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How to rename a network adapter in Windows 8 or in Windows Server 2012

Article ID: 2729523 - View products that this article applies to.

Summary

This article describes how to rename a network adapter in Windows 8 and in Windows Server 2012.

When you right-click a network connection in Windows 8 or in Windows Server 2012, nothing happens. Therefore, you must open the Network Connections item in Control Panel to rename a network adapter.

To open the Network Connections item in Control Panel, use one of the following methods.

Method 1
1. Swipe in from the right edge of the screen, and then tap Search. Or, if you are using a mouse, point to the lower-right corner of the screen, and then click Search.
2. In the search box, type ncpa.cpl.
3. Tap or click the displayed Ncpa.cpl icon.
Method 2
1. Swipe in from the right edge of the screen, and then tap Search. Or, if you are using a mouse, point to the lower-right corner of the screen, and then click Search.
2. Tap or click Settings.
3. In the search box, type network connections.
4. Tap or click View network connections.
Method 3
1. Press Windows Logo key+R to open the Run window.
2. Type ncpa.cpl.
3. Tap or click OK.
Method 4
1. Open Control Panel.
2. Tap or click Network and Sharing Center.
3. Tap or click Change adapter settings in the navigation pane.
Method 5
1. Right-click the Network icon in the notification area.
2. Tap or click Network and Sharing Center.

To rename a network adapter, use one of the following methods after you open the Network Connections item in Control Panel:

Right-click the desired network adapter, and then tap or click Rename.
Select the desired network adapter, and then tap or click Rename this connection at the top of the window.
Select the desired network adapter, and then press F2.

Use Windows PowerShell cmdlets (for advanced users)

You can also use Windows PowerShell cmdlets to rename a network adapter in Windows 8 or in Windows Server 2012. To do this, follow these steps:

To view the names of the network adapters, run the following Windows PowerShell cmdlet:
Get-NetAdapter
To rename a network adapter, run the following Windows PowerShell cmdlet:
Rename-NetAdapter -Name <Name> -NewName <New name>
For example, run the following Windows PowerShell cmdlet to rename the "Ethernet network" adapter to "ManagementAdapter:"
Rename-NetAdapter –Name Ethernet –NewName ManagementAdapter

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