Configuring a Microsoft Windows NT 4.0 DHCP Server for Unicast

ID: Q161429

The information in this article applies to:

Microsoft Windows NT Server version 4.0
Microsoft Windows 2000 Server
Microsoft Windows 2000 Advanced Server

SUMMARY

By default, the Microsoft Windows NT 4.0 DHCP server sends all DHCP responses as IP broadcasts to the limited broadcast address (255.255.255.255). However, the DHCP server can be configured to unicast responses if the client request specifies that a broadcast response is not required.

MORE INFORMATION

Versions of the DHCP server prior to Windows NT 4.0 ignored the broadcast flag in client DHCP packets, and broadcast all replies. Version 4.0 of the DHCP server supports unicasting via the following registry parameter:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \CurrentControlSet \Services \DHCPServer \Parameters \IgnoreBroadcastFlag

Parameter Type: REG_DWORD
Default: 1
Description: If set to 1, the broadcast flag in client requests is ignored, and all DHCP packets are broadcast from the server. If set to 0, the behavior (whether to broadcast or not) is controlled by the broadcast flag in the client request that is being responded to.

The Networks.wri file also contains a description of this parameter.

Additional query words:

Keywords : kbnetwork nttcp NTSrv
Version : WINDOWS:2000; winnt:4.0
Platform : WINDOWS winnt
Issue type :