If we're going to talk about "need", then you don't even need a computer. You could walk over to the rack and watch the yougram on its management console. But

If we're going to talk about "need", then you don't even need a computer. You could walk over to the rack and watch the yougram on its management console. But there are advantages to having a computer. Similarly, there are advantages to doing your networking right, and that means globally-unique IPs.