Related Resources Windows Networking Resources

The winipcfg Interface

If the command completes successfully, an IP Configuration window appears as illustrated below

The fields contained in this window are:

• Adapter Name: name of the network card or cards known to Windows. If the computer has more than one network adapter installed, this drop-down field allows the user to view settings for each of the adapters individually. The adapter name is supplied by the manufacturer of the device.
• Adapter Address: the Media Access Control (MAC) address of the network card
• IP Address: the Internet Protocol (IP) address for the computer when using this network card
• Subnet Mask: the IP network mask for the computer when using this network card
• Default Gateway: the gateway address for the computer when using this network card

Clicking the Release or Release All buttons cause the currently selected adapter (or all adapters) to discard their DHCP network settings by notifying the DHCP server, then disconnect from the network.

Clicking the Renew or Renew All buttons cause the currently selected adapter (or all adapters) to request new network settings from the DHCP server.

Note: The information displayed by winipcfg is static, meaning that it does not update automatically as the computer's IP address changes. One must exit and re-run winipcfg to pick up any dynamic address change.

Note: A few versions of Windows, like Windows 2000 Server, do not include winipcfg in their normal installation. On these systems, an alternate command for retrieving IP address information is

ipconfig /all