Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP)
Explore how Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) simplifies network management by automatically assigning IPv4 addresses and essential parameters like subnet mask and default gateway. Understand the DHCP process including client requests, server replies, and address leasing to reduce manual errors and optimize IP address use within subnets.
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Introduction
In the early days of the Internet, IP addresses were manually configured on both hosts and routers and almost never changed. However, this manual configuration can be complex and often causes errors that can be difficult to debug.
To ease the attachment of hosts to subnets, most networks now support the Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) RFC 2131. DHCP allows a host to automatically retrieve its assigned IPv4 address. A DHCP client actually can retrieve other network parameters too, including subnet mask, default gateway and DNS server addresses from the DHCP server.
How It Works
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A DHCP server is associated with the subnet to which it is connected. Routers do not forward DHCP traffic from one subnet to another. ...