Admin Tips
- Windows Server 2008/2003/2000/XP/NT Administrator Knowledge Base
  - Windows Server 2008
    - Admin Tips
      - Network
        Changing the IP Address of a Server

Section(s): Network
Published on Oct 09, 2008.
Last Modified on Oct 09, 2008.
Last Modified by Chris Sanders.
Rating: Not Rated

Changing the IP address of a Windows server requires some special consideration. Here are a couple of things to make note of when doing this.

Changing the manually assigned IP address of a workstation is a fairly simple task, but that’s not so much the case when it comes to a Window server. After changing the IP address in the network adapters TCP/IP properties, you need to ask yourself these questions:

Is this a DNS server?

If so, you will need to change all records that associate the name of the server with the old IP address.

Is this a DHCP server?

If so, you will need to make sure you are still using the correct range and you have a proper exclusion set for the new address.

What computers are connecting to this computer via IP address?

In most cases, other devices are going to connecting to the resources of your server by DNS name. If that’s not the case, you will have to reconfigure these devices.

These things may seem like no-brainers but they are pretty commonly forgotten and can indeed cause a disaster if not planned for appropriately.

About Chris Sanders

Chris Sanders is a network consultant for KeeFORCE, one of the most popular network consulting firms in western Kentucky. Chris is the author of the book Practical Packet Analysis as well as several technical articles. His personal website at www.chrissanders.org contains a great deal of information, articles, and guides related to network administration, network security, packet analysis, and general information technology.