--- title: "Mac network commands: networksetup, scutil, ipconfig, route · Kilobat Guides" url: "https://kilobat.app/guides/network-settings-terminal" description: "Read the IP address, router, DNS, proxy, routes and service order of a Mac in Terminal with networksetup, scutil, ipconfig and route." --- IP, routing and IPv6 # See Mac network settings in Terminal macOS includes command-line tools that show the same network settings as System Settings, and more. Reading settings does not need an administrator. Applies to: All current macOS versions. · Checked: 29 October 2026 ## Symptoms - You want to see network settings fast, or copy them for a support request. - System Settings does not show the detail that you need. - You want to check settings in a script. ## Likely causes - **Several tools.** `networksetup` reads and changes services. `scutil` shows the live DNS and proxy state. `ipconfig` shows DHCP data. - **Services and devices.** A service has a name such as Wi-Fi. A device has a name such as `en0`. Commands take one or the other. ## How to check 1. List the hardware ports with their device names and MAC addresses. ``` networksetup -listallhardwareports ``` 2. List the services in the order that the Mac uses them. ``` networksetup -listnetworkserviceorder ``` 3. Show the IP address, subnet mask, router and hardware address of a service. ``` networksetup -getinfo Wi-Fi ``` 4. Show the IPv4 address of a device. ``` ipconfig getifaddr en0 ``` 5. Show the default router and the interface that it uses. ``` route -n get default ``` 6. Show the routing tables. ``` netstat -rn ``` 7. Show the live DNS configuration, with all resolvers. ``` scutil --dns ``` 8. Show the system proxy configuration. ``` scutil --proxy ``` 9. Show the DHCP data that the Mac accepted. ``` ipconfig getpacket en0 ``` 10. Find out if a host is reachable with the current configuration. ``` scutil -r apple.com ``` ## How to fix it 1. Most `networksetup` commands that change settings need administrator rights. Read the man page first. ``` man networksetup ``` 2. Before a change, save the current values, so that you can put them back. ``` networksetup -getdnsservers Wi-Fi > ~/dns-before.txt ``` ## With Kilobat 1. Kilobat gives many of these values as JSON, for scripts and agents. ``` kilobat diagnose --json ``` 2. Show the current Wi-Fi link with signal, channel and link rate. ``` kilobat wifi status --json ``` ## Questions **Why does networksetup ask for a password?** The networksetup man page says that it needs at least admin rights to change network settings. **Is ipconfig the same as on Windows?** No. The macOS `ipconfig` talks to the IPConfiguration agent. Its man page says to use it for test and debug only. ## Sources - networksetup(8), man page installed with macOS 27.2 - scutil(8), man page installed with macOS 27.2 - ipconfig(8), man page installed with macOS 27.2 - route(8), man page installed with macOS 27.2 - netstat(1), man page installed with macOS 27.2 Sources checked on 29 October 2026. Man pages are the ones installed with macOS; open one with `man ` in Terminal. ## Related guides - [Mac uses the wrong network connection](https://kilobat.app/guides/network-service-order): When more than one connection is active, the Mac tries the service at the top of the list first. - [Renew the DHCP lease on a Mac](https://kilobat.app/guides/renew-dhcp-lease-mac): A DHCP lease gives the Mac its IP address, router and DNS servers. - [DNS not resolving on a Mac](https://kilobat.app/guides/dns-server-not-found): When DNS fails, the Mac cannot change a name such as apple.com into an IP address. - [Use Wireless Diagnostics and wdutil on a Mac](https://kilobat.app/guides/wireless-diagnostics-mac): Wireless Diagnostics is a Wi-Fi tool that comes with macOS.