CMD Commands Prompt

DOS Command list

1. ping command -
ping xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx (with "x" being the ip address)
To IP Address Ping you would type the following DOS Command in the Windows Command Prompt aka CMD. Ping followed by an IP address. That is how you do an internet ping.

ping yahoo.com (web address)
To ping a website you would type ping followed by the website name. Such as the DOS command listed above.

Ping options Switches - You maybe use the switches together.
ping xxx.xxx.xx.xx -t
To send a continuous ping or constant ping you would type this in the command prompt. To stop the ping press Cntrl+C.
-l size switch allows you to send a specific amount of data.


The Ping command is a network tool used to determine if you are able to send packets between your network computer on the internet to another computer without losing packets along the way. By doing this you can determine if you're online or if a website is down. It also calculates round trip time and Time to Live. This can let you know if your NIC card is working properly and if you're able to reach your router or modem. It can also be used as a network tool for troubleshooting.

IPCONFIG Commands

2. ipconfig command -
ipconfig
Is used to find out your current TCP/IP settings. With IPCONFIG you can find out your IP Address, find your Default Gateway and find your Subnet Mask. This is a very handy network tool for finding your local IP address.
ipconfig /all
To display all your IP information for all adapters. With ipconfig /all you can also find out your DNS Server and MAC Address.

ipconfig /release To release your current IP information and obtain a new IP Address.
ipconfig /renew Used to renew your IP Address.
ipconfig /displaydns This shows your current DNS Resolver Logs.
ipconfig /flushdns This clears your current DNS Resolver Logs.
ipconfig /registerdns The register DNS command updates the DNS settings on the Windows computer. It doesn't just access the local DNS cache, it initiates communication with the DNS server and the DHCP server so it can re-register the network address. You can use this for troubleshooting problems with connection to the ISP (Internet Service Provider), like failing to obtain a dynamic IP address from the DHCP Server or failing to connect to the ISP DNS server.

If you ever wonder "whats my IP Address" you would run an ipconfig if you need to find your IP address, default gateway or subnet mask. These numbers can be very helpful when trouble shooting your local network connection. If you have changed your settings but they are not taking place you may try a release and renew. If you're having problems resolving to a website you may try flushing your DNS Resolver Logs.

3. tracert - aka traceroute
tracert yahoo.com
With Trace route you can trace the path your packets take across the internet from you to your destination. Along the way you can determine the time from hop to hop. You can identify server problems and latency with this tool.

4. nslookup -
nslookup yahoo.com
nslookup xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx
nslookup is like a Domain Name Lookup from the IP Address. You can also do a reverse lookup from Domain Name to IP Address. It can be a way to find out if your DNS is properly working or if the site is having problems. You can obtain an IP from a site and try to visit the IP directly, bypassing the Domain Name Servers that would usually resolve the Domain name to IP name.

5. netstat -
netstat
netstat can be used to view your active network connections and TCP/IP connections. You can determine what ports are open and being used, what programs are using your ports and what kind of TCP and UDP connections are present.

Switches
netstat -a Displays all active TCP connections. And TCP / UDP ports.
netstat -e Displays ethernet statistics.
netstat -b Displays all active programs that are listening.

6. netsh -
netsh winsock reset winsock reset
netsh int ip reset resetlog.txt TCP/IP reset
netsh is used to reset or rebuild the Windows TCP/IP IP Stack. This can be done if you have a problem with DNS. Say you are able to browse to a sites IP address but not to it's Domain Name. You can find the sites IP by using nslookup mentioned above.

7. arp -
arp -a
This command can be used to find out the MAC address of the device you are connecting to. With this information, you can find out what type of router you are connected to by using this website.

To get to the MS DOS Command Prompt Commands

To get to the DOS Command prompt you simply go to your Windows Start menu, Then go to Run. When the little box pops up you type in cmd. Once the Black Command Prompt pops up you can type any of these commands in and have some fun! Another way to get the Run box is to hit your Windows Key + R at the same time.