How to Change Your IP Address

An IP address is a crucial element that makes the Internet work. You may come across your IP address or others’ while browsing the web. Since it is one way to identify your device when connected to the Internet, you may want to change your IP address at times. In this guide, I shall tell you how to change your IP address, along with the pros and cons of doing so.

What Is An IP Address?

Let’s start with the basics by telling you what an IP address is.

IP Address stands for Internet Protocol Address, and it is an integral part of the Internet infrastructure. All devices connected to the Internet are assigned an IP address, and it becomes the identity of the device or a network of devices. So, when you try to open a website on your PC’s web browser, the request will contain the IP address information of the PC as well.

At its core, an IP address is used to ensure that the data reaches the correct destination by identifying devices on local and global networks.

Different Types of IP Addresses

You may come across a variety of IP address categories on the Internet and otherwise. They are broken down based on specific categories.

• Private vs. Public IP Addresses: Private IP addresses are used within a local network to identify the many connected devices. On the other hand, public IP addresses are used by the Internet to identify devices/networks.
• Dynamic vs Static IP Addresses: Dynamic IP addresses are given to devices by DHCP and can change over time. However, static IP addresses are assigned to devices, and they do not change. Static ones are used for purposes such as a web server.
• IPv4 vs IPv6: Internet Protocol Version 4 has been the norm for decades, and the IP addresses from this category look something like 111.111.1.1. Internet Protocol Version 6, however, allows the setup of complex IP addresses, meaning that it can accommodate more devices.

How IP Addresses Work

If you need an analogy, you can think of an IP address as your home address. For example, your home address makes it easy for people to reach you, and an IP address makes it possible for data from the Internet to get to your network and device. You should also know that local networks also have IP addresses, and they are integral for communication and data sharing.

The IP address your device gets will depend on a few factors.         •

• IP Address Allocation: IANA and RIRs allocate IP addresses to ISPs.
• ISP’s Role: ISPs offer dynamic or static IP addresses to users.
• User’s IP Address: Routers obtain IP addresses from ISPs and assign private IP addresses to connected devices.

Now that you know the basics of an IP address, I shall tell you about changing your IP address.

Reasons to Change Your IP Address

I will now take you through some reasons/instances to change your IP address. Before that, you should know that an IP address is a form of identification when you are on the Internet. So, if someone wants to limit your activities on the Internet, they can rely on an IP address to do so.

• Better Privacy: Your IP address is exposed when you are connected to the Internet. Your ISP and the websites you visit can use this information to track your (general) location. So, changing the address will help you protect your privacy in the long run. It also makes your network somewhat secure from hacking attempts based on the IP address.
• Access Blocked Content: Your ISP, country, or specific websites may block access based on the IP address of the device. You get to regain access to these websites by changing the IP address to a different one. It works great when a streaming site/specific content is unavailable in your country, but you want to access it.

• Bypass IP Bans: If your current IP address has been banned, you can use the IP address changer to access the site or service. However, we don’t recommend using this method for abusive purposes.
• Resolve IP Conflicts: Often, your router may cause conflicts when assigning the IP address. Because an IP address is essential for many purposes, these conflicts can affect your connectivity. You can use the manual IP address changing option to address the problem and regain Internet access.
• Network Management: If you are into network management and optimization, it becomes essential to assign IP addresses and manage them properly. For instance, you may want to make your server available at a specific IP address at all times.

These are instances where you need to change the IP address. However, your IP address may change when you reconnect to the Internet (unless you have a static IP address from the ISP). However, if you need all the benefits mentioned above, you need to change the IP address.

Change Your IP Address

Depending on the purpose and your device, you can choose between four methods to change the IP address of your device.

Change IP Address Automatically

You can set up your device and network to change the IP address automatically when you access the Internet. You need to use something called DHCP to make this possible. Here, you have two options.

1. You can set up the device to get a new address every time you connect to the network.
2. You can manually trigger the router to assign a new IP address to you.

In either of these cases, you don’t have control over the IP address your device gets. I will now tell you how to use the option on different devices.

On Windows

1. Make sure that you are using an Administrator account.
2. Go to Start > Settings > Network & Internet > Local Area Connection
3. Choose Wi-Fi or Ethernet based on the connection
4. Select Manage Known Networks and choose the Connection you want to modify
5. Click the Edit button near IP Assignment
6. From the drop-down menu, choose Automatic (DHCP) and hit Save.

On Mac

1. Open System Preferences
2. Choose Networks > Details and choose TCP/IP from the side menu
3. Click Renew DHCP Lease
4. The device will have an automatically assigned IP address.

On Android

• Open Settings and choose Connections
• Go to Wi-Fi and select the connection you are currently using

• Go to Advanced and choose the DHCP option.

On iOS

1. Open Settings and choose Wi-Fi
2. Select the network and go to Settings
3. Choose Configure IPv4
4. From the menu, choose Automatic.

Change the IP Address Manually

Sometimes, you need to assign a specific IP address to the device or network. It is necessary when you want to host a web server or something that requires a stable IP address for availability. Here is how you can go about it on different devices.

On Windows

1. Go to Start > Control Panel
2. Choose Network & Sharing Center > Change Adapter Settings
3. Choose the network you want to modify and select Properties
4. Go to the TCP/IPv4 section and go to Properties
5. Choose the option called Use the Following IP Address
6. Enter the IP address that you want to use.

On Mac

• Go to System Settings and choose Network
• Select Wi-Fi and pick the connection you want to change
• Click Details and choose the TCP/IP tab from the menu
• From the Configure IPv4 menu, choose Manually

• In the next section, enter the IP address you want
• Click OK to save the settings.

On Android

1. Open Settings and go to Wi-Fi
2. Tap the option to modify the network
3. Go to Advanced and enter the new IP address.

On iOS

1. Open System Settings and go to Wi-Fi
2. Select the network and go to Configure IPv4
3. Choose Manual from the menu and enter the IP address.

With A VPN

Both options above are great when you want to modify the network. However, you need something better and versatile when you want to protect your privacy or access geo-blocked content. In these instances, you can use a VPN.

Though you can set up a VPN manually, it makes sense to use a dedicated VPN application. You can install one from the official website and easily enjoy the features, including content unblocking and an enhanced set of privacy options.

You can choose between free and paid VPN services. Free VPNs are, however, known for logging data and offering limited resources. Paid VPNs, on the other hand, offer unlimited bandwidth and access to extensive sets of VPN servers.

With A Proxy

Proxy servers are another efficient way to change your IP address on devices like Mac, PC, Android, and iOS. All of these operating systems have native support for proxy servers, and you can set them up in just a few seconds. Like VPNs, paid and free proxy servers are available in the market. You can choose one.

On Windows

1. Open Settings and navigate to Network & Internet
2. Go to Proxy, where the page will open up
3. Under the section called Manual proxy setup, click Set Up
4. Now, enter the details of the proxy server.

On Mac

• Open Settings and navigate to Network
• Select the network and choose Details
• From the side menu, choose Proxies

• Choose the type of proxy you want to set up and toggle the button
• Enter the proxy details and click OK.

Using Tor

Tor is a privacy-focused browser that uses the Tor protocol for browsing. It is often used to access content from the deep web, but you can use it to open general content as well. However, an additional benefit of using Tor is that it will change the IP address. You simply have to open Tor and connect to the Tor protocol.

You can download Tor for almost all devices, including PC, Mac, Android smartphones, and iPhone. While it is an easy way to change the IP address, using Tor will reduce the browsing speed because your request will be forwarded multiple times.

Pros and Cons of Changing IP Addresses

Here are the two sides you should consider before proceeding.

Pros of Changing IP Addresses

• You can improve privacy by avoiding tracking and fingerprinting
• Changing IP addresses can help you improve security
• You get to access geo-blocked content and bypass restrictions
• You can have better control over how the network/device functions
• Changes in the domain can cause network stability issues

Cons

• Websites/services may often block changed IP addresses
• When using VPNs and proxies, the speed will be reduced
• VPNs/Proxy servers can be costly at times

Wrapping Up

I am confident this guide has covered almost everything you should know about changing your IP address. These days, you have so many options to choose from that you cannot go wrong! Even so, pick something that suits your varying needs. For instance, free proxy servers are not great when you need network stability and access.