There are three mechanisms used to assign an IP address to the client:

• Automatic allocation – DHCP assigns a permanent IP address to a client.
• Manual allocation – The IP address for the client is assigned by the administrator. DHCP conveys the address to the client.
• Dynamic allocation – DHCP assigns, or leases, an IP address to the client for a limited period of time.

The focus of this section is the dynamic allocation mechanism. Some of the configuration parameters available are listed in IETF RFC 1533:

• Subnet mask
• Router
• Domain Name
• Domain Name Server(s)
• WINS Server(s)

The DHCP server creates pools of IP addresses and associated parameters. Pools are dedicated to an individual logical IP subnet. This allows multiple DHCP servers to respond and IP clients to be mobile. If multiple servers respond, a client can choose only one of the offers.

Web Links DHCP Overview http://support.baynetworks.com/library/ tpubs/html/router/ soft1200/ 117362AA/A_29.HTM