To change a network adapter’s settings
1. Click the Change adapter settings link in the left pane of the Network and Sharing Center panel .
2. In the Network
Connections dialog box, right-click the network adapter of interest and
select the Properties command from the context menu .
Open a network adapter’s Properties dialog box to view its network settings.
3. In the Ethernet Properties dialog box, scroll down and select Internet Protocol Version 4 . Click the Properties button.
The Ethernet Properties dialog box
For a dynamically assigned address,
both the Obtain An IP Address Automatically and Obtain DNS Server
Address Automatically options are selected.
4. To assign a static (fixed) IP address and your own DNS server and gateway, click Use The Following IP Address and fill in the address, subnet mask, and default gateway in the appropriate text boxes.
The Internet Protocol Version 4 Properties dialog box
5. Continue by filling
in at least one (but preferably two) DNS server in the Use The
Following DNS Server Addresses text box, and click OK. Click OK again
to close the second dialog box and return to the Network and Sharing
Center panel.
The Internet Protocol Version 4 dialog box
allows you to set a fixed IP address, which can be useful when you want
your device to always appear with a known address; for example, when
you want to configure a PC as a media server. For most laptops,
tablets, or phones that are mobile devices, you will want your device
to have a dynamic address, but it’s still useful to know where these
settings can be accessed so you know that your dynamic settings are
configurable.
Tip
You can use more than one network
adapter at the same time, and one or more adapter types. This can speed
up network performance and ensures that you have a backup should one
adapter go down. You can also use one adapter to connect to one type of
network and the other to connect to another type or to a different
network at the same time.
