What is DHCP? How DHCP Technology Works.

DHCP

Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) is an IP standard designed to reduce the complexity of administering address configurations by using a server computer to centrally manage IP addresses and other related configuration details used on your network. The Microsoft® Windows Server 2003 family provides the DHCP service, which enables the server computer to perform as a DHCP server and configure DHCP-enabled client computers on your network as described in the current DHCP draft standard, RFC 2131.

The Internet is a vast source of information that is continuously updated and accessed via computers and other devices. For a device (also referred to as a host) to connect to the Internet, it is necessary that among other configurations, it must have an Internet Protocol (IP) address.

How DHCP Works

DHCP provides an automated way to distribute and update IP addresses and other configuration information on a network. A DHCP server provides this information to a DHCP client through the exchange of a series of messages, known as the DHCP conversation or the DHCP transaction. If the DHCP server and DHCP clients are located on different subnets, a DHCP relay agent is used to facilitate the conversation.