How to Repair ‘Windows has Detected an IP Address Conflict’ on Windows PC

  • An IP address is a unique way of identifying your computer when it connects to a network.
  • Conflicting IP addresses can cause complications when using the network.
  • All private IP addresses must be unique, otherwise, complications can arise.
  • If you get the error message “Windows has detected an IP address conflict”, it means that your IP address already in use on the network.
  • If two such devices have the same IP address, it is almost impossible for the network to distinguish them from each other.
Updated March 2024This tool will stop these errors and fix common problems: Get it at this link
  1. Download and install the software.
  2. It will scan your computer to find problems.
  3. The tool will then correct the issues that were discovered.

Ip Address Conflicts

Two or more devices are trying to use the same IP address on the same network or subnet when they experience an IP conflict. In order to avoid this situation, certain hosts lose network connectivity in the event of an IP conflict, resulting in communications destined for a specific host getting mixed up with communications destined for other hosts, who use the same IP address.

If a computer connects to a network, it can be identified by its IP address, which is unique to each device. Each IP address is unique, so the network can identify it easily. When you receive an error message stating that “Windows has detected an IP address conflict”, it means that your IP address is already being used on your network. The IP address of your private computer must be unique in order to prevent complications.

It is not possible for the network to distinguish two such devices from one another if they have the same IP address. If you connect a PC, a laptop, and a smartphone to the same network, three different IP addresses should be assigned. If you receive this error message, you must solve it as soon as possible. Conflicting IP addresses can cause problems with the network. Here’s how to fix it.

How does an IP conflict occur

Most often, IP address conflicts occur when you assign static IP addresses to your network. Instead of DHCP automatically choosing an address for all devices, you can use a static IP address to set a specific IP address that the network device will always use. If you mistakenly assign the same static address to two devices, an IP duplication error will occur. This problem can also occur if you assign a static IP address to a device without reserving that address in the router. Eventually, your router will try to assign that address to the other device, creating an IP conflict.

Duplicate Ip Addresses

How it happensIn most cases, duplicate IP conflicts are due to configuration mistakes. Perhaps a technician added a device to the network with a statically set IP address that is also assigned to the DHCP address pool for that subnet. At first, the device might work just fine. But sooner or later, that same address could be assigned to a machine trying to join the network with a DHCP allocated address. Most operating systems are designed to detect and prevent this, however, some do not, which will cause the duplicate IP problem.

Ip Address Fix

If you are using your home Wi-Fi connection on your smartphone, then you can switch to a different network to change your IP address. For example, switch to mobile data if you are browsing on your phone’s Wi-Fi connection. The IP address will change since each network connection gets its own IP address.

It is often enough to reboot your modem or wireless router to resolve the Windows has detected an IP address conflict error. There are two ways to do it:

A second IP conflict scenario can occur if your network has two DHCP servers (something you should avoid). You may have your own wireless router connected to your ISP’s modem and router, for example. When a computer returns from idle mode, you can inject duplicate IP addresses into the network if both devices are trying to act as routers. Lastly, if you use a DHCP server to access the network, duplicate IP addresses can be injected into the network.

How to resolve IP address conflicts

Restart router

Check your router

Windows Has Detected An Ip Address Conflict

Start your router and restart your computer to resolve IP address conflict errors. If your router has dynamic IP addresses, restarting the router should resolve the issue.

Windows 10’s restarting instructions are as follows:

  1. “Control Panel” can be found at the bottom of the Start Menu.
  2. In the Network and Internet section, select “Network.”
  3. You can find the Network and Sharing Center by clicking here.
  4. Change the settings of the adapter by clicking “Change adapter.”
  5. Then, click the “Disable” option in the right-click menu.
  6. Select “Enable” from the right-click menu after waiting a few seconds.
  7. It is now closed.
  8. Your computer needs to be restarted.

Once you have followed these steps, you should be able to get back on the internet right away.

Using Windows 10, open Command Prompt by pressing Windows + R, typing cmd, and pressing Ctrl + Shift + Enter.

When you release and renew your IP address, you can fix Windows network errors.

Updated March 2024This tool will stop these errors and fix common problems: Get it at this link
  1. Download and install the software.
  2. It will scan your computer to find problems.
  3. The tool will then correct the issues that were discovered.

Release and renew an IP address

Windows 10 has a few steps for releasing and renewing IP addresses.

  1. Firstly, click the Start menu and search for Command Prompt.
  2. The IP address of your current computer will be released when you type ‘ipconfig /release’ in the Command Prompt.
  3. Once you enter ‘ipconfig /renew’, a new IP address will be assigned to your computer.
  4. To finish, shut down the Command Prompt.

Your IP address should be released and renewed without any problems when you follow these steps.

Update network card driver

Listed below are the steps to update Windows 10’s network card driver:

  1. Using the Windows key + X, start the Device Manager by clicking on “Device Manager” in the menu.
  2. Click on the arrow to the left of the “Network Adapters” heading in order to expand it.
  3. The context menu for your network adapter will appear when you right-click it and select “Update Driver Software…”.
  4. Your network adapter driver will now be updated automatically by Windows after you select “Search automatically for updated driver software”.
  5. The manufacturer’s website must be visited to download the driver if a new driver is not found.
  6. To ensure that the changes take effect, restart your computer after updating your network adapter driver.
  7. After updating the driver for your network adapter, you should be able to connect to the internet.

Run hardware and device troubleshooter

Here’s how to run the troubleshooter in Windows 10 if you’re having problems with your hardware or devices:

  1. You can find the first option for troubleshooting by typing ‘troubleshoot’ in the search bar.
  2. Make sure you select ‘hardware and devices’.
  3. You can run the troubleshooter by clicking the “run the troubleshooter” button.
  4. You can retry the troubleshooter once the troubleshooter has finished.

Run network adapter troubleshooter

The first thing you should do when you are having trouble connecting to the internet is to run the network adapter troubleshooter. The network adapter troubleshooter in Windows 10 can help you identify and fix network connection problems. The process of running the tool is as follows:

  1. On your keyboard, press Windows key + I to open the Settings app.
  2. On the Update & Security page, click the Update button.
  3. In the left menu, click Troubleshoot.
  4. You can find and fix other problems by clicking on Network Adapter under “Find and fix other problems.”
  5. The troubleshooter will run once you click Run.
  6. Your network connection problems can be diagnosed and fixed by following the prompts.

The troubleshooter may not resolve your problem completely, so you may need to update your network drivers or get in touch with your Internet service provider.



RECOMMENATION: Click here for help with Windows errors.

Frequently Asked Questions

If you set a static IP address for a network device, there may be IP address duplication conflicts on the DHCP network. See details. To solve this problem, convert a network device with a static IP address into a DHCP client. Or you can exclude a static IP address from the DHCP range on the DHCP server.

Assigning a static IP address can be done manually. An IP address conflict occurs when the person who assigned static IP addresses may have overlooked the addresses in use and assigned similar addresses to multiple devices.

Windows describes the cause of this error abstractly in a network error message as follows: "Another computer on this network has the same IP addresses as this computer." This means that your device has an IP address conflict with another device or host on your network.

Because of this structure, no two devices on the network can have the same IP address. If this happens, the network gets confused with duplicate IP addresses and cannot use them properly.

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Mark Ginter is a tech blogger with a passion for all things gadgets and gizmos. A self-proclaimed "geek", Mark has been blogging about technology for over 15 years. His blog, techquack.com, covers a wide range of topics including new product releases, industry news, and tips and tricks for getting the most out of your devices. If you're looking for someone who can keep you up-to-date with all the latest tech news and developments, then be sure to follow him over at Microsoft.