IT policy, I can't change my IP address on my laptop.

IT has adoped a hardline policy - I cannot change the IP address on my laptop and they have locked it down - its set to get a dynamic IP address from the router. They have become a real hardcase about it.

I am flying across the pond in a couple of days to make some changes to a couple of SLC5/05s. This policy could become a realy pain in the butt and I don't really want to be limited to the RS232 port. I thought about packing along a router. Any suggestions?

Alaric said:

IT has adoped a hardline policy - I cannot change the IP address on my laptop and they have locked it down - its set to get a dynamic IP address from the router. They have become a real hardcase about it.

I am flying across the pond in a couple of days to make some changes to a couple of SLC5/05s. This policy could become a realy pain in the butt and I don't really want to be limited to the RS232 port. I thought about packing along a router. Any suggestions?

Click to expand...

What about buying a cheap Ethernet PCMCIA or USB interface...you might be able to still set that. I use this all the time. Allows me to stay dynamic in office and hard in field.

Nick

If IT has a policy restricting you from changing the IP address that might also affect any additional ethernet cards you add. I would suggest getting a cheap router. They make some handy little "travel" units that aren't expensive at all. You can then use the router to manipulate your IP address through the router DHCP settings.

OG

I think a meeting with the powers that be is in order, I know IT has a job but so do you; which may require full access to your computer.

It all depends though, there may be the option of using a second NIC adapter, just depends on how much rights you have to set as needed.

When I first read the title to this thread I thought here's a another poor guy who has fell victim to the computer guys but Alaric!?!

Bud, you need to talk to the IT gods and explain to them that in your position there is no way that you could possibly deal with IP Addresses assigned strictly from them. I have heard of IT guys liking the USB to Ethernet adapters as far as hooking in to foreign networks though I'm not sure why

I'd find the registry entries & zap them.
Then I would make sure I was set to DHCP every time I plugged into their network, & they'd never be the wiser.

CroCop said:

I'd find the registry entries & zap them.
Then I would make sure I was set to DHCP every time I plugged into their network, & they'd never be the wiser.

Click to expand...

LOL, IT has the ability to prevent accessing the registry, but if they have not then this is an option.

Fortunatly for me I control all of the PLC IP addresses, I have a dynamic corporate address but the alternative IP address I have fixed. I also made IT give me local admin rights by threatening them that I would need to get updates for my software every other day

I would try the following. If you are connecting to a network that has a domain controller (i.e. DHCP server) and the SLC's on it, you should be fine, as the computer will pull a useable IP address.

If there is no domain controller on the network, your computer will not pull an IP address when it boots. You can got to the command line, and assign it one with address resolution protocol, you just need to know your MAC Address. You can get this from ipconfig/all on the command line.

Then on the command line you can do an arp -s [enter MAC address] [Enter desired IP address].

This should get you around your IT group's need for control.

unsunghippie said:

Then on the command line you can do an arp -s [enter MAC address] [Enter desired IP address].

Click to expand...

Sorry, backwards, like this instead.

Then on the command line you can do an arp -s [Enter desired IP address][enter MAC address].

You might want to bench test this first, as it mau not work dependant on how your IT has set it's group policy.

Another option, talk to IT about a docking station that has it's own ethernet card, dedicate that one to the "corporate" network, but trust you enough to use the integrated ethernet port for programming.

This is how we ROLL!!!!!!

If you are allowed to load a Virtual Machine Program such as the free Microsoft Virtual PC or VM Ware (about $200 but has a few more features) you can give your virtual machines a fixed address and it will connect. We use this to support sites that have VPNs that are not compatible with our corporate load and also to run multiple versions of the same HMI/SCADA software that cannot run on the same machine.

Microsoft Virtual PC
http://www.microsoft.com/windows/products/winfamily/virtualpc/default.mspx


VMware
www.vmware.com

Ah..the never ending battle of IT guys' egos....
I'd go ahead and change my IP address so that you can do your job. If any problems arise, complain that you are not being given the tools to successfully complete your tasks. Packing along extra equipment is a PITA and unnessesary. Just make sure you change your TCP/IP settings back to obtain automatically otherwise you will have duplicate IPs on the network. This usually isn't a big deal, but it means IT boy gets a pop-up box on the server...
Had a similar issue when troubleshooting a wireless SCADA system..IT guy had a huge ego and thought I was going to wreak havoc on his precious network...sheesh those ping commands are pretty bandwidth intensive
I don't think they understand how our equipment works.....
Good luck man!

Just for comparison...

My IT guys control the IP on the built-in NIC on my notebook. They set it to a static IP and ask that I only use that NIC for the company network. There are some associated network settings that are OK on our company network but they are not comfortable with on a "foreign" network.

For road use they give me a USB NIC. I am supposed to use it for hotel access and plant network connections. I am free to change the IP on this NIC as needed.

This usually works just fine. However, I did recently have an issue where the USB NIC just gave me fits connecting to a ControlLogix 1756-ENBT. After wasting a few hours troubleshooting, I tried the built-in NIC. It worked. I changed it back before I got back to the office. I also told the IT guys what I had done. First report of the USB NIC not working, reinforces my need for admin access.

Bottom line, the IT guys need to let you do your job. But you can make that easier for them to do by working with them. Not always easy to do, I admit. The IT guys at my current company are actually quite easy to work with, but I've had my share of difficult ones.

I use a command line wrapped in a .BAT file to change my IP address between fixed and DHCP, but it might not work depending on how they have you locked down (could be a Group Policy or crippled install on the laptop)

I just have to do a quick double click to change between them

might be worth a try

Static:

netsh interface ip set address name="Local Area Connection" static 192.168.254.88 255.255.255.0 192.168.254.1 1

Dynamic:

netsh interface ip set address "Local Area Connection" dhcp