When installing an Ubuntu server or desktop, it is important to know how to configure and view network settings. It’s also useful for troubleshooting problems with your Internet connection. Basic network configuration includes setting the IP address, the subnet mask for internal communication and a gateway for connecting to external networks. In this article, I’ll give you examples of the basic configuration you need to set up a network in Ubuntu, either from the command line or from the Ubuntu Network Manager GUI. The steps have been tested on Ubuntu 18.04 LTS up to Ubuntu 22.04 LTS, but will also work on newer Ubuntu versions.
Basic network setup requires:
- Setting/Changing an IP address
- Setting up/Changing Hostname
- Editing a hosts file
Setting/Changing an IP address
There are several ways to set an IP address in Ubuntu. You can configure the network interface to use dynamic IP using a DHCP server or you can manually set a static IP address.
Method #1: Network configuration on the command line
In Ubuntu, you can set your IP address through terminal commands.
First type netstat -I to find the interface name. Then type the below command:
sudo ifconfig eth0 192.168.72.6 netmask 255.255.255.0
Then to add a default gateway, add the below command:
sudo route add default gw 192.168.72.1 eth0
Method #2: Network configuration using the GUI
You can set an IP address via the graphical user interface in Ubuntu. From the desktop, click on the start menu and search for Settings. From the Settings window, click on the Network tab. Then from the right pane, select the interface and click on the gear icon to open settings for that interface.
From the IPv4 tab, you can select the Automatic (DHCP) radio button to allow the system to dynamically obtain the IP address.
If you want to set a static IP address, click on the Manual radio button. Enter the IP address, subnet mask, and a default gateway. Then click on Apply to save the current changes.
Method #3: Configure the network by editing /etc/interfaces file
Here is another method that you can use to configure the IP address. To set IP address dynamically, you have to edit /etc/network/interfaces. In /etc/network/interfaces, the basic configuration of interfaces is stored.
Edit the /etc/network/interfaces by entering the following command in terminal.
sudo nano /etc/network/interfaces
Then add the following lines:
auto eth1 iface eth1 inet dhcp
Save the file and restart networking services using the below command.
sudo systemctl restart networking
To set a Static IP address, you have to edit /etc/network/interfaces
sudo nano /etc/network/interfaces
Add the below lines to /etc/network/interfaces.
auto eth1 iface eth1 inet static address 192.168.72.8 netmask 255.255.255.0 gateway 192.168.72.1 dns-nameservers 8.8.8.8 4.4.2.2
Save the file and restart networking services.
sudo systemctl restart networking
Setting up/Changing Hostname
The hostname of Ubuntu OS is configured in the file /etc/hostname.
To edit /etc/hostname, enter the below command:
sudo nano /etc/hostname
This file contains only the hostname of the file, change the name, and then save it.
Editing the /etc/hosts file
Hosts file maps hostname to IP address locally. For instance, you have a server in your local network, instead of remembering its IP, you can map its IP with a name in your /etc/hosts file. It will allow you to access that machine with a name instead of the IP.
To edit a hosts file, enter:
sudo nano /etc/hosts
Add the server IP address and name in the hosts file in the following format.
192.168.72.10 fileserver
Save the file and reboot the system to apply the changes.
That’s all you need to set up a network in Ubuntu. Those were the basic settings. There are many more options you can configure in your Ubuntu machine.
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