DoxyLover said:
Has anyone tried setting a static IP address instead of using DHCP? I've done that. However, I've only had the Blink for a few days; I haven't had any problems but it's too early to tell.
I had a PM asking for a novice computer user's guide to setting a static IP address. I've simplified a lot, assuming a pretty normal network setup which should cover almost anyone who needs this.
First, an "IP address" looks like "192.168.1.55", four numbers, separated by dots/periods. Each number can be from 0 to 255, though in general, you should only go up to 254.
First, you need to determine the IP address of your router (WiFi access point). If you don’t know it, Go to your Blink, touch "Settings" and then "Device Info". Find the IP address, for example "192.168.1.72". We will assume that the router's address is the same except for the last number being one, so in this example, the router address would be "192.168.1.1"; write this down.
Go to a computer on your network, start your favorite web browser (Firefox, IE, etc.) and, in the address bar (not in the search bar), enter the router address and click GO or press ENTER. This should give you the login page for your router. (If this doesn't work, then the assumption above about the router address is probably wrong and you'll need to determine the router address from your computer. The method depends on the OS and OS version on your computer and I'm not going to go into that here.)
Log into your router. (If you never changed the password, check the manual for your router for the default, or try username "admin" and password "password" or blank.)
Look for a page for setting up your LAN (sorry, the exact directions depends on the make and model of your router). You are looking for DHCP starting and ending addresses. This indicates the range of addresses that the router will give out to something using DHCP. You need to come up with an address that has the first three numbers the same, but the forth number outside this range, but not the same as the router address, not zero and not 255.
For example, if the router address is 192.168.1.1 and the DHCP address range is 192.168.1.51 through 192.168.1.200, then pick an address with the last number either 2 - 50 or 251 - 254. (If you have any other devices with static address, you need to avoid those address too. To be safe, pick a larger number.) We will pick 192.168.1.222 for this example.
Go back to the Blink, touch "Settings" then "Network Settings". Go through the setup until you get to a choice of "Static" or "DHCP"; select "Static". On the next few screens, you will be asked for the following:
* IP Address: enter the address you selected, 192.168.1.222 in the example above.
* Netmask: Enter "255.255.255.0".
*Gateway: Enter the router's address, 192.168.1.1 in the example.
* DNS: Enter the router's address again.
Finish the network setup and verify that everything passes on the network test.
That's it. The Blink will no longer ask the router to assign it an IP address and have to periodically "renew the lease" on that address. Instead, the Blink will just use the address and other info entered to access the Internet through the router.
I hope this helps someone. If anyone notices any errors in this write up, please post corrections.