Should I DCHP?

[Heeter]

Should I DHCP?

Hi Guys,

Right now, I have three computers and one file server tower. They are all hooked up to a linksys router. DHCP is disabled. I manually assign each machine an IPaddress and they all belong to the same workgroup. They are all sharing with no problems whatsoever. What would be a benefit to enabling DCHP in this case? What are the benefits of DHCP enabling?

Thanks in advance

Heeter

 

[NetRyder]

In a local network of that size, I'd suggest sticking to statically assigned IPs rather than enabling the DHCP server. The problem with enabling DHCP on the network would be that each time you shutdown/restart a machine, there is a possibility that it'll get a new IP address from the DHCP server (unless you set the DHCP server to assign static IPs to certain machines based on MAC addresses, and dynamic IPs to any other machines). So if you have mapped network drives assigned by IP, the link would break when the IPs change.

 

[Heeter]

Thanks, Nets

I forgot about the mapped drives. Getting the DHCP server to assign static IP's would pretty much defeat the purpose of enabling DHCP.

What type of situation would enabling the DHCP come into play, in other words, become a useful tool?

Heeter

 

[NetRyder]

Just some things I can think off the top of my head:
1) Faster configuration - all machines are set to automatically receive IPs instead of configuring each one of them separately. DHCP takes care of all the assignments.
2) Mobility - applies more to portable machines. Lets say you take a laptop from home to school/work. DHCP would be ideal here, since you wouldn't need to reconfigure your settings each time.
3) Security - this applies more to larger, more public networks. Assigning dynamic IPs each time to all machines helps prevent attacks on certain machines that might be closely watched based on their IPs by potential hackers and miscreants.

As you said, in your case, getting the DHCP server to assign static IP's would pretty much defeat the purpose of enabling DHCP in the first place. However, there are times when this comes in handy. Getting the DHCP server to assign static IP's based on MAC addresses allows only certain computers to connect to the local network. So if a third person comes and plugs into your router, they wouldn't be able to connect (get an IP) unless the rules state so. Of course, this isn't of much use on small, personal networks.

 

[blinden]

bah, it's just one more thing that can break, if it works, don't touch it.

 

[j79zlr]

DHCP is asking for failure. Plus as NR said, then you can map by IP instead of DN. This is faster, also the PC's will boot slightly quicker since they are not waiting for IP et al. assignments from the DHCP server.