diff --git a/app/utils.py b/app/utils.py
index 24b7bd6..1b35307 100644
--- a/app/utils.py
+++ b/app/utils.py
@@ -1,7 +1,7 @@
 import socket
-import requests
+import httpx
 
-def generate_node_nickname():
+def generate_unit_registration_id():
     """
     Generates a temporary unit registration ID in the format:
     "Node-{last octet of local IP}-{last octet of public IP}".
@@ -21,23 +21,26 @@ def generate_node_nickname():
         s = socket.socket(socket.AF_INET, socket.SOCK_DGRAM)
         # Connect to an external host (Google's DNS) to get the local IP
         # This doesn't send any data, just establishes a connection for getsockname()
-        s.connect(("1.1.1.1", 80))
+        s.connect(("8.8.8.8", 80))
         local_ip = s.getsockname()[0]
         s.close()
         local_ip_octet = local_ip.split('.')[-1]
     except Exception as e:
         print(f"Warning: Could not determine local IP address. Error: {e}")
 
-    # Get the last octet of the public IP address using an external service
+    # Get the last octet of the public IP address using an external service with httpx
     try:
         # Use ipify.org to get the public IP (a widely used, simple service)
-        response = requests.get('https://api.ipify.org?format=json')
-        response.raise_for_status()  # Raise an HTTPError for bad responses (4xx or 5xx)
+        # httpx.get() is synchronous by default
+        response = httpx.get('https://api.ipify.org?format=json')
+        response.raise_for_status()  # Raise an HTTPStatusError for bad responses (4xx or 5xx)
         public_ip = response.json()['ip']
         public_ip_octet = public_ip.split('.')[-1]
-    except requests.exceptions.RequestException as e:
-        print(f"Warning: Could not determine public IP address. Error: {e}")
+    except httpx.RequestError as e:
+        print(f"Warning: Could not determine public IP address (network error with httpx). Error: {e}")
+    except httpx.HTTPStatusError as e:
+        print(f"Warning: Could not determine public IP address (HTTP status error with httpx). Error: {e}")
     except ValueError as e:
         print(f"Warning: Could not parse public IP response. Error: {e}")
 
-    return f"Node-{local_ip_octet}-{public_ip_octet}"
\ No newline at end of file
+    return f"Node-{local_ip_octet}-{public_ip_octet}"