1-1
z The term switch used throughout this document refers to a switching device in a generic sense or
the switching engine of the WX3000 series.
z The sample output information in this manual was created on the WX3024. The output information
on your device may vary.
1 DHCP Overview
Introduction to DHCP
With networks getting larger in size and more complicated in structure, lack of available IP addresses
becomes the common situation the network administrators have to face, and network configuration
becomes a tough task for the network administrators. With the emerging of wireless networks and the
using of laptops, the position change of hosts and frequent change of IP addresses also require new
technology. Dynamic host configuration protocol (DHCP) is developed to solve these issues.
DHCP adopts a client/server model, where the DHCP clients send requests to DHCP servers for
configuration parameters; and the DHCP servers return the corresponding configuration information
such as IP addresses to implement dynamic allocation of network resources.
A typical DHCP application includes one DHCP server and multiple clients (such as PCs and laptops),
as shown in Figure 1-1.
Figure 1-1 Typical DHCP application
DHCP client DHCP client
DHCP client DHCP client
DHCP server
DHCP IP Address Assignment
IP Address Assignment Policy
Currently, DHCP provides the following three IP address assignment policies to meet the requirements
of different clients: