How to Change or Reset Your Laptop IP Address

In this guide, we'll quickly run through the IP settings on your laptop, its use case and why we might change it and how we'd go about getting it back to how it was normally

Why change your IP?

Every device connected to a network has an IP address. Sometimes, devices have a static IP (fixed by the manufacturer) or get one automatically from the router (DHCP).
If the device you want to connect to has an IP address outside your laptop’s IP range, your laptop can’t “see” or "talk" to it.

How to check your laptop’s IP:

1. Open the Start menu, type cmd, and press Enter to open Command Prompt.

2. Type ipconfig and press Enter.

3. Look for the “IPv4 Address” under Ethernet adapter — this is your current IP.

What is an IP “range”?

Think of an IP range like a room with many seats. Each device sits in one seat (one IP). Devices can only talk to other devices sitting in the same room (IP range).

• Example:

  • IP 192.168.1.100 and 192.168.1.200 are in the same range — they can communicate.

  • IP 192.168.0.100 and 192.168.1.100 are in different ranges — they cannot communicate directly.

Most home networks use the 192.168.1.x range. You can usually find a device’s default IP range on its label or manual.

How to quickly open Network Connections

1. Press Windows key + R to open the Run box.

2. Type ncpa.cpl and press Enter.

This opens the Network Connections window, showing all network adapters.

How to change or reset your IP address

1. Open Network Connections (ncpa.cpl).

2. Right-click the adapter you want to change (WiFi or Ethernet) and select Properties.

3. Double-click Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP/IPv4).

4. You can:

   • Select Obtain an IP address automatically to use DHCP (router assigns IP).

   • Or select Use the following IP address and enter a static IP manually.

     
     

How to add multiple IP addresses (multiple ranges) to one adapter

1. After opening Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP/IPv4) properties, click the Advanced... button near the bottom.

2. In the Advanced TCP/IP Settings window, under the IP Addresses section, click Add....

3. Enter the new IP address:

   • Make sure it’s in the same IP range as the device you want to connect to, but do NOT use the exact same IP address as that device.

   • For example, if the device is on 192.168.0.20, you could choose 192.168.0.21 or another unused address in that range.

   • Enter the correct subnet mask (usually 255.255.255.0).

4. Click Add to save the new IP address.

5. You can add multiple IP addresses here if you need to connect to devices on different ranges.

6. Click OK on all windows to apply the changes.
   
   

Tips

• If your laptop can’t connect to the internet but is connected via cable or WiFi, try setting it to Obtain an IP address automatically.