BCONFIGURING EXTERNAL

PROVISIO NING SERVERS

A DHCP server is required for cable modems, MTAs, and CPE devices to boot
and receive their IP configuration information — such as IP address and host
options.
DHCP servers fall into two categories:
■External — DHCP servers that reside on systems other than your local
Cuda 12000 (that is, the Cuda 12000 that has the cable interfa ce that
you are configuring). DHCP messages are forwarded over the network to
a remote, external DHCP server. The external DHCP server can be a
FastFlow Broadband Provisioning Manager (BPM) DHCP server running on
another system or a third-party provisioning server running on another
system.
■Internal — A FastFlow BPM DHCP server that resides on the same Cuda
12000 that has the cable interface you are configuring (that is, the local
Cuda 12000). DHCP requests are forwarded internally to the FastFlow
DHCP server. The FastFlow BPM is an optional product that may or may
not be installed on your Cuda 12000.