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In this lesson,

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we're going to cover IP address management.

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Now, in our modern enterprise scale networks,

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it's important that we properly manage

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our IP addresses efficiently

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as part of our ongoing processes and procedures.

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Now, in order to do this at scale,

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we're usually going to rely on automation and orchestration

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within the IP address management process.

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IP address management, also known simply as IPAM or IPAM,

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is a methodology and suite of tools

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that's used to plan, track, and manage

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the IP address space inside of your network infrastructure.

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Now, whenever you're using a DHCP server on your network,

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you are already conducting an automated method

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of assigning and configuring IP addresses

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to all of your clients.

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Yes, this is technically IP address management,

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but it's only one small part

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of this entire process known as IP address management.

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Now, when you really think about IP address management,

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you have to think about all the things that it encompasses,

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including the comprehensive management

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of your organization's assigned IP address space,

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including the tracking, planning, and managing

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of the network's address inventory.

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Now, back in the old days,

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the IP address management functions

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were usually conducted manually

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by relying on things like spreadsheets

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and a whole lot of human intervention.

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However, with the scale and complexity

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of modern cloud-based networks,

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we now have to use automation and orchestration

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to perform IP address management,

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'cause all of our older manual approaches

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simply cannot operate fast enough

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to meet our increasingly demanding needs.

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So instead, we're usually going to be

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using integrated IP address management

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inside of our networks by using automation

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and orchestration functions

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to transform this process into a dynamic tool

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that not only oversees the allocation of IP addresses,

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but also ensures that each device's addresses

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are going to align

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with the overall network policies and architectures.

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By using IP address management,

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we're going to be able to create a systematic

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and error-resistant method of managing vast pools

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of IP addresses inside of our enterprise networks.

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Now, these automated systems

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are capable of detecting and resolving IP conflicts,

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ensuring that two devices are not being assigned

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the same IP address on that network,

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and this helps to maintain the integrity of this network.

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Now, our automated IP address management systems

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can also be configured to seamlessly interact

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with our DHCP and DNS servers

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to provide a more cohesive management of our IP addresses

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by ensuring that each component is aware of

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and working in sync with the others on the network.

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This integration is critically important

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if you're going to be using horizontal cloud scaling

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where new virtual machines are being automatically added

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and removed from your network

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to support the changing demands from your users.

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This way, anytime you have new virtual machine

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that's added into your network,

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it's automatically going to be assigned a new IP address,

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and that IP address will also be associated

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with the host name

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inside of your organization's internal DNS server too.

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Now, most IP address management solutions

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are also going to include comprehensive reporting features

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that you can use as a network administrator

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to get a deeper understanding of the network's performance,

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to detect anomalies,

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and then plan for any potential network changes

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or expansions in the future.

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IP address management also is going to be used

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by our cybersecurity teams to understand what devices

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have been allowed to connect to the network,

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what IP addresses they're using

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while they're connected to the network,

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and other things like that.

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Another security function provided

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by the IP address management system

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is its ability to help us identify any unauthorized devices

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or suspicious traffic patterns

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that are based on the different devices

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that are requesting IP addresses

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from your centralized management system.

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So remember, when it comes to IP address management or IPAM,

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what we're really talking about here

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is the methodology and a suite of tools

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that are used to plan, track,

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and manage the IP address space inside

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your organization's enterprise network infrastructure.

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Now, IP address management isn't just about adopting

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a new tool though, but it's also about a strategic shift

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in managing the foundational elements

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of our enterprise networks,

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so that we can enhance our network's efficiency, security,

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and resilience in the future.