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I have an #AskFedi question!

I have been using my phone (on t-mobile) as a hotspot to connect my laptop to the internet. How is it assigning IP addresses to my computer? Are they IP addresses that are owned by t-mobile? Are the ones they give me to use shared with other people that use t-mobile? Are they reusing a pool of the same ones access all their subscribers? Or am I misunderstanding how IP addressing is working in this context.
@˗ˏˋ wakest ˎˊ˗
How is it assigning IP addresses to my computer?

Your phone acts as your router would in your home.

Are they IP addresses that are owned by t-mobile?

Yes, the same way Verizon owns blocks of IP addresses, AT&T, CloudFlare, GoDaddy, Digital Ocean, etc…

Are the ones they give me to use shared with other people that use t-mobile?

Not at the same time, but yes.

Are they reusing a pool of the same ones access all their subscribers?

Yes. Home router IP addresses tend not to change too often but I expect mobile IP addresses to change more frequently.