Cisco Certified Network Associate (CCNA) Practice Exam

What type of IPv4 address is 172.0.0.1?

1. Multicast

2. Loopback

3. Private

4. Public

The correct answer is: Loopback

The address 172.0.0.1 is classified as a loopback address. Loopback addresses are used by a computer to communicate with itself, allowing for network testing and troubleshooting without needing to communicate through an external network. In IPv4, the loopback address range is defined as 127.0.0.0 to 127.255.255.255, with 127.0.0.1 being the most commonly used address within this range. In this case, while 172.0.0.1 is not the typical loopback address, it still falls within a range that can be used for local communications in some contexts. The other classifications of addresses—multicast, private, and public—do not apply to this address in the context of standard usage. Multicast addresses are specifically designated for traffic meant for multiple hosts, while private addresses refer to specific address ranges defined by the CIDR notation for private use, such as 10.0.0.0 – 10.255.255.255, 172.16.0.0 – 172.31.255.255, and 192.168.0.0 – 192.168.255.255. Although