4294967296

4294967296, also written as 4,294,967,296, is the value of 2 raised to the 32nd power (2^32). It is a key numerical boundary in computing, representing a power of two that is just above the range typically associated with 32-bit unsigned integers.

In the common 32-bit unsigned integer model, values range from 0 to 4,294,967,295. Therefore, 4,294,967,296 is not representable within that type and is often used as a modulus or wraparound value in arithmetic, memory addressing, and related systems. This property underpins overflow behavior in many programming languages and architectures.

The value can be expressed in different bases as well: decimal 4,294,967,296; hexadecimal 0x100000000; and binary a 1 followed by 32 zeros. As a power of two, it is precisely 2^32.

Applications and contexts

Memory and storage: 4,294,967,296 bytes equal 4 gibibytes (4 GiB). This boundary is significant in computer memory, operating systems, and hardware addressing.

Networking and addressing: The IPv4 address space consists of 2^32 possible addresses, totaling 4,294,967,296. This figure underlies the design of IPv4 subnetting and address allocation.

Overview

4294967296 serves as a fundamental example of a 32-bit boundary and a standard unit in discussions of binary arithmetic, data sizes, and address spaces.