How to Set a Static IP Address in Linux

July 12, 2014

static ip linux 2022

ifconfig is being replaced by the ip command.

Configuring a static IP can be difficult in Linux because it’s different based on the distro and version you’re using. This guide will show you how to configure a static IP address on the most popular Linux distros.

Ubuntu

As of version 17 of Ubuntu, networking is configured using Netplan, which is a YAML-based configuration system. It allows you to set your IP, netmask, gateway, and DNS all in one place.

Start by editing the file for your interface: in this case 01-netcfg.yaml.

vi /etc/netplan/01-netcfg.yaml

Editing your interface file

You’ll either see networkd or systemd in the renderer spot; keep that the same. 

network:
  version: 2
  renderer: networkd
  ethernets:
    enp0s3:
     dhcp4: no
     addresses: [192.168.2.2/24]
     gateway4: 192.168.1.1
     nameservers:
       addresses: [8.8.8.8,8.8.4.4]

To have your changes take effect, restart networking with this command:

You can then apply this configuration by running netplan apply.

YAML configs are crazy about indentation, so if you get an error check there first.

netplan apply

CentOS

Now let’s do the same thing in CentOS. Here we’ll need to edit things the old way using sysconfig and network-scripts:

vi /etc/sysconfig/network-scripts/ifcfg-eth0

You’ll change what you see there to something like this: 

HWADDR=$SOMETHING
TYPE=Ethernet
BOOTPROTO=none // turns off DHCP
IPADDR=192.168.2.2 // set your IP
PREFIX=24 // subnet mask
GATEWAY=192.168.2.254
DNS1=1.1.1.2 // set your own DNS
DNS2=1.0.0.2
DNS3=9.9.9.9
DEFROUTE=yes
IPV4_FAILURE_FATAL=no
NAME=eth0
DEVICE=eth0
ONBOOT=yes // starts on boot

You can then apply this configuration by running:

/etc/init.d/network restart

Ok, that will get you up and running with a static IP on the two most common Linux distros. Now let’s take a deeper look at the new ip command.

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Using ip and netplan

Most Linux nerds have been using ipconfig for a long time, but it’s now being replaced with a new command called ip. Here’s how to do some basic tasks using the new command.

Show your IP using ip

ip addr show

or even shorter and more efficient…

ip a

(both commands show all interfaces)

Show only one interface using ip

ip a show eth0

Bring an interface up or down using ip

ip link set eth1 up

ip link set eth1 down

Only show IPv4 interfaces

ip -4 a

Ok, so now you should know how to set a static IP on both Ubuntu and CentOS, as well as how to get some basic network information using ip instead of ipconfig.

Happy hacking!

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