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Every computer attached to a network needs to be configured with
an IP address and other information about the network in order to
work properly. In larger networks, this configuration is quite a
time consuming and error prone work. With mobile clients such as
laptops it gets even more complicated.
With the Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol - DHCP - the entire
process of configuring devices on a network gets automated. With
very little or no administrator intervention it is easy to accommodate
new devices to the network. Another big advantage of DHCP is that
it allows for easy connection of mobile devices. DHCP-enabled laptops
can move from one place to another with no disturbances. The computer
automatically gets an IP address and configuration suitable for
the network segment it is currently attached to.
Interpeak has implemented both an IPv4 and an IPv6 version of the
Embedded DHCP server. Since the DHCP server functionality for IPv4
and IPv6 have very little in common, we have decided to separate
it in two different products. Both products are of course compatible,
and may co-exist in a network.
The Embedded DHCP Servers may optionally be combined with a DHCP
Relay Agent, which makes it possible for DHCP messages to traverse
different subnets. Normally, the DHCP broadcast messages are stopped
by routers, but the relay agent receives such messages and resends
them to the appropriate DHCP servers using unicast.
The Interpeak Embedded DHCP Servers and Relay Agent are designed
for deployment in embedded systems, and are delivered in ANSI compliant
C source code, with ready-to-run RTOS integration containing makefiles
etc.
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