Finding Your Public IP Address: Techniques Using Command Line, PowerShell, and Python

To find your public IP address, you can use several methods. Here are a few tasks you can perform to achieve that:

Using Command Prompt (Windows)

1. Open Command Prompt.

2. Run the following command:

    nslookup myip.opendns.com resolver1.opendns.com
   

This will show your public IP address by querying OpenDNS.

The command nslookup myip.opendns.com resolver1.opendns.com is used to find your public IP address by querying the OpenDNS servers. Here’s a breakdown of how to use it and what to expect:

How to Use the Command

1. Open Command Prompt:
   • Press Win + R, type cmd, and hit Enter.
2. Run the Command:

   • Type the following command and press Enter:

     nslookup myip.opendns.com resolver1.opendns.com
     

Expected Output

You should see output similar to this:

Server:  resolver1.opendns.com
Address:  208.67.222.222

Non-authoritative answer:
Name:    myip.opendns.com
Address: <Your Public IP Address>

• In this output, <Your Public IP Address> will be replaced by your actual public IP address.

Explanation of the Command

• nslookup: This command queries the Domain Name System (DNS) to obtain domain name or IP address mapping.
• myip.opendns.com: This is a special domain provided by OpenDNS that returns the public IP address of the client making the request.
• resolver1.opendns.com: This specifies the DNS server to use for the query, in this case, one of OpenDNS’s resolvers.

This command is a quick and efficient way to retrieve your public IP address from the command line.

Using PowerShell

1. Open PowerShell.

2. Run the following command:

    (Invoke-WebRequest -Uri "http://ifconfig.me/ip").Content.Trim()
   

This will make a web request and display your public IP address.

Using Python Script

1. Create a Python script (e.g., find_public_ip.py).

2. Use the following code:

    import requests
   
    response = requests.get("https://api.ipify.org")
    if response.status_code == 200:
        print("Your public IP address is:", response.text)
    else:
        print("Unable to fetch public IP address.")
   

3. Run the script to display your public IP address.

Using Online Tools

1. Open a web browser.
2. Visit a website like https://whatismyipaddress.com or https://ifconfig.me or https://www.whatismyip.com/
3. Your public IP address will be displayed on the page.