These bits become a tradeoff based on the network class (A, B or C). Subnet masks for a Class C network (small network) use the first 24 bits for subnet ID and the last 8 for host ID. These last 8 ...

A bit value of 11111111 is equal to 2 7 +2 6 +2 5 +2 4 +2 3 +2 2 +2 1 +2 0, or 255. By contrast, a bit value of 00100001 is equal to 2 5 +2 0, or 33. A subnet mask neither works as an IP address ...