CIDR (Classless Inter-Domain Routing) is a method used to allocate IP addresses and create network masks. CIDR notation such as /24 or /27 defines how many bits are used for the network portion of an IP address.
IP Address: 192.168.0.1/24
| CIDR | Hosts |
|---|---|
| /24 | 254 |
| /25 | 126 |
| /26 | 62 |
| /27 | 30 |
| /28 | 14 |
| /29 | 6 |
| /30 | 2 |
A subnet mask determines which portion of an IP address represents the network and which portion represents hosts.
CIDR improves IP address allocation efficiency and reduces routing table size.