Quite often, users when changing to the Internet require a change of IP. There can be a lot of situations that can affect this, starting from the incorrect setting of the Internet connection itself, and ending with hiding the address of the local computer for the anonymity of visiting resources on the World Wide Web. Some of the most common solutions for changing such an identifier will be described in more detail below. But first, in brief, theoretically, information should be provided, without which understanding the change of address may not be possible.
What is an IP address?
Apparently, most novice users have no special idea about this computer term. Yes, someone somewhere heard that, they say, this is such a thing by which you can determine the location of the computer and calculate the user himself on the Internet. This is not true. Here you need to make the difference between internal and external IP, as well as between static and dynamic addresses.
The IP address itself is a unique identifier that is assigned to any device, whether it be a computer or a mobile device, when connected to a local or virtual network or when connected to the Internet. What is most interesting, two identical external IPs never occurs, that is, the identifier itself is purely individual for each device connected to the Internet.
But internal network addresses can be the same, and this is connected only with the TCP / IP protocol configuration technology itself. Each internal address has the form 192.168.X.X, where the last two characters can take arbitrary values, but only in the range 0-254. In other words, such combinations are used exclusively for local or virtual networks, but the external address is fixed at the provider or on the site, which is accessed from a specific device.
As for the calculation of the user's location, since the external address is really tied to a certain region, from where an attempt is made to access a certain resource, all beginners can be pleased: the external address can be determined not by your user terminal, but only by the provider that provides you access services in Internet. So, if someone there tells you that they’ll figure out and come to your home, you can be sure that this is complete nonsense (unless the provider himself provides the third party with information about your whereabouts, but this is prohibited).
Do not believe? Find out your address through specialized resources on the Internet, and then search for an address on WhoIs.com or the like. Even on the map, the location of only the provider, and not your terminal, will be determined.
How to change the IP address of a computer, and why is it needed?
But we were a little distracted. Let's see what the IP change is for. Firstly, this may be necessary if the access to the Internet is incorrectly configured, and secondly, in order to remain unrecognized when visiting prohibited or blocked sites, or simply to maintain anonymity.
Changing addresses in both situations is not difficult, but first you need to understand what type of address is assigned to your terminal. There can be only two options: either static or dynamic.
Static and dynamic addresses
You can view information about the address directly in the IPv4 protocol settings, which can be accessed through the properties of the established network connection.
If some combination is entered in the IP field, the address is static. If the option to automatically obtain IP and other parameters is set, the address is dynamic (although this may not always be the case, since it is still possible to change the type of address directly on the router that is responsible for the wireless connection).
But how, for example, to change the IP address of the router, and in general, is it necessary? It is not recommended for ordinary users to do this, but basically there is nothing complicated here. Enter the router’s web interface through any browser by entering in the address bar combinations starting with the combination 192.168, and then either 0.1 or 1.1, enter the username and password (usually this is admin), and then in the Network / LAN settings in the IP field -Address enter the desired value. But without knowledge of the matter, such things are not recommended categorically.
Auto Protocol Settings
The question of how to change the IP address of the internal type implies just the use of the parameters of the corresponding protocols of the fourth and sixth versions.
Usually, for the convenience of private users, all settings are automated, and the assigned addresses are of a dynamic type (nothing is displayed in the address fields). In local networks, this situation can also be observed, but with a large number of terminals simultaneously connected to the central server, static settings can be used. In principle, even an ordinary user can solve the problem of how to change the IP address, simply by setting the address line and entering any combination that differs from the gateway address by the last value. But remember that for wireless connections this option does not work, and automatic reception of addresses cannot be changed.
DNS Issues
Now let's see how to change the IP address of the Internet if the connection does not work due to the fact that DNS servers are not detected. The first and main condition is to disable the use of proxies for local addresses, if this is not provided by the provider.
The second is the manual entry of the addresses of the preferred and alternative server in manual mode. Usually, free combinations are used for this, say, from Google or Yandex. The first option looks preferable, because it is just a combination of fours and eights in a different sequence. Please note that all other parameters with their automatic assignment mode remain unchanged.
How to change the IP address on Windows 7 and above using an online proxy
Another side of the coin is changing the external IP in order to gain anonymity on the network. To do this, if you have an active Internet connection, you can use the so-called anonymous proxy servers or anonymizers.
It works like this: you enter the address of such a server in the browser, and then enter the desired address of the resource on its page. The request will be made not on your behalf (the external IP of your machine), but on behalf of the proxy server to which you are connected. It is clear that the address itself will be changed. You can also install a special client that, when trying to access a site, will look for free or fastest proxies online. But to put it mildly, yesterday’s technology.
Tor network
One of the simplest and most cardinal solutions to ensure anonymity and access to resources blocked in a region may be a program that changes the IP address of a computer in the form of a Tor web browser, which operates on the basis of the network of the same name.
In fact, the browser itself is already a kind of VPN client, which, however, initially requires you to scan an existing connection, and then works slower than regular programs. But it is this application that allows you to circumvent restrictions to the fullest extent, since it changes the user's address to a regional location that is as close as possible to the source of the location of an inaccessible resource.
VPN clients
Finally, the question of how to change the IP address to another country, which is required when visiting some blocked or inaccessible resources, can be solved quite simply by using VPN technologies built on the basis of tunneled transmission of encrypted data with the possibility of changing the regional IP.
For example, in the Opera browser, such a client is built-in; for other browsers, additional extensions must be installed. For programs that require Internet access without a browser, you will have to install general clients. For example, on mobile devices, the Turbo VPN application has worked very well, which, after activation, works not only with the browser, but with all other widgets, including, say, news sites, online radio or even social networks and hosting services that can be blocked at the state level.
Brief summary
In general, the question of how to change the IP address of any type should not cause any particular difficulties. Finally, it is worth noting that the settings of the routers were not considered here, since for most of them, the default settings do not need to be changed.