Enable ICMP (Ping) on Windows Server

By default, Windows Server blocks ICMP echo requests (ping) on the Public network profile through Windows Defender Firewall. This guide shows you how to enable ICMP using either PowerShell or Command Prompt.

Prerequisites

• Administrator privileges on the Windows Server instance
• Access to PowerShell or Command Prompt (run as Administrator)

Enable ICMP

New-NetFirewallRule `
  -Name "Allow-ICMPv4-In" `
  -DisplayName "Allow ICMPv4 Inbound" `
  -Protocol ICMPv4 `
  -IcmpType 8 `
  -Direction Inbound `
  -Action Allow `
  -Profile Any `
  -Enabled True

New-NetFirewallRule `
  -Name "Allow-ICMPv6-In" `
  -DisplayName "Allow ICMPv6 Inbound" `
  -Protocol ICMPv6 `
  -IcmpType 128 `
  -Direction Inbound `
  -Action Allow `
  -Profile Any `
  -Enabled True

Get-NetFirewallRule -Name "Allow-ICMPv4-In" | Select-Object Name, DisplayName, Enabled, Direction, Action

Reverting the Change

To remove the ICMP rules and restore the default blocked state:

Remove-NetFirewallRule -Name "Allow-ICMPv4-In"
Remove-NetFirewallRule -Name "Allow-ICMPv6-In"

Testing Connectivity

Once the rules are applied, test from another machine on the network:

ping <your-server-ip>

A successful response confirms ICMP is now enabled.