I build custom control panels that interact with OPTO control products, VLINK converters and other control devices. All devices are networked with a Static IP assigned to each device, 192.168.2.###. This all works fine until the customer's IT department sets up the control panels to thier network. Usually at this point the control computer gets reset to DHCP and I loose contact with all my devices. On Windows XP I was able to let the IT department keep the DCHP setting and assign my needed Static address in the back ground by assigning the address in HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\Tcpip\Parameters\Interfaces\{netcard}.However, we are now getting control computers preloaded with Windows 7. When I try setting my static in the background as before, I am unable to communicate with my devices. Is there other settings that must be changed in order for this setup to work? Is this still possible with Windows 7?I know I can resolve my problem with hardware. But this is an added expense to my systems and with the number of units already in the field.Or, I could simply get the IT departments to leave the settings as is and integrate the unit into the existing system. Unfortunatly this is often a lot easier said than done and often the systems are already reset by the time I have talked to IT. The best solution to my problem is to allow both Static and DHCP and solve the problem before the systems are delivered. ANY HELP?