Network On Demand

Network On Demand

Manually keying in network settings can be pretty annoying, particularly when you need to do it every day. CHIP shows you how to switch between networks with ease.

You must have come across situations which require you to change your network settings on your laptop manually every time you move between your home and office. For example, let’s say that your job requires you to attend meetings at your branch office in Delhi every few weeks. In Delhi you will connect to the Internet through the office proxy, while you might also connect through your cellphone when on the move. So by now you have four sets of IP address settings to memorize: home, office, Delhi and cellphone.

Remembering so many settings is a tough task; you would rather have it written on a piece of paper instead. But that still requires you to manually change the settings each time you move from one place to another, which is quite a pain. But why choose to do it in several steps when the same can be achieved in two clicks? Let’s show you how to set up multiple IPs using NetSetMan.

Before we start setting up NetSetMan, let’s note the IP address, subnet mask and the default gateway that will need to be fed in. Once done, follow these four simple steps.

Step 1

Download and install the software from  www.netsetman.com. Once installed,

run the program. It should bring you to a screen like the one shown above.

Here you can specify

six different settings for your network adapter, while you also have the option

of switching between different adapters (wired or wireless) if your laptop has

that many installed.

 

Step 2

Select ‘SET 1’ from the six tabs on top. Right click on the tab and rename it to

‘Home’. Select the required network adapter from the dropdown menu. Check

the ‘IP’ option and select ‘Use the following IP address’. Feed in your IP address,

Subnet Mask, Default Gateway and DNS (if required). You can do the same

for the other three profiles with their individual settings.

 

Step 3

You can now change your IP settings on the fly by selecting any one of the

four profiles created, either by bringing up the main menu or right-clicking

on the ‘NetSetMan’ icon in the taskbar and then selecting the desired profile.

You can even back up these settings by selecting ‘Options | Export profile

and settings’. While it acts as a backup, it also gives you the flexibility of

having more than just six profiles. Additionally, you can assign a PC name,

Workgroup name and even assign a default printer to the selected profile.

Another point worth mentioning is the ‘Tools’ menu. One can access the

Network Connections, Network Environments as well as Internet Options

dialog boxes directly, saving you the need to navigate through the Start

menu repeatedly.