IP Configuration command line Tool for windows (ipconfig)

Earlier versions of windows had “winipcfg” tool for performing ip configuration activities. “winipcfg” was replaced by “ipconfig” windows IP configuration tool from windows XP onwards. It is used to display the TCP/IP network configuration values.

To run it, enter “ipconfig” in the command prompt. This will display your IP address as follows:

In case your computer is part of a LAN using a router, the IP displayed by this command will be your Computers IP on the LAN and not the IP that connects to teh internrt. To obtain the IP address of your LAN on internet, you can try any DSL Reports whois.

The IP given is the local address on the network. This information can be used in diagnosing network problems. The “gateway” or router address on the local network is also displayed by this command.

Various switches that can be used with IPConfig

ipconfig switches can be invoked by entering “ipconfig /{switch}”. To display a list of all available switches, enter “ipconfig/?” or “ipconfig -?”. The most commonly used switches by a home user are :

•  all – to display a detailed ip configuration you can use ipconfig/all
• release- to release your IP address.
• renew – asking your network adapter to renew your machine’s ip address
• flushdns- this switch is used to clear all DNS info

The above mentioned switches are very handy for trouble shooting your internet connection issues.

The command syntax is netstat [-a] [-b] [-e] [-n] [-o] [-p proto] [-r] [-s] [-v] [interval] A brief description of the switches is given in Table I below. Note that switches for Netstat use the dash symbol “-” rather than the slash “/”.

Netstat usefulness

It is a command-line tool, which is very useful to check the behaviour of your network. It allows you to check all aspects of TCP/IP. It also tells you what all connections your machine is making presently. You can also check if any virus, malware or other unwanted script is making connection to other harmful sources and stealing your information through this command.

Some examples of usage of netstat command for non-professional users are:

Checking connections

TCP and UDP connections and their IP and port addresses can be seen by entering a command combining two switches: netstat -an

This command displays protocol, the local address, the remote address, and the connection state along with port.

Table II. Description of various connection states

How to check for unwanted or risky connections?

If u doubt that there are unwanted malwares on ur system trying to establish risky connections. You can find out which programs are making connections with the outside world, we can use the command

netstat -b

Actually, it is better to check over a period of time and we can add a number that sets the command to run at fixed intervals. Also, it is best to create a written record of the connections that are made over some period of time. The command can then be written

netstat -b 5 >> C:\connections.txt

Note that as written, this command will run with five-second intervals until stopped by entering “Ctrl+c“, which is a general command to exit. (Some reports say that this can be fairly CPU intensive so it may cause a slower, single-core machine to run sluggishly. Note that the Process ID (PID) is given. This command can be combined with other tools such as Task Manager to analyze what executable files and processes are active and are trying to make Internet connections.

ipconfig

Ipconfig is a Console Command which can be issued to the Command Line Interpreter (or command prompt) to display the network settings currently assigned to any or all network adapters in the machine. This command can be utilised to verify a network connection as well as to verify your network settings.

www.computerhope.com/ipconfig.htm

For Windows 95,98,ME use winipcfg
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;141698

netstat

Displays active TCP connections, ports on which the computer is listening, Ethernet statistics, the IP routing table, IPv4 statistics (for the IP, ICMP, TCP, and UDP protocols), and IPv6 statistics (for the IPv6, ICMPv6, TCP over IPv6, and UDP over IPv6 protocols). Used without parameters, netstat displays active TCP connections.

http://www.microsoft.com/resources/documentation/windows/xp/all/proddocs/en-us/netstat.mspx

tracert

The tracert command is used to visually see a network packet being sent and received and the amount of hops required for that packet to get to its destination.

Users with Microsoft Windows 2000 and Windows XP who need additional information network latency and network loss should also consider using the pathping command.

www.computerhope.com/tracert.htm

ping

Helps in determining TCP/IP Networks IP address as well as determine issues with the network and assists in resolving them.

www.computerhope.com/pinghlp.htm

pathping

Provides information about network latency and network loss at intermediate hops between a source and destination. Pathping sends multiple Echo Request messages to each router between a source and destination over a period of time and then computes results based on the packets returned from each router.

www.microsoft.com/resources/documentation/windows/xp/all/proddocs/en-us/pathping.mspx?mfr=true

telnet

Telnet is software that allows users to remotely access another computer such as a server, network device, or other computer. With telnet users can connect to a device or computer, manage a network device, setup a device, transfer files, etc.

www.computerhope.com/software/telnet.htm#03

ftp

FTP is short for File Transfer Protocol, this page contains additional information about the FTP command and help using that command in Unix and MS-DOS (Windows).

www.computerhope.com/software/ftp.htm

route

The function and syntax of the Windows ROUTE command is similar to the UNIX or Linux route command. Use the command to manually configure the routes in the routing table.

www.computerhope.com/routehlp.htm

arp

Displays, adds, and removes arp information from network devices.

www.computerhope.com/arphlp.htm

nslookup

Displays information that you can use to diagnose Domain Name System (DNS) infrastructure. Before using this tool, you should be familiar with how DNS works. The Nslookup command-line tool is available only if you have installed the TCP/IP protocol.

http://www.microsoft.com/resources/documentation/windows/xp/all/proddocs/en-us/nslookup.mspx

nbtstat

MS-DOS utility that displays protocol statistics and current TCP/IP connections using NBT.

www.computerhope.com/nbtstat.htm

netsh
http://www.microsoft.com/resources/documentation/windows/xp/all/proddocs/en-us/netsh.mspx

One common way of using netsh is to reset the TCP/IP in Windows 2k/XP

Type this in Run or DOS Window – “netsh int ip reset”

In Windows XP you can run a graphical diagnostics by typing “netsh diag gui” into the run dialogue box. (This may take a little time to startup)

getmac

DOS command used to show both local and remote MAC addresses. When run with no parameters (ie. getmac) it displays MAC addresses for the local system. When run with the /s parameter (eg. getmac /s \\foo) it displays MAC addresses for the remote computer. When the /v parameter is used, it also displays the associated connection name and network adapter name.

Included with Windows XP, Windows 2003 Server, and Windows 2000 Resource Kit. Can be downloaded for the Windows 2000 here: http://www.microsoft.com/windows2000/techinfo/reskit/tools/existing/getmac-o.asp

http://www.microsoft.com/resources/documentation/windows/xp/all/proddocs/en-us/getmac.mspx

Find All Active/Used IP Addresses on Your Network

There is a really neat way that you can quite easily find all active/used IP Addresses on your network without the need for any third party applications or worse, pinging each IP Address individually.

Open the Command Prompt and type in the following:

FOR /L %i IN (1,1,254) DO ping -n 1 192.168.10.%i | FIND /i “Reply”>>c:\ipaddresses.txt

Change 192.168.10 to match you own network.

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