All IP addresses contain 4 numeric segments, separated by periods. See example below. An IP address is not the same as a domain name or an email address. For an institutional subscription, we limit access to one class B IP address range, or multiple class C IP address range. You can add as many IP addresses or class C IP address ranges to your registration, provided you do not exceed this limit, or exceed the scope of access as defined in the Site Licence Agreement .
Some institutions use proxy servers to network their environment.
A proxy server is a computer with a single IP address, which handles all internet traffic for a number of individual computers within an organisation. A firewall is like a proxy server, with special software designed to protect the organisation from hackers and viruses. We permit the use of proxy server IP addresses on your registration, provided they serve only computers within your organisation, and they do not exceed your access limit. Some organisations, however, are very security-conscious about the information they give out, and do not wish to even enter their IP addresses on our registration forms. For such organisations, we will arrange access for their readers to be controlled by username and password, rather than IP address.