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Subnetting Tutorial Subnetting Made Easy

September 28th, 2011 Go to comments
In this article, we will learn how to subnet and make subnetting an easy task.
The table below summarizes the possible network numbers, the total number of each type, and the
number of hosts in each Class A, B, and C network.
Default subnet mask Range
Class A 255.0.0.0 (/8)

1.0.0.0 126.255.255.255

Class B 255.255.0.0 (/16)

128.0.0.0 191.255.255.255

Class C 255.255.255.0 (/24)

192.0.0.0 223.255.255.255

Table 1 Default subnet mask & range of each class

Class A addresses begin with a 0 bit. Therefore, all addresses from 1.0.0.0 to 126.255.255.255 belong to
class A (1=0000 0001; 126 = 0111 1110).
The 0.0.0.0 address is reserved for default routing and the 127.0.0.0 address is reserved for loopback
testing so they dont belong to any class.
Class B addresses begin with a 1 bit and a 0 bit. Therefore, all addresses from 128.0.0.0 to
191.255.255.255 belong to class B (128=1000 0000; 191 = 1011 1111).
Class C addresses begin with two 1 bits and a 0 bit. Class C addresses range from 192.0.0.0 to
223.255.255.255 (192 = 1100 0000; 223 = 1101 1111).
Class D & E are used for Multicast and Research purposes and we are not allowed to subnet them so
they are not mentioned here.
Note: The number behind the slash notation (/) specifies how many bits are turned on (bit 1). For
example:
+ /8 equals 1111 1111.0000 0000.0000 0000.0000 0000 -> 8 bits are turned on (bit 1)
+ /12 equals 1111 1111.1111 0000.0000 0000.0000 0000 -> 12 bits are turned on (bit 1)
+ /28 equals 1111 1111.1111 1111.1111 1111.1111 0000 -> 28 bits are turned on (bit 1)
+ /32 equals 1111 1111.1111 1111.1111 1111.1111 1111 -> 32 bits are turned on (bit 1) and this is
also the maximum value because all bits are turned on.

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The slash notation (following with a number) is equivalent to a subnet mask. If you know the slash
notation you can figure out the subnet mask and vice versa. For example, /8 is equivalent to
255.0.0.0; /12 is equivalent to 255.240.0.0; /28 is equivalent to 255.255.255.240; /32 is
equivalent to 255.255.255.255.

The Network & Host parts of each class by default

From the default subnet mask shown above, we can identify the network and host part of each class.
Notice that in the subnet mask, bit 1 represents for Network part while bit 0 presents for Host part (255
equals to 1111 1111 and 0 equals to 0000 0000 in binary form).
What is subnetting?
When changing a number in the Network part of an IP address we will be in a different network from
the previous address. For example, the IP address 11.0.0.1 belongs to class A and has a default subnet
mask of 255.0.0.0; if we change the number in the first octet (a block of 8 bits, the first octet is the
leftmost 8 bits) we will create a different network. For example, 12.0.0.1 is in a different network from
11.0.0.1. But if we change a number in the Host part, we are still in the same Network. For example,
11.1.0.1 is in the same network of 11.0.0.1.
The problem here is if we want to create 300 networks how can we do that? In the above example, we
can only create different networks when changing the first octet so we can create a maximum of 255
networks because the first octet can only range from 1 to 255 (in fact it is much smaller because class A
only range from 1 to 126). Now we have to use a technique called subnetting to achieve our purpose.
Subnetting means we borrow some bits from the Host part to add to the Network part. This
allows us to have more networks than using the default subnet mask. For example, we can borrow some
bits in the next octet to make the address 11.1.0.1 belong to a different network from 11.0.0.1.
How to subnet?
Do you remember that I said in the subnet mask, bit 1 represents for Network part while bit 0 presents
for Host part? Well, this also means that we can specify how many bits we want to borrow by changing
how many bit 0 to bit 1 in the subnet mask.
Lets come back to our example with the IP 11.0.0.1, we will write all numbers in binary form to reveal
what a computer really sees in an IP address.

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Now you can clearly see that the subnet mask will decide which is the Network part, which is the Host
part. By borrowing 8 bits, our subnet mask will be like this:

After changing the second octet of the subnet mask from all 0 to all 1, the Network part is now
extended. Now we can create new networks by changing number in the first or second octet. This
greatly increases the number of networks we can create. With this new subnet mask, IP 11.1.0.1 is in
different network from IP 11.0.0.1 because 1 in the second octet now belongs to the Network part.
So, in conclusion we subnet by borrowing bit 0 in the Host portion and converting them to bit 1.
The number of borrowed bits is depended on how many networks we need.
Note: A rule of borrowing bits is we can only borrow bit 0 from the left to the right without skipping any
bit 0. For example, you can borrow like this: 1111 1111. 1100 0000.0000 0000.0000 0000 but not this:
1111 1111. 1010 0000.0000 0000.0000 0000. In general, just make sure all your bit 1s are
successive on the left and all your bit 0s are successive on the right.
In the next part we will learn how to calculate the number of sub-networks and hosts-per-subnet
Pages: 1 2 3
Comments (239) Comments
Comment pages
Previous 1 3 4 5 850
1. Raju Gupta
June 30th, 2015
i Really influnce by ur Teaching ..methodology..great work..
2. ghafleks
July 2nd, 2015

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well done, suppose this type of question came out in exam.with this type of example how do u
expect me to convert 2^16 with no calculator?
3. philip yakwa
July 13th, 2015
fantastic expresed
4. Anonymous
July 14th, 2015
In Exercise 3 , no of host should be 2^4=16(here we borrow 4 bits) and no of host =2^162=65534.
Please let me correct if im wrong.
5. Anonymous
July 14th, 2015
Anonymous July 14th, 2015 In Exercise 3 , no of network should be 2^4=16(here we borrow 4
bits) and no of host =2^16-2=65534.
Please let me correct if im wrong.
6. Alexie Nepeh
July 17th, 2015
@ Anonymous No, you are wrong. The network address 198.23.16.0/28 has been sub-netted
already this is a class c network and the subnet mask should be 255.255.255.0 in decimal,
11111111.11111111.11111111.00000000 in binary and the actual address 198.23.16.0/24. but
instead the address given is 198.23.16.0/28, which means we have borrowed 4 bits already. so
in order to create subnets with the given mask( 255.255.255.252), we need just to borrow 2 bits.
hope im clear
7. premkuamr K
July 21st, 2015
Really great work bro
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July 26th, 2015
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10. clinton
August 12th, 2015
i need a help on these question (because of increased enrolment,Arcitic university is expanding its
stundent computers services by additional six computers labs located on the main campus.Each
lab will contain 100 new windows XP-base computers. To reduce the amount of network traffic
and increase control ,you recommend that each new lab be configured as a separate subnet .The
new computers labs caan use the network ID 172.16.0.0.What subnet masks will you use to subnet
the labs? What range of IP
Addresses can you assign to each lab? Use a table similar to the one show below to recor your
answer
11. pathu
August 13th, 2015
great
12. pathu
August 13th, 2015
nice teaching method, this is a very easy method to calculate subnetting.
thank you very much
13. ggsf
August 18th, 2015
sdfgsdfgsdfg
14. yugantha
September 1st, 2015
youve done this in a very understanding way.thank you mate!!!
15. Anonymous
September 5th, 2015
what the max number of subnet can we get in class A and in Class B and C
16. Huh
September 18th, 2015
I still dont get it. you suck
17. Huh
September 18th, 2015
There has to be an easier way to do this. you suck

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18. Anonymous
September 24th, 2015
can anyone provide me latest dumps on rahulpabale@yahoo.com
19. Anonimo
September 28th, 2015
wow da PUTO ASCO
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September 29th, 2015
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21. Omo
September 30th, 2015
Thanks, bro. It helps me much more :)
22. Omo
September 30th, 2015
Thanks, bro. It helps me much more :)
23. johnd
October 2nd, 2015
exercise 3, two subnet masks? how do you know which to use or how are both applied? I cant
follow the progression on this problem.
24. johnd
October 2nd, 2015
and this is a great site. its helped me nail down some concepts ive been struggling with. that 3rd
exercise though just isnt sinking in
25. Anonymous
October 3rd, 2015
First sentence after the first table: Class A addresses begin with a 0 bit.This is a poor
explanation. 10.16.32.100 is a class A. 172.15.10.200 is a class A. I dont understand your
methodology.
26. Anonymous
October 3rd, 2015
First sentence after the first table: Class A addresses begin with a 0 bit.This is a poor
explanation. 10.16.32.100 is a class A. 172.15.10.200 is a class A. I dont understand your

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methodology. Forget it, i got it. bit.

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29. Baqi Bellah Durrani
October 30th, 2015
Really impressive but i have one Question can we go to B and C sides as well?
30. Baqi Bellah Durrani
October 30th, 2015
i need all your Teachings materials of CCNA
i need Dumps and as well guide to CCNA exam, our teacher didnt guide and toughs correctly.
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