How to Get Your Linux IP Address in Different Ways

Knowing how to obtain the IP address of your Linux server is important for system administrators, software developers, and anyone involved in network management. The concept of IP is fundamental to networking and is essential for network communication, allowing devices to identify and connect to each other. In this article, we will look at several methods for obtaining your IP address in a Linux environment, both internal and external, using various commands and tools.

 

 

 

Internal IP address

 

An internal IP address (also known as a private IP address) is used on a local network and is not routable on the Internet. They are important for internal communication within a network, but they also save a lot of IP addresses by allowing the same IP addresses to be used on different networks. For example, your company's local network is configured with addresses from the 192.168.12.0/24 subnet. Another company has configured exactly the same network with the same IP addresses. These internal addresses are internal because they do not go out to the Internet, and these two companies communicate via an external, public IP address.

Below is a table with IP address blocks that refer to so-called internal addresses.

 

Table - Comparison of internal subnets

Subnet (CIDR)	Address range	Typical usage scenarios
10.0.0.0/8	10.0.0.0 – 10.255.255.255	Large corporate networks, distributed offices, data centers with extensive subnetting
172.16.0.0/12	172.16.0.0 – 172.31.255.255	Medium-sized company networks, server zones, infrastructure segments requiring flexible subnetting
192.168.0.0/16	192.168.0.0 – 192.168.255.255	Home networks, office VPNs, Wi-Fi segments, small business networks

 

They are very easy to remember and understand that if you see one of the addresses from these subnets somewhere, it is an internal address.

 

 

Using the ip command

The ip command is a universal tool for configuring and managing a network in Linux. It has largely replaced the old ifconfigcommand.

Run the following command in the terminal:

ip addr show

 

This command displays detailed information about all network interfaces. Find the inet entry under the desired interface (e.g., eth0, wlan0). The output will show the IP address, subnet mask, and other information.

 

user@host:~# ip addr show

1: lo: <LOOPBACK,UP,LOWER_UP> mtu 65536 qdisc noqueue state UNKNOWN group default qlen 1000

link/loopback 00:00:00:00:00:00 brd 00:00:00:00:00:00

inet 127.0.0.1/8 scope host lo

valid_lft forever preferred_lft forever

inet6 ::1/128 scope host

valid_lft forever preferred_lft forever

2: ens0: <BROADCAST,MULTICAST,UP,LOWER_UP> mtu 1500 qdisc noqueue state UP group default qlen 1000

link/ether f0:c6:f9:ca:d6:c6 brd ff:ff:ff:ff:ff:ff

inet 192.168.12.7/24 brd 192.168.12.255 scope global dynamic noprefixroute ens0

valid_lft 70376sec preferred_lft 70376sec

 

 

Using the ifconfig command

Although the ifconfig command has been deprecated in favor of the ipcommand, it is still available in many distributions.

Run the following command in the terminal:

ifconfig

 

This command will display a list of all network interfaces with their corresponding IP addresses. The inet addr field shows the IP address of each interface.

 

user@host:~# ifconfig

ens0: flags=4163<UP,BROADCAST,RUNNING,MULTICAST> mtu 1500

inet 192.168.12.7 netmask 255.255.255.0 broadcast 192.168.12.255

ether f0:c6:f9:ca:d6:c6 txqueuelen 1000 (Ethernet)

RX packets 358201 bytes 22181271 (0.2 GB)

RX errors 0 dropped 0 overruns 0 frame 0

TX packets 331273 bytes 20447094 (0.2 GB)

TX errors 0 dropped 0 overruns 0 carrier 0 collisions 0

 

Using the hostname command

The hostname command with the -I option can also be used to display the IP addresses associated with the host.

Run the following command in the terminal:

hostname -I

 

This command displays all IP addresses assigned to the host, separated by spaces.

user@host:~# hostname -I

192.168.12.7

 

 

Using nmcli

nmcli is a command-line tool for managing NetworkManager, which is widely used in various Linux distributions.

Run the following command in the terminal:

nmcli device show

 

This command displays detailed information about all network interfaces managed by NetworkManager, including IP addresses.

user@host:~# ifconfig

GENERAL.DEVICE: ens0

GENERAL.TYPE: wifi

GENERAL.HWADDR: F0:C6:F9:Ca:D6:C6

GENERAL.MTU: 1500

GENERAL.STATE: 100 (connected)

GENERAL.CONNECTION: MyWiFi

GENERAL.CON-PATH: /org/freedesktop/NetworkManager/ActiveConnection/11

IP4.ADDRESS[1]: 192.168.12.7/24

IP4.GATEWAY: 192.168.12.1

IP4.ROUTE[1]: dst = 192.168.12.0/24, nh = 0.0.0.0, mt = 600

IP4.ROUTE[2]: dst = 0.0.0.0/0, nh = 192.168.12.1, mt = 600

IP4.DNS[1]: 192.168.12.1

 

 

Using ip route

You can use the ip route command to get the IP address of your primary network interface.

Run the following command in the terminal:

ip route get 1.1.1.1

 

Replace 1.1.1.1 with any valid IP address. The command will show routing information and the source IP address used to reach the destination.

user@host:~# ip route get 8.8.8.8

8.8.8.8 via 192.168.12.1 dev ens0 src 192.168.12.7 uid 0

 

 

When to use ip and when to use ifconfig

Although the ifconfig command is still present in many distributions, it is preferable to use ip in modern systems. This is because the net-tools package, which includes ifconfig, has not been developed for a long time and does not support some of the current network functions. The ip command provides more accurate, detailed, and up-to-date information about network interfaces, routing, link-layer parameters, and connection states.

Using ifconfig is appropriate when you are working on an old system or in a minimal installation where iproute2 is not available. However, in a full-fledged Linux environment and on server distributions, the ip command is the de facto standard and provides a more accurate display of network settings.

 

 

 

 

External IP address

 

The external IP address (also known as the public IP address) is used to identify your device on the Internet. This IP address is routed on the Internet and is assigned by your Internet service provider (ISP).

 

Using the Curl command

Curl is a command line tool for transferring data using URLs. It can be used to access web services to obtain your public IP address, such as ifconfig.me.

Run the command in the terminal:

curl ifconfig.me

 

This command sends a request to ifconfig.me and displays your public IP address.

user@host:~# curl ifconfig.me

94.211.13.25

 

Using wget

wget is another command line utility for downloading content from web servers. It can also be used to query your public IP address. Let's look at an example with another web service, icanhazip.com

Run the command in the terminal:

wget -qO- icanhazip.com

 

This command also extracts the public IP address from ifconfig.me and outputs it to the terminal.

user@host:~# wget -qO- icanhazip.com

94.211.13.25

In fact, there are many services similar to ifconfig.me, and below we have provided a comparison table of such services.

 

Table - Comparison of external IP address detection services

Service	Type	Response speed	Additional data
ifconfig.me	HTTP API	Very high	Can return User-Agent, headers, geodata
icanhazip.com	HTTP / HTTPS	Very high	Only IP address, minimalistic output
api.ipify.org	HTTP / HTTPS API	High	JSON output format, convenient for automation
checkip.amazonaws.com	HTTP	High	Reliable service from AWS, returns only IP
ipinfo.io/ip	HTTP / HTTPS API	Average	Supports full network and geolocation information
myip.opendns.com (via DNS)	DNS query	High	Can be used without HTTP connections and web traffic

 

 

 

Using dig

dig (Domain Information Groper) is a powerful utility for searching for information from DNS servers. It can be used to find out your public IP address by querying OpenDNS.

 

Run the command in the terminal:

dig +short myip.opendns.com @resolver1.opendns.com

 

This command sends a DNS query to OpenDNS, which responds with your public IP address.

user@host:~# dig +short myip.opendns.com @resolver1.opendns.com

94.211.13.25

 

 

Using the host command

The host command is another DNS server lookup utility that can be used to find out your public IP address.

Run the command in the terminal:

host myip.opendns.com resolver1.opendns.com

 

This command queries OpenDNS and returns your public IP address.

user@host:~# host myip.opendns.com resolver1.opendns.com

Using domain server:

Name: resolver1.opendns.com

Address: 208.67.222.222#53

Aliases:

myip.opendns.com has address 94.211.13.25

 

 

 

 

Graphical interface methods

 

If you prefer to work in a graphical interface, most modern Linux distributions allow you to find out your IP address through the standard network settings. Depending on the desktop environment you are using (GNOME, KDE Plasma, or others), the interface may vary slightly, but the logic remains the same: open the network settings and view the information about your current connection.

 

Viewing your IP address in GNOME

GNOME is one of the most common desktop environments in Ubuntu, Fedora, and Debian.

To view your IP address, follow these steps:

1. Open “Settings” from the system menu.
2. Go to the “Network” section.
3. Select the active connection: wired Ethernet or Wi-Fi;
4. In the window that opens, find the “Details” or “IPv4” block;
5. Here you will find the IP address, subnet mask, gateway, and DNS servers.

GNOME automatically updates this data, so the information is always up to date.

 

Viewing your IP address in KDE Plasma

KDE Plasma is used in Kubuntu, openSUSE, and Manjaro distributions. The interface is different from GNOME, but the necessary data is found in a similar way:

1. Open “System Settings”;
2. Go to the “Network” section;
3. Select the active network interface;
4. The “Details” or “IPv4” tab will display the internal IP address, mask, gateway, and IPv6 parameters.

Plasma provides more detailed information about the connection, including route status and interface activity.

 

Using the Network Manager GUI

Almost all Linux systems with a graphical environment use NetworkManager, which provides a unified interface for network configuration. In most distributions, all you need to do is:

1. Click on the network icon in the taskbar;
2. Open “Connection Settings”;
3. Select the active connection and go to its “Details”.

Here you can see the IP address, MAC address of the interface, and routing parameters.

 

Specialized websites

To determine your external (public) IP address, you can use any web service that displays connection information. For example, just open the website https://2ip.io or a similar resource and your IP will be displayed automatically.

Please note that when using a VPN, proxy, or browser extensions, the data will be different: the service will show the IP address of the intermediate node, not your actual connection. This is important to consider when diagnosing network problems or checking server configurations.

 

 

 

 

Important features when determining the external IP address

When checking your public IP address, it is important to note that the result displayed may depend not only on your local machine, but also on the infrastructure of your provider or intermediate services. In some situations, IP detection services do not show your actual address, but rather the IP address of the nodes through which the traffic passes.

Several parameters described below can affect the result.

 

Cloudflare and other CDNs

If your traffic is routed through a CDN or proxy service, the external address may belong to the cloud network rather than your server. This is especially important for web projects with Cloudflare's “proxy” mode enabled — the site will be displayed with Cloudflare's IP address rather than the original server's.

 

Internet service provider

Some providers use NAT on their side. In such cases, several clients receive one shared external IP address. Such configurations are typical for mobile networks and some budget plans.

 

VPN services and browser extensions

When a VPN or proxy browser (such as Opera's built-in VPN) is enabled, all websites will show the IP address of the server you are connected to, rather than your real address. This can be misleading when diagnosing network issues.

 

Proxies and corporate gateways

In corporate networks, traffic is often routed through a proxy gateway. In this configuration, the public IP belongs to the corporate node, not to a specific user workstation.

Consider these features before drawing conclusions or configuring network services: sometimes differences in service readings are a normal consequence of network infrastructure operation.

 

 

 

 

Frequently asked questions (FAQ)

Why are internal and external IP addresses different?

The internal IP address is only used within your local network and does not go out to the Internet. The external IP is assigned by the provider and is accessible from the global network. Between them, there is usually a router that performs address translation (NAT), allowing multiple internal devices to use a single external IP to access the Internet.

 

Why does the hostname -I command show multiple addresses?

The hostname -I command displays all IP addresses assigned to the system. If there are multiple interfaces (Ethernet, Wi-Fi, virtual interfaces, Docker, VPN tunnels), each of them may have its own IP. Therefore, the output often contains multiple values.

 

What should I do if the ip command is not found?

The ip command is part of the iproute2 package, which is installed by default in most distributions. If the utility is missing, you can install it manually via the package manager.

Examples:

Debian/Ubuntu: apt install iproute2

RHEL/CentOS/Rocky: yum install iproute

 

Why do different services show different external IP addresses?

This can happen if your traffic goes through your provider's NAT, VPN, proxy, CDN, or transparent gateways. Also, different services can determine IP at different levels (through HTTP requests or through DNS), which affects the result. Therefore, several different values are not always an error.

 

How can I find out the IP address on a server without Internet access?

In this case, you can only determine the internal IP address assigned by the local network. The commands ip addr, ifconfig, nmcli, and hostname -Iare suitable for this. It is impossible to obtain the external IP without Internet access, as it is only determined by external services or the provider's network registries.

 

 

 

 

Conclusion

Obtaining a Linux IP address, whether internal or external, is a fundamental task for network management and troubleshooting. The methods discussed in this article provide various ways to access this information using command line tools, graphical applications, or a web browser. Whether you prefer to use the ip command, use web services with curl or wget, or use graphical interfaces, understanding these methods ensures that you can effectively manage network configurations on Linux-based servers and troubleshoot related issues.