Click here for your IP address...

Note this opens a new browser Window to a page with a JAVA script that displays your current IP address most cases. Nothing is transmitted to me.

IP address
means
Internet protocol address

• This address is a unique string of numbers that identifies a computer on the Internet. These numbers are usually shown in groups separated by periods, like this: 123.123.23.2. All resources on the Internet must have an IP address--or else they're not on the Internet at all.

trace route

To trace a path by using the tracert command

• Open a Command Prompt, and type the following:
  • tracert host_name
  • Or, type tracert ip_address where host_name or ip_address is the host name or IP address, respectively, of the remote computer.
  • For example, to trace a connection route from this computer to www.microsoft.com, type the following at a command prompt: tracert www.microsoft.com
    
    
  • Notes
  • To open Command Prompt, click Start, point to Programs, point to Accessories, and then click Command Prompt.
  • The tracert command traces the path taken by TCP/IP packets from this computer to another remote computer. The tracert command uses ICMP echo request and reply messages (similar to the ping command) to produce command-line report output about each router that is crossed and the roundtrip time (RTT) for each hop.
  • If tracert is unsuccessful, you can use the command output to help determine at which intermediate router forwarding failed or was slowed.

Ping

• To test TCP/IP connections by using the ping and net view commands
• Command Prompt, and then ping the desired host using its IP address.
• To test TCP/IP connectivity by using the ping command, open If the ping command fails with a "Request timed out" message, verify that the host IP address is correct, that the host is operational, and that all the gateways (routers) between this computer and the host are operational.
• To test host name resolution by using the ping command, ping the desired host using its host name. If the ping command fails with an "Unknown host" message, verify that the host name is correct and that the host name can be resolved by your DNS server.
• To test TCP/IP connectivity by using the net view command, open Command Prompt, and then type net view\\computername. The net view command lists the file and print shares of a computer running Windows 2000 by establishing a temporary NetBIOS connection. If there are no file or print shares on the specified computer, the net view command displays a "There are no entries in the list" message.
• If the net view command fails with a "System error 53 has occurred" message, verify that computername is correct, that the computer running Windows 2000 is operational, and that all the gateways (routers) between this computer and the computer running Windows 2000 are operational.
• To further troubleshoot this connectivity problem, do the following:
  • Use the ping command to ping computername.
  • If the ping command fails with an "Unknown host" message, then computername cannot be resolved to its IP address.
  • Use the net view command and the IP address of the computer running Windows 2000, as follows:
  • net view\\IP address
  • If the net view command succeeds, then computername is being resolved to the wrong IP address
  • If the net view command fails with a "System error 53 has occurred" message, the computer running Windows 2000 is not running the File and Printer Sharing for Microsoft Networks service.
  
  
• Notes
• To open a command prompt, click Start, point to Programs, point to Accessories, and then click Command Prompt.
• If the ping command is not found or the command fails, you can use Event Viewer to check the System Log and look for problems reported by Setup or the Internet

Netstat -a

This command is also useful for checking current connections to your computer. Much depends on the Windows settings you currently have in use as to how useful it is but here is how to use it.

• Left click on the Start button on your desktop, then select RUN and type in Netstat a or, as I perfer -
  
• Left click on the Start button on your desktop, then select Programs, then MS DOS or Command Prompt depending on the version of Windows you are using. Then type in Netstat -a at the prompt.
  
• You should get a read out of the connections currently active to your machine, like the image below.