IPCONFIG

Ipconfig is another program that is available on Windows machines. Ipconfig allows you to see how your PC is configured for TCP/IP, allows you to release your present IP lease or to renew it.

There is a GUI version on all Windows 98 machine known as winipcfg which functions in the same way. Note that if you just type Ipconfig from a DOS prompt, or run under the start menu, you will see only your IP address, subnet mask and default gateway.

If you want to see your host name, routing information, and other settings you will need to use the Ipconfig command with the /all option. Note this this parameter may provides more information than will fill on a single screen, so you should use the | MORE DOS command prompt to pause the screen.

Other usage of IPCONFIG is with the /flushdns option which will clear all cached DNS entries on your system. You can also use the /displaydns option to view those entries before clearing them.


TRACERT

Whenever a site on the Internet is slow or when it can only be accessed erratically, the first to try is the ping command. However, we always like to know how many routers we are passing through to get to the site and exactly where the host is located.

The best way to find this information is via the tracert or Trace Route command. Like Ping and Ipconfig, Tracert is a DOS-based utility. The tracert command command can show you how many routers are between your PC and the server and even the name of the routers.

With a bit of guess work, you can even figure out where most of the routers are geographically located, just by looking at the names. You can also derive the ISP\'s information just by putting their IP addresses in whois lookup of APNIC, RIPE or ARIN.

The tracert utility is a good way to tell if downed router is the reason that you cannot access a site that you have visited before. It is also pretty interesting to see how many routers you go through to access a site that you think is local. For example a company in your city may host their site using web host of another country.

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