Which method allows a gateway router or firewall to act as an address converter between public and private IP addresses?

The method that allows a gateway router or firewall to act as an address converter between public and private IP addresses is Network Address Translation (NAT). NAT is essential for enabling devices on a local network to access the internet while using private IP addresses that are not routable on the global internet.

When a device with a private IP address sends a request to the internet, NAT translates this private IP to a public IP address, allowing the response to be routed back correctly. When the data returns, NAT performs the reverse translation and sends it back to the appropriate device within the private network. This process helps preserve the limited supply of public IPv4 addresses and enhances network security since internal addresses are not visible to the outside world.

In contrast, the other options do not provide the same functionality as NAT. IP Address Allocation broadly refers to how IP addresses are assigned but does not imply any translation between public and private addresses. Static Routing is concerned with manually configuring routing paths and does not affect address translation. Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) is used for assigning IP addresses to devices on a network automatically but does not perform any address translation between public and private addresses.