When we buy a new PC or a new Mac we hardly take care of assigning a unique name to the device, since we will hardly use programs in which it is necessary to access network resources.If, on the other hand, the computer is used in an office, a unique name must be configured to clearly and precisely identify each station present, so as to be able to easily control them remotely and access shared network resources.
Precisely to meet this type of need, in this synthetic guide, we will show you how rename a Windows PC or a Mac, so as to recognize them immediately as soon as we access the company network, with the steps to be carried out on a PC with Windows 10, a computer with an older version of Windows (8.1 and 7) and on a Mac.
Why change the name of the computer
Changing the name of a device such as the computer is very useful for making it identifiable in a network (LAN network).
The name by which a computer is recognized or any device that can connect to a network is called hostname: you can, for example, open the connection log on the router to check all the computers that are connected identified with their hostname.
On Windows PCs, the choice of the computer name takes place during installation, except in Windows 10 where the name is automatically assigned randomly.
On Mac, the computer name is chosen when creating the first account, but can be changed at any time.
Changing the name of a PC with Windows 10
Microsoft has simplified the Windows 10 installation process so that all users can proceed with this change with just a few mouse clicks.To change the name of the PC with Windows 10, open the menu Home at the bottom left, we open the app Settings, let's get to the menu System and then in the menu System Information.
In the screen that will appear, press the button Rename PC and write the new computer name. At the end of the modification we restart the computer for the changes to take effect.
Change the name of a PC with Windows 7 and 8.1
If we use a PC with Windows 7 or Windows 8.1 we can quickly change the name of the computer (ie the hostname) by starting the keyboard shortcut Win + R and typing sysdm.cpl.
At the end of the modification we press at the bottom on OK, then up again OK and finally we restart the PC for the changes to take effect. From the same window we can also change the user group to which the system responds: for home use or in small offices it is fine WORKGROUP, while in larger corporate networks the domain name must be entered (provided by the network administrator, who usually prepares the computers to respond with the prefixed domain names).
These steps from the Control Panel can also be performed on Windows 10, since the screenshots have not actually changed (we can use it as a backup method if something goes wrong with the quick method seen above).
On all Windows PCs this is also possible change or add PC information about seller name and logo, so as to make it personalized.
Change computer name on Mac
If we have a Mac, the name change option can be found by opening the app System Preference in the Dock or by pressing on the top left of the Apple symbol, clicking on the menu sharing and choosing the new name in the text field next to the item Computer name.
Once the change has been made, restart the Mac to see the new name applied to the computer; for professional needs we can also press the button Modification and change the subnet name to make the Mac accessible in multiple networks or configured with subnets or multiple domains.
How to view the names of all PCs on the LAN
In this chapter we will show you in detail how to check the names of all computers on the LAN, so as to check if anyone needs to change. The easiest way to do this type of verification (on a Windows 10 PC) is to open the app File Explorer and click on the item Network, so you can immediately view all computers compatible with Windows file sharing.
If the computer name does not appear, we can access the configuration panel of our modem / router and check the names of each single connected device.
Alternatively we can use a network scanning program such as Advanced IP Scanner, available for free for any version of Windows.
Once the program is open, simply click on Scan to view the names of all connected devices, including smartphones, tablets, printers, scanners, TVs and modems (which in this case act as a Gateway).
To try other programs similar to the one seen above, just read our guide IP and network scanners to find connected computers.
Conclusions
Changing the name of a computer is not a common operation, but it is advisable to know exactly how to do it if we share files or folders on the network or if we often work in an office where there are many shared computers on the network, so that we can always keep order and recognize each machine.To become a great expert in network sharing, we recommend that you read our guide now Share files between PCs and view shared folders (Windows, Mac, Linux).
If, on the other hand, we need a shared space between all the PCs on the network to store our personal files, we can read our insights Connect a disk to the router to share files on the network e Buying a Network NAS Storage: what is it for and how much does it cost.
