Windows Has Detected An IP Address Conflict {Solved}

An IP address is a unique way to differentiate among the number of devices connected to a network as each device has a different IP address. When you connect your computer to the internet, the IP address allows the computer to send and receive information.

However, certain issues can stop you from accessing the internet, such as “Windows has detected an IP address conflict.” This error indicates that your IP is already in use within the network and can generate several complications.

How to Fix Windows Has Detected An IP Address Conflict Error

The purpose of this article is to help you with the possible fixes to get rid of this error message. So, let us get started.

1. Restart your Router

The router assigns an IP address to each device that is connected to it. Sometimes the router faces difficulty in giving a unique IP address to a device that results in “Windows has detected an IP address conflict” error. But, it can be fixed by simply restarting your router.

Step 1 – At first, find the power button on your router and turn it off. Your device will be disconnected temporarily.

Step 2 – Next, wait for a few minutes so that your router gets enough time to shut down properly.

Step 3 – Turn on your router again and check if you still receive the error message.

If this solution worked out for you then remember this problem can appear again. In that case, we suggest you follow the same steps as above.

2. Use Commands

“Windows IP address conflict” error could be resolved by using Command Prompt. To do so, follow the steps mentioned below.

Step 1 – Firstly, press Windows Key + X.  A Win + X menu will appear.

Step 2 – Click on Command Prompt (Admin) from the menu.

Step 3 – As command prompt starts, enter the following commands

• netsh int ip reset
• ipconfig /release
• ipconfig /renew

Step 4 – After this, close Command Prompt and check if the error is still present.

Alternatively, you can also use a different set of commands as some of the users have got the same results after executing them.

• netsh winsock reset catalog
• netsh int ipv4 reset
• netsh int ipv6 reset

3. Make sure that you’re not using a static IP address

A static IP may make it easier for you to find a specific device on your network but, it can cause the IP address conflict as another device may have the same IP address.

Therefore, it is always preferred to have a “dynamic IP address” given by your router rather than a static one.

You can fix this using the steps provided below.

Step 1 – At first, press Windows Key + X and select Network Connections.

Step 2 – Further, right-click on the connection you’re using and then choose the properties option.

Step 3 – Go to Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP/IPv4) and click on Properties.

Step 4 – Select both “Obtain an IP address automatically” and “Obtain DNS server address automatically.”

Step 5 – Click the OK button to save the changes you made.

Step 6 – At last, restart your PC.

4. Disable IPv6

 IPv4 and IPv6 are the two types of IP addresses that are used to identify the devices connected to a network.

However, there have been a few devices that are not compatible with IPv6 and end up showing the “Windows has detected an IP address conflict” message. In that case, we suggest you disable IPv6 on your PC completely using the following steps.

Step 1 – To begin with, open the Network Connections window.

Step 2 – Choose properties by right-clicking on the connection that you’re using.

Step 3 – Among all the options, uncheck Internet Protocol Version 6 (TCP/IPv6) and then click on OK to save changes.

Now check if the problem has been resolved or not.

You can also disable IPv6 for all network adapters by modifying your registry. To do so, you need to follow the steps mentioned here:

Step 1 – Press Windows key + R and type regedit.

Step 2 – Click on OK

Step 3 – As the Registry Editor appears, in the left pane navigate to the “HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\Tcpip6\Parameters” key.

Step 4 – Similarly in the right pane, go to DisableComponent DWORD

(create DWORD if it isn’t available by right-clicking in the empty space in the right pane and choosing “New > DWORD (32-bit) Value.” Type DisableComponent as the new name of the new DWORD).

Step 5 – Further, open Properties by double-clicking on the new DisableComponent DWORD. Put 0ffffffff in the Value data and click on OK to save changes.

Step 6 – Restart your computer to apply changes.

Remember: If you want to disable IPv6 for a specific adapter, follow the steps mentioned at the beginning of the solution. If you wish to disable IPv6 for all adapters, you will have to do so by modifying your registry.

5. Close VZAccess Manager

The “Windows has detected an IP address conflict” can also occur if you disconnect from the VZAccess Manager without closing the application entirely.

To stop this error message from appearing again and again, you need to disconnect from VZAccess Manager and close the application completely.

Once you have done that, disconnect again and check if the error message pop-ups.

6. Disconnect your Ethernet cable or disable the wireless adapter

If the IP address conflict message appears quite frequently on your screen then, you may want to disconnect your Ethernet cable.

Once you do that, wait for a few minutes and connect your cable again.

Alternatively, you can fix this problem by disabling your wireless adapter if you don’t use Ethernet Connection.

Here is how to do it.

Step 1 – Press Windows key + X and go to Device Manager.

Step 2 – Look for the Network adapters section and choose your wi-fi adapter. Disable that by right-clicking on it.

Step 3 – Wait for a few minutes and enable your adapter again by right-clicking on it. And lastly, check if you are still receiving the error message.

7. Change your router encryption

If you change the Encryption type on your router, you can prevent the IP address conflict error from hindering your internet access. For this, you will have to open your router’s configuration page and log in using your sign in details. You will find the encryption field available in the wireless section.

We suggest you change your encryption from WEP to WPA2-PSK [AES] and after this, reconnect to the network on all wireless devices in your home.

Keep trying different encryption methods until one of them resolves your problem. Also, not all encryption methods are safe, some offer better protection than the others.

8. Reconnect to your VPN service

The “Windows has detected an IP address conflict” error sometimes appears while you activate sleep mode on your computer. Even though VPN is a great tool to protect your privacy online yet it generates some problems. It seems that maybe the VPN gets shut down while activating sleep mode, and that is what is causing the IP address conflict. However, you can simply resolve this issue by restarting your PC and reconnecting with your VPN services.

9. Change DHCP range and set your IP address manually

If none of the above-mentioned solutions has helped you with Windows has detected an IP address conflict, then we would suggest configuring a static IP address for your computer manually.

To do so, you are required to change DHCP settings on your router (DHCP assigns an IP address to all the devices connected to your router).

At first, go to your router’s configuration page and open the DHCP section. Next, set the address range from 192.168.1.5 to 192.168.1.50 (all the devices connected to your router will have an IP address between this range). Set a static IP address. Follow the steps given below:

1. Go to Network Connections and right-click on your connection to open
2. Further, select Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP/IPv4) and click on properties.
3. Choose Use the following IP address option and fill all the sections along with DNS information. For the IP address section, put 168.1.51 or any value that is out of the DHCP range.
4. Click on the OK

In case, you are not certain about what values to enter, you can see Gateway, DNS, and Subnet mask addresses. This can be done by checking the status of your current connection.

Here is how:

1. Go to Network Connections again.
2. Look for your connection and right-click on it to open status.
3. After that, click on the Details button and from here you will be able to navigate the desired information.
4. Change the IP address of your wireless router

IP address conflict can also occur if you use both, modem and wireless router. In that case, you should consider changing the IP address of your wireless router.

Some of the users fixed this issue by changing the address of wireless router to 198.168.2.1. Try doing the same, and most probably the error message won’t show up again.

10. Disconnect all network devices from your network and restart your router

IP address conflict can also occur if there are any issues with your network devices.

You can resolve this problem by simply restarting your router. If restarting doesn’t help, then you must disconnect all the devices connected from your network.

Step 1 – At first, turn off your router and disconnect all the devices(smartphone, laptop, or any other device) connected from it.

Note: Don’t forget to disconnect the devices connected through Ethernet cable.

Step 2 – Turn your router on and give it some time to start again completely. Now connect all your devices one by one so that each device gets a unique IP address.

If your router gets turned off again due to power outage or any other reason, then you will have to follow the whole process again.

11. Change your DHCP Lease

The DHCP lease indicates how long will the assigned IP address be valid. Once the time expires, the device obtains a new IP address. Therefore, if the lease time is too short, you might run into “Windows has detected an IP address conflict” error. To fix this, you will have to change the lease time.

Step 1 – At first, open your router’s configuration page and look for the DHCP section.

Step 2 – Look for lease time and change it to 86400 seconds.

Now, save changes and check if the error persists or not.

Conclusion

Windows has detected an IP address conflict stops you from using the internet on your device. However, you can easily fix this issue by going through the solution we have provided in this article. We hope one of them worked out for you.