Changing the static IP address of a Raspberry Pi is straightforward when NetworkManager is managing the Ethernet connection. This guide covers changing the Pi from 192.168.68.88 to 192.168.68.30 while keeping the existing DNS server at 192.168.68.20.
Before You Start
Make sure the new IP address is not already being used on the network.
In this example:
| Setting | Value |
|---|---|
| New IP address | 192.168.68.30 |
| Subnet | /24 |
| Gateway | 192.168.68.1 |
| DNS server | 192.168.68.20 |
| DNS search domain | order.realm |
| Interface | eth0 |
| NetworkManager connection | Wired connection 1 |
Check that the new address is free:
ping -c 3 192.168.68.30
If there is no response, it should be safe to use.
Identify the Network Connection
First, list the NetworkManager connections:
nmcli connection show
On this Pi, the active Ethernet connection was:
NAME UUID TYPE DEVICE
Wired connection 1 bf66f5e3-3914-33ce-9c4c-2a8770f38b07 ethernet eth0
docker0 291ac5e9-4f4f-415b-9d39-39a5e0ed4bf1 bridge docker0
lo e9fe24a3-1611-42d5-a5f7-1be0c9f4cfa0 loopback lo
NetherRealm 9e7b7ff2-3340-4876-8555-e1aa876e476c wifi --
The important entry is Wired connection 1, which is attached to eth0.
Change the IP Address
Set the new static IP address:
sudo nmcli connection modify "Wired connection 1" ipv4.addresses 192.168.68.30/24
Set the gateway:
sudo nmcli connection modify "Wired connection 1" ipv4.gateway 192.168.68.1
Keep the DNS server at 192.168.68.20:
sudo nmcli connection modify "Wired connection 1" ipv4.dns "192.168.68.20"
Set the DNS search domain:
sudo nmcli connection modify "Wired connection 1" ipv4.dns-search "order.realm"
Make sure the connection is configured for a manual/static address:
sudo nmcli connection modify "Wired connection 1" ipv4.method manual
Reboot the Pi
Once the changes have been made:
sudo reboot
The current SSH/Termius session will disconnect as the Pi reboots.
Reconnect using the new address:
192.168.68.30
Verify the Configuration
Once connected again, check the Ethernet address:
ip addr show eth0
You should see:
192.168.68.30/24
Then check the DNS configuration:
cat /etc/resolv.conf
The DNS server should remain:
nameserver 192.168.68.20
Final Configuration
The Raspberry Pi should now be configured as:
IP address: 192.168.68.30
Subnet: 255.255.255.0
Gateway: 192.168.68.1
DNS: 192.168.68.20
Search domain: order.realm
Interface: eth0
Important
Changing the Pi’s IP address does not change the DNS server. In this setup, 192.168.68.20 remains the DNS server while the Pi itself moves from 192.168.68.88 to 192.168.68.30.
This is particularly useful when the Pi hosts services such as Home Assistant, Docker containers, Node-RED or MQTT, as it provides a consistent address for accessing those services.