews because it establishes whether you understand the basic arithmetic underlying IP subnetting.

To solve problems in this area, you need to know how many bits are allocated to each part of a classful address, then reason about how many unique values can be represented in the host portion. The question directs you to set aside reserved addresses and focus on the pure combinatorial calculation, making the logic straightforward once you've identified the relevant bit count.

• Classful vs. classless IPv4 addressing
• Network and host bit partitioning
• Powers of two and address exhaustion