How do I change my IP Address?There are MANY methods to change your IP address. Some methods will work for you but may not work for someone else and vice versa. We're going to cover how to change your IP address in Windows 2000, XP, 2003, and Vista using command prompt.
It definitely helps if you know how the IP is being assigned to you.
You can read our DHCP definition to get a better understanding.
One of the easier methods to change your IP address is to turn off your modem/router/computer overnight. Then turn it back on the following morning. This method WILL NOT work if your ISP has a long lease time set for your IP.
The following method will ONLY work if your computer is being assigned your external IP and not a router.
How to determine if your computer is being assigned the external IP
If your connection is direct to your computer and your computer gets the public IP and not a router, you can try this:
For Windows 2000, XP, and 2003
1. Click Start
2. Click Run
3. Type in cmd and hit ok (this opens a Command Prompt)
4. Type ipconfig /release and hit enter
5. Click Start, Control Panel, and open Network Connections
6. Find and Right click on the active Local Area Connection and choose Properties
7. Double-click on the Internet Protocol (TCP/IP)
8. Click on Use the following IP address
9. Enter a false IP like 123.123.123.123
10. Press Tab and the Subnet Mask section will populate with default numbers
11. Hit OK twice
12. Right click the active Local Area Connection again and choose Properties
13. Double-click on the Internet Protocol (TCP/IP)
14. Choose Obtain an IP address automatically
15. Hit OK twice
16. Go to What Is My IP to see if you have a new IP address
For Vista (Windows 7 is very similar)
1. Click Start
2. Click All Programs expand the Accessories menu
3. In the Accessories menu, Right Click Command Prompt and choose Run as administrator
4. Type ipconfig /release and hit enter
5. Click Start, Control Panel, and open Network and Sharing Center. Depending on your view, you may have to click Network and Internet before you see the Network and Sharing Center icon
6. From the Tasks menu on the left, choose Manage Network Connections
7. Find and Right click on the active Local Area Connection and choose Properties (If you’re hit with a UAC prompt, choose Continue)
8. Double-click on Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP/IPv4)
9. Click on Use the following IP address
10. Enter a false IP like 123.123.123.123
11. Press Tab and the Subnet Mask section will populate with default numbers
12. Hit OK twice
13. Right click the active Local Area Connection again and choose Properties
14. Double-click on Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP/IPv4)
15. Choose Obtain an IP address automatically
16. Hit OK twice
17. Go to What Is My IP to see if you have a new IP address
Some people have inquired about manually assigning their IP address. This IS possible, but you run a very high risk of your ISP banning you from connecting to the internet. To manually change your IP, follow the steps above for your Operating System. In step 9 or 10, depending on your O/S, enter an IP similar to the one displayed in the command prompt window. For example, if the IP displayed in the command prompt window is 75.1.2.3, change yours to 75.1.2.4. You’ll also need to manually enter the Subnet, Gateway and DNS Server IP addresses. If the new IP you give your computer doesn’t work, chances are someone else on the ISP network has already been assigned that IP. You’ll need to move on to the next one and keep trying until you find an open one. Keep in mind that some ISPs match up your MAC or modem data to the address that’s been assigned. If those 2 things don’t match up, you won’t be able to connect no matter what. If your router gets the IP and not your computer, you’ll need to http in to your routers interface and manually assign the IP there. It’s pretty much the same method as assigning the IP to your computer. The method that varies is in how you reach your routers interface. You can get the instructions from your manufacturer’s website.
MAC Cloning. What is a MAC address? A MAC address is a physical hardware address assigned to each device that has the capability of connecting to a network. The internet is nothing more than a large network. The MAC address is something that is assigned in the chip on the device and is not something the user can change. MAC cloning can only be done at your router providing it has those capabilities. Most ISPs assign their IPs based on the MAC address in your equipment. If the MAC address of your router is 00-11-22-33-44-55 and you connect to your ISP, the DHCP server records your MAC and assigns an IP. If you disconnect from the ISP, you lose your IP address. The next time you connect, the DHCP server sees your MAC, looks to see if it has assigned an IP address to you before. If it has and the lease time has not expired, it will most likely give you the same IP address you had before disconnecting and will not change your IP.
Please post any questions or comments in the Change My IP Address thread.
How To Trace An Email AddressWhat if I have a static IP address?
If your IP is static, then you CAN’T change it without contacting your ISP. Although not impossible, it is very rare that an ISP would assign you a static IP without some sort of increased level of service like a business account. However, an ISP can set a lengthy lease time for your IP address and make it look like you've assigned a static IP. If you have a long lease time (explained in this article) on your IP then you may not be able to change your IP address without leaving your modem or router unplugged for a long period of time (more than 8 hours), or without cloning your MAC address, which I’ll explain later in this article.It definitely helps if you know how the IP is being assigned to you.
You can read our DHCP definition to get a better understanding.
What is an IP address lease time?
An IP lease time is the amount of time your ISP determines you’ll be assigned a particular IP. Some IP lease times could be just a couple of hours, where some are set to a few days, and other IP lease times could be set for as long as a year or more. This setting is completely up to your ISP.One of the easier methods to change your IP address is to turn off your modem/router/computer overnight. Then turn it back on the following morning. This method WILL NOT work if your ISP has a long lease time set for your IP.
The following method will ONLY work if your computer is being assigned your external IP and not a router.
How to determine if your computer is being assigned the external IP
If your connection is direct to your computer and your computer gets the public IP and not a router, you can try this:
For Windows 2000, XP, and 2003
1. Click Start
2. Click Run
3. Type in cmd and hit ok (this opens a Command Prompt)
4. Type ipconfig /release and hit enter
5. Click Start, Control Panel, and open Network Connections
6. Find and Right click on the active Local Area Connection and choose Properties
7. Double-click on the Internet Protocol (TCP/IP)
8. Click on Use the following IP address
9. Enter a false IP like 123.123.123.123
10. Press Tab and the Subnet Mask section will populate with default numbers
11. Hit OK twice
12. Right click the active Local Area Connection again and choose Properties
13. Double-click on the Internet Protocol (TCP/IP)
14. Choose Obtain an IP address automatically
15. Hit OK twice
16. Go to What Is My IP to see if you have a new IP address
For Vista (Windows 7 is very similar)
1. Click Start
2. Click All Programs expand the Accessories menu
3. In the Accessories menu, Right Click Command Prompt and choose Run as administrator
4. Type ipconfig /release and hit enter
5. Click Start, Control Panel, and open Network and Sharing Center. Depending on your view, you may have to click Network and Internet before you see the Network and Sharing Center icon
6. From the Tasks menu on the left, choose Manage Network Connections
7. Find and Right click on the active Local Area Connection and choose Properties (If you’re hit with a UAC prompt, choose Continue)
8. Double-click on Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP/IPv4)
9. Click on Use the following IP address
10. Enter a false IP like 123.123.123.123
11. Press Tab and the Subnet Mask section will populate with default numbers
12. Hit OK twice
13. Right click the active Local Area Connection again and choose Properties
14. Double-click on Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP/IPv4)
15. Choose Obtain an IP address automatically
16. Hit OK twice
17. Go to What Is My IP to see if you have a new IP address
Some people have inquired about manually assigning their IP address. This IS possible, but you run a very high risk of your ISP banning you from connecting to the internet. To manually change your IP, follow the steps above for your Operating System. In step 9 or 10, depending on your O/S, enter an IP similar to the one displayed in the command prompt window. For example, if the IP displayed in the command prompt window is 75.1.2.3, change yours to 75.1.2.4. You’ll also need to manually enter the Subnet, Gateway and DNS Server IP addresses. If the new IP you give your computer doesn’t work, chances are someone else on the ISP network has already been assigned that IP. You’ll need to move on to the next one and keep trying until you find an open one. Keep in mind that some ISPs match up your MAC or modem data to the address that’s been assigned. If those 2 things don’t match up, you won’t be able to connect no matter what. If your router gets the IP and not your computer, you’ll need to http in to your routers interface and manually assign the IP there. It’s pretty much the same method as assigning the IP to your computer. The method that varies is in how you reach your routers interface. You can get the instructions from your manufacturer’s website.
MAC Cloning. What is a MAC address? A MAC address is a physical hardware address assigned to each device that has the capability of connecting to a network. The internet is nothing more than a large network. The MAC address is something that is assigned in the chip on the device and is not something the user can change. MAC cloning can only be done at your router providing it has those capabilities. Most ISPs assign their IPs based on the MAC address in your equipment. If the MAC address of your router is 00-11-22-33-44-55 and you connect to your ISP, the DHCP server records your MAC and assigns an IP. If you disconnect from the ISP, you lose your IP address. The next time you connect, the DHCP server sees your MAC, looks to see if it has assigned an IP address to you before. If it has and the lease time has not expired, it will most likely give you the same IP address you had before disconnecting and will not change your IP.
Why clone a MAC address?
Getting a new MAC address most likely equals a new IP. How to clone your MAC and if your router has this feature is dependent on the router itself. You’ll need to find the instructions on the manufacturer’s website. We offer a Quick Reference List on our Router Support page.Please post any questions or comments in the Change My IP Address thread.
Learn how to trace an email address
Trace an email address in the most popular programs like Microsoft Outlook, Hotmail, Yahoo, Gmail, AOL, by finding the header
What is an email header?
Each email you receive comes with headers. The headers contain information about the routing of the message and the originating Internet Protocol address of the message. Not all electronic messeges you receive will allow you to track them back to the originating point and depending on how you send messages determines whether or not they can trace an email address back to you. The headers don't contain any personal information. At most, the results of the trace with show you the origination IP and the computer name that sent the email. After viewing the trace information, the initiating IP can be looked up to determine from where the message was sent. IP address location information DOES NOT contain your street name, house number, or phone number. The trace will most likely determine the city and the ISP the sender used.
How do I get the header to start the trace email process?
Each electronic messaging program will vary as to how you get to the message options. I'll cover the basics to start the trace...the rest is up to you.
Outlook - Right click the message while it's in the inbox and choose Message Options. A window will open with the headers in the bottom of the window.
Windows Live - Right click the correspondence while it's in the inbox, choose Properties, then click the Details tab.
GMail - Open the correspondence. In the upper right corner of the email you'll see the word Reply with a little down arrow to the right. Click the down arrow and choose Show Original.
Hotmail - Right click the memo and choose View Message Source.
Yahoo! - Right click the note and choose View Full Headers.
AOL - Click Action and then View Message Source.
You can see that no matter the program, the headers are usually just a right click away.
I've got the header, now how do I start the trace?
The next step to trace an email address is to find the first IP listed in the header. This is most likely the IP initiating point. However, there are exceptions to this. You'll have to look at the information logically to deduce the originating IP.
Can you trace any email address?
Yes and No. For example, someone who sends a message to your hotmail account shows in the X-Originating IP section of the headers. However, someone who sends you a message from GMail will ONLY trace back to Google IP addresses.
We've got more information in our Trace An Email forum.
Read more: http://www.whatismyip.com/faq/how-to-trace-an-email.asp#ixzz1HeFzHeKN