How to set up a static IP address on your Xbox 360.

It is very important to setup a static ip address, if you are going to use port forwarding. When you have port forwarding setup, your router forwards ports to an ip address that you specify. Without setting up a static ip address port forwarding will probably work when you initially set it up, but after restarting your Xbox 360 it may get a different ip address. When this happens the ports will no longer be forwarded to your Xbox 360's ip address. So the port forwarding configuration will not work.

What is an ip address?
IP addresses are four sets of numbers separated by periods that allow computers to identify each other. Every computer has at least one ip address, and two devices should never have the same ip address. If they do, neither of them will be able to connect to the internet. There is a lot of information at the following link. You don't need all of it. But if you want to know more about how networks work, you'll find it there. For more information on ip addresses, subnets, and gateways go here

Dynamic vs Static IPs Most routers assign dynamic IP addresses by default. They do this because dynamic ip address networks require no configuration. The end user can simply plug their computer or console in, and their network will work. When ip addresses are assigned dynamically, the router is the one that assigns them. Every time a computer or console reboots it asks the router for an ip address. The router then hands it an ip address that has not already been handed out to another computer or console. This is important to note. When you set your Xbox 360 to a static ip address, the router does not know that the Xbox 360 is using that ip address. So the very same ip address may be handed to another computer or console later, and that will prevent both devices from connecting to the internet. So when you asign a static IP addresses, it's important to assign an IP address that will not be handed out to other devices by the dynamic IP address server. The dynamic IP address server is generally refered to as the dhcp server.

Step 1:
Turn on your Xbox 360. You should now be at the following page. Then push the A button.

Step 2:
Select the System tab on the right hand side of the screen. Then push the A button.

Step 3:
Select the Network Settings button. Then push the A button.

Step 4:
Select the Edit Settings on this page. Then push the A button.

Step 5:
Select the IP Settings,IP Address,Subnet Mask,Gateway area. Then push the A button.

Step 6:
Select the Manual option, and then push the A button.

Step 7:
Select the IP Address option, and then push the A button.

Step 8:
Enter the the ip address you want to use for your Xbox 360 into this page. It's important to choose an ip address that not in your router's dhcp range. You can check this by login in to your router and looking at it's dhcp or LAN page. Alternatively you can just pick an ip address that is not close to the ip address your xbox was previously using. For instance if your xbox was using something like 192.168.0.2, then you would want the new ip address to be something like 192.168.0.200. If your xbox was using something like 192.168.0.240, then you would want the new ip address to be something like 192.168.0.2. Only the last group of numbers on the ip address should change, and that group of numbers would range from 2 to 254. Please, don't over think this just pick a number and go with it. I have just tried to provide some guidelines here so you can pick a better number. Once you are done entering the ip address press the A button.

Step 9:
Select the Subnet Mask option on this page, and then push the A button.

Step 10:
Enter the subnet mask of your network in to this page. The subnet mask for almost all home networks is 255.255.255.0. When you are finished push the A button.

Step 11:
Select the Gateway option on this page, and then push the A button.

Step 12:
Enter the ip address of your router into this page. Your router is your network's gateway. Then push the A button.

Step 13:
Select the Done option on this page, and then push the A button. You should be prompted on whether you want to test the connection or not. Select the Test Xbox Live option, and then push the A button.

Step 14:
Your Xbox 360's IP Address should be Confirmed. If it is not then you have made an error in setting up the static ip address for your xbox 360.

You may also have to specify the DNS servers your xbox 360 will be using. This is usually required when your network's router is not passing the dns server information to the computers that have static ip address properly. First you need to find out what DNS servers your Xbox 360 should be set to. The easiest way to do this is to give your ISP a call. They will probably ask you why you need them. Tell them the truth, your xbox 360 is requesting them. They should give you two ip addresses, one for the primary dns server and one for the secondary dns server. Once again get back to the Edit Settings page of your xbox 360 as shown below.

Click the DNS Settings area, and then press the A button.

Click the Primary DNS Server option, and then press the A button.

Enter the primary DNS server address your isp gave you on this page. Then select the done button.

Now enter the secondary DNS server in to the secondary dns server section. When you find yourself back at the Edit DNS Settings page, select the Done option. Then press the A button. You should be prompted on whether you want to test the connection or not. Select the Test Xbox Live option, and then push the A button.

Your Xbox 360's DNS should be Confirmed. If it is not then you have made an error in setting up your dns servers for your xbox 360.