:: Anything Goes Blog ::

Before you can change your IP you need some information. This information includes your IP range, subnet mask, default gateway, dhcp server, and dns servers.

I. Getting your IP range - Getting information about your IP range is not difficult, I recommend using Neo Trace on your own IP. But for my test just look at your IP address, say it's 24.193.110.13 you can definitely use the IP's found between 24.193.110.1 < [new IP] <>II. Subnet Mask, Default Gateway, DHCP Server - These are very easy to find, just open a dos/command prompt window and type 'ipconfig /all' without the ' '. You should see something like this:
Windows IP Configuration:

Host Name . . . . . . . . . . . . . . : My Computer Name Here
Primary Dns Suffix . . . . . . . . . :
Node Type . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .: Unknown
IP Routing Enabled. . . . . . . . . : No
WINS Proxy Enabled. . . . . . . . : No

Ethernet adapter Local Area Connection:

Connection-specific DNS Suffix . . . . . . .: xxxx.xx.x
Description . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . : NETGEAR FA310TX Fast Ethernet Adapter (NGRPCI)
Physical Address. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . : XX-XX-XX-XX-XX-XX
Dhcp Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . : Yes
Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . . . . . . : Yes
IP Address. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . : 24.xxx.xxx.xx
Subnet Mask . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .: 255.255.240.0
Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . : 24.xxx.xxx.x
DHCP Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .: 24.xx.xxx.xx
DNS Servers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . : 24.xx.xxx.xxx
24.xx.xxx.xx
24.xx.xxx.xxx
Lease Obtained. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .:Monday, January 20, 2003 4:44:08 PM
Lease Expires . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .:Tuesday, January 21, 2003 3:43:16 AM

This is all the information you will need for now, I suggest you either keep your dos/command prompt window open or copy & paste the information somewhere, to copy right click the window and select text and click once.

III. Changing your IP Address

To change your IP address first pick any IP you like out of your IP range and remember it or write it down. It is usualy a good idea to make sure the IP is dead (except for what we are going to do later on) so just ping it via "ping x.x.x.x" and if it times out then you can use it. Now go to My Computer, then Control Panel. In Control Panel select Network Connections and pick your active connection, probably Local Area Connection or your ISP name. Open that connection by double clicking on the icon in Network Connections, then select Properties under the General Tab. In the new window that pops up select Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) and click properties, it's under the general tab. In this new window select the General tab and choose "Use the following IP address" and for the IP address enter the IP you would like to use (the one you picked from your subnet earlier) and for the Subnet Mask enter the subnet mask you got when your ran ipconfig /all, same goes for the Default Gateway. Now select "Use the following DNS server addresses" and enter the information you got earlier. Now just click OK. Test that it worked, try to refresh a website and if it works you know everything is okay and you are connected. To make sure the change worked type ipconfig again and the IP address should have changed to your new one.

IV. DDoS & DoS Protection

If your firewall shows that you are being DDoSed, this is usually when you are constantly getting attempted UDP connections several times a second from either the same IP address or multiple IP addresses (DDoS), you can protect your self by changing your IP address via the method I described above.

V. Web servers & Other Services

If you know someone on your IP range is running a web server and he or she has pissed you off or you just like messing around you can "steal" their IP address so any DNS going to that IP will show your site instead because you would be running a web server yourself.

To "steal" an IP is to basically use the changing IP address method above and picking an IP that someone that is running a web server has in use. Often you will be able to keep that IP at least for some time, other times you wont be able to use it so just keep trying until it works. You your self will need to have a web server on the same port with your message. You can do this with other services too. You can also DoS or DDoS the IP address you are trying to steal to kick him off the net, but I don't recommend as its pretty illegal, an your ISP will get pissed!!

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Tracing an IP

What is an IP address?
An IP address or Internet Protocol is a 32-bit number address, which is assigned to each computer (technically called a host) connected to the Internet. It is the address to which different types of data are sent to your computer. It consists of 4 octets. Each octet equals 8 bits and has a range from 0 to 255. (Every IP address on the Internet is sectioned off into classes from class A to class E, depending on a different range of numbers, but I won?t go into that here.) Well I always believed that sometimes pictures speak louder than words so here is an example of a typical IP address:

209.124.223.67
| | | |
| | | |----> (4th octet. 8-bits. Ranges from 0 to 255)
| | |----------> (3rd octet. 8-bits. Ranges from 0 to 255)
| |----------------> (2nd octet. 8-bits. Ranges from 0 to 255)
|---------------------> (1st octet. 8-bits. Ranges from 0 to 255)

Notice how each octet is separated by a decimal. I said earlier that an IP address is a 32-bit number or address. There are 4 octets, which are each 8-bits. So 8-bits + 8-bits + 8-bits + 8-bits = 32-bits.

What can an IP tell me about a person?
Well an IP address can tell a good bit of information about a person, or should I say the computer the person is at or registered to. In its numerical form, an IP number would be kind of hard, to an average and less geeky person, to look at and automatically see what information you can get from it. Enter the Domain Name System (DNS). The Domain Name System or DNS turns those confusing little numbers into readable hostnames (ex. 209.124.223.67 in its DNS form would look like gnzl-as50-67.eatel.net). Now to convert an IP number address into DNS form you would have to use something called rDNS or reverse Domain Name System. To find rDNS tools online just go to www.samspade.org or search at www.google.com.
Example:

gnzl-as50-67.eatel.net
| | |
| | |----> (domain belongs to a network)
| |---------> (name of the isp or internet service provider)
|-------------------> (the name of the machine which is located in ?gnzl? or gonzales of Louisiana)

Domains could also have suffixes behind them (ex. gnzl-as50-67.eatel.net.uk) indicating that they are from another country. Example:

.jp = Japan
.uk = United Kingdom
.nl = Netherlands
.it = Italy
.ru = Russia
.fr = France
.eg = Egypt

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How do I find my own IP address?

Windows 95/98/ME:
1. Click the Start button then press Run.
2. In the Run dialog box, type in WINIPCFG in the white space and press OK.
3. An IP Configuration box should pop up with the IP displayed.

Windows 2000
1. Click START, go to Programs, then go to Accessories, and select the Command Prompt.
2. The Command Prompt window will open. Type "ipconfig/all" and hit the RETURN key.

Windows NT
1. Click the Start button then press Run.
2. In the Run dialog box, type in IPCONFIG in the white space and press OK.

OR

1. Click Start, go to Programs, and then select Command Prompt or MS-Dos Prompt.
2. When you see that black window pop up type 'ipconfig/all' and press Enter.

How do I get someone's IP when they are chatting on MSN/AIM/Yahoo Messenger?
How many times have you moderates on computer security message boards heard this one? The answer is quite simple really. All you need is a direct connection from you to the person?s computer, and a wonderful little command that comes with all windows systems called netstat. Netstat displays active connections and protocol statistics.

Now to get someone's IP on these messenger you would need a direct connection. I will explain why in a bit. Now to get a direct connection you would need to have some sort of file transferring, voice chat session, or even a web cam session with Windows NetMeeting. Ok say you are sending a file to someone and you want to get his or her IP. First you would need to open up the MS-Dos Prompt or Command Prompt or the little black window thingy to the computer illiterate. Just follow the same format I showed you early on how to find your IP address. You know, Start, Programs, Command Prompt. Ok now you should have the Dos Prompt window up. While you are transferring/recieiving a file, or voice chatting with someone, type in the command 'netstat -n'. You should see something like this:

C:WINDOWS>netstat -n

Active Connections

Proto Local Address Foreign Address State
TCP 211.124.228.98:1138 64.4.13.69:1863 ESTABLISHED
TCP 211.124.228.98:1150 64.4.12.190:1863 ESTABLISHED
TCP 211.124.228.98:6891 12.90.50.93:1978 ESTABLISHED

The above is an example I got from using the netstat -n command on a friend. The two above commands are from the MSN messenger service. There are two because I am chatting to two people at this time. So while I was transferring a file to this person I did the netstat -n command and got their IP number (12.90.50.93).

So you might be asking, "How come I can?t just do a netstat -n while Im chatting with someone??" Well the truth is that you can, but you would only get the IP of the MSN server that you are on. Let me explain it better with a picture?.

YOU------> MSN SERVER------>OTHER PERSON

So that's basically how it looks when you send your messages to your friend or what not. They first have to pass through the MSN server then go to your friend's messenger. So if you were to do a netstat -n you would only get the server?s IP. Now a direct connection would look like?

YOU------>OTHER PERSON

I think it?s pretty self-explanatory. Now netstat -n would work since the transfer is between you and the other person, and not you, then the server, then the other person.

If someone is using a proxy or wingate how can I obtain his or her true IP address?
As for as I know, I don?t think you can. Not easily anyway. You would have to be the administrator of the proxy or wingate server and or get access to the server logs of your entry somehow.

Someone told me that websites could get my IP and other information. Is this true?
Yes this is true. Anything u connect to via the Internet can capture your IP and other sorts of information. Go to www.privacy.net then click at the top for a full analysis. That site shows u what information other sites may get off of your computer while you are surfing them. Feeling a little less secure now? Well, I would recommend trying an anonymous browser such as www.anonymizer.com or www.safeweb.com. You can also use proxy?s to spoof (hide your real IP or domain) your connection by using MultiProxy, A4Proxy, or Proxomitron