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Description

Normally, changes in Windows network settings will require a reboot. The command line described in this article will make the changes on the fly.

Procedure

In some circumstances it is useful to be able to switch network settings such as IP address, DNS settings, etc. for a Windows computer "on the fly", without rebooting. The netsh command in Windows can be used to do this.

Open a Command Prompt Window and create a copy of your existing network settings by using the command:

netsh -c interface dump > networksetting.txt 

This will write a copy of your existing network settings to a text file named networksetting.txt. The exact name of the file is arbitrary and can be placed anywhere you wish.

You can change the network settings by loading the settings in the networksetting.txt file, which take effect immediately by using the following command:

netsh -f networksetting.txt

Through this method, you can create text file dumps for as many network settings as you like, and then use simple command line .BAT commands to switch between them as and when you need.