Linux Basics - Set A Static IP On Ubuntu

This tutorial explains how to set a static IP on an Ubuntu system from the command line.

Step 1

In this step you will manually configure your network interface by editing the following files using your preferred text editor(nano gedit vi). For the purpose of this example I am using the "nano" editor. You can edit the appropriate file by entering the following command into the terminal:

You can copy and paste directly from this line.

sudo nano /etc/network/interfaces

Enter your root password, once your prefered editor opens the file you can see...

auto lo eth0
iface lo inet loopback
iface eth0 inet dynamic

If you have more than one network card, please be sure to make changes to the correct network interface.

Statically configured network cards will have a section like:

auto lo eth0
iface lo inet loopback
iface eth0 inet static
        address xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx(enter your ip here)
        netmask xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx
        gateway xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx(enter gateway ip here,usually the address of the router)

If you use "nano" editor, type Ctrl+x to save changes.

Save modified buffer (ANSWERING "No" WILL DESTROY CHANGES) ?

<---Type "y"

File Name to Write: interfaces

<---ENTER

Here is an example:

auto lo eth0
iface lo inet loopback
iface eth0 inet static
	address 192.168.1.101
	netmask 255.255.255.0
	gateway 192.168.1.1

Step 2

In this step you will manually configure your dns configuration file.

sudo nano /etc/resolv.conf

Once your editor opens the file you want to enter the following information...

nameserver xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx(enter your dns server ip)
nameserver xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx(enter your alt dns server ip)

If you use "nano" editor, type Ctrl+x to save changes.

Save modified buffer (ANSWERING "No" WILL DESTROY CHANGES) ?

<---Type "y"

File Name to Write: resolv.conf

<---ENTER

Here is an example:

nameserver 213.60.205.175
nameserver 213.60.205.173

Step 3

Manually restart your network interface with the new settings:

sudo /etc/init.d/networking restart

This should return a result that looks like the following:

*Reconfiguring network interfaces… [OK]

At this point you can check if the settings are correct:

ifconfig

If everything is correct you will get this result.

eth0      Link encap:Ethernet  direcciónHW 00:33:27:46:2v:34
          Direc. inet:192.168.1.101  Difus.:0.0.0.0  Másc:255.255.255.0
 ...

See you...