Cisco Certified Network Associate (CCNA) 2026 – 400 Free Practice Questions to Pass the Exam

A Unique Local Address (ULA) is a type of IPv6 address that is designated for local communications within a single site or between a limited number of sites. It is not intended to be routed on the global Internet, which distinguishes it from global unicast addresses that are registered and routable across the Internet. ULAs are similar in concept to private IPv4 addresses (like those in the 10.0.0.0/8 or 192.168.0.0/16 ranges), as they allow for local addressing without the need for registration with the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA).

The structure of a ULA begins with the prefix FC00::/7, which ensures that these addresses are unique within a local context but not globally recognized or routable. This makes ULAs perfect for internal network communications, ensuring that there is no conflict with addresses used on the broader Internet.

In contrast, global unicast addresses are specifically assigned and registered by IANA, allowing for communication across the Internet. Multicast addresses serve a different purpose altogether, enabling efficient data transmission to multiple destinations simultaneously. Unspecified addresses denote the absence of a specific address and are not used for addressing per se but rather for indicating that no specific address is assigned