4. The peg.

On the peg the IP-number is mentioned. The text on the peg can be described according to the following BNF:

The Net-method of writing larger nets is an optional part of the protocol, it doesn't have to be implemented. If it is implemented, it requires more administration at the server (see below).

The short versions of the IP-number with only 1 or 2 chunks are meant for large servers where writing the whole number on the peg is just boring and time-consuming. It requires the prefix to be mentioned on the additional field paper, but that can be produced in more convenient ways. It is not recommended to work with more prefixes. It is better to write more numbers on the peg and use a smaller prefix.

If the network to be numbered is rather large and some kind of subnetting has to be implemented it is possible to give the pegs from the different subnets different colors. This has proven to be a very convenient way at HIP.