Extron Electronics VN-Matrix 200 Series - Manual (Page 99)

Multicast Address Range
A further range of addresses is available for multicast usage:
224.0.0.0 – 239.255.255.255
These addresses (also known as Class D addresses) are used to allow several devices to be
part of the same multicast group. Each device in the group has the same multicast address
and can effectively send data to all other devices in the same group simultaneously.
Choosing IP Addresses
If your VN 200 units are connected via their own independent network, then follow the
guidelines below for choosing your IP addresses.
However, if you intend connecting your VN 200 units to an existing network, you will need
to advise the network administrator and ask them to allocate suitable addresses to you.
On an independent network, you can (in theory) use just about any addresses you wish.
However, it is generally recommended that you use the Class C format (from 192.0.0.1 up
to 223.255.255.253).
Remember that there are two rules for choosing IP addresses:
• The network identifier must be the same for each address
• The host identifier must be unique for each address
Applying these rules to Class C addresses, it can be seen that the first three decimal values
of your IP addresses must all be the same, while the last value is used to uniquely identify
each device.
The following is an example of a valid Class C addressing scheme:
Device IP Address
Device 1 208.132.180.41
Device 2 208.132.180.42
Device 3 208.132.180.43
NOTE: The host identifiers (41, 42, and 43 in the above example) need not be
sequential or in any particular order. However, it is recommended that you
group the numbers for simplicity.
The following is an example of an invalid Class C addressing scheme:
Device IP Address
Device 1 208.132.180.41
Device 2 192.157.180.42
Device 3 209.100.123.43
NOTE: These are invalid because the network identifier for each address is not the
same, even though each IP address is unique.
You can use the Ping command from your computer to check that a device at a particular
address is responding correctly (see “Understanding Network Performance”).
VN-Matrix 200 Series • IP Addressing 94