What is the identification of hosts using eight sets of hexadecimal numbers called?

The term for the identification of hosts using eight sets of hexadecimal numbers refers specifically to IPv6 addressing. IPv6 addresses are structured as eight groups of four hexadecimal digits, which allows for a vast number of unique IP addresses compared to its predecessor, IPv4. This representation is crucial as the internet continues to grow and requires more IP addresses for devices.

IPv4 addressing consists of four octets, typically shown as decimal numbers, and is limited in the number of unique addresses available. MAC addressing pertains to the hardware identification of devices rather than their network addresses, while network addressing is a more general term that can encompass various types of addressing schemes, including both IPv4 and IPv6. Therefore, the format described in the question aligns exclusively with IPv6 addressing.