Configuring DHCP

• Finding Feature Information, page 1

• Information About DHCP, page 1
• How to Configure DHCP Features, page 8
• Configuring DHCP Server Port-Based Address Allocation, page 17

Finding Feature Information

Your software release may not support all the features documented in this module. For the latest feature
information and caveats, see the release notes for your platform and software release.
Use Cisco Feature Navigator to find information about platform support and Cisco software image support.
To access Cisco Feature Navigator, go to http://www.cisco.com/go/cfn. An account on Cisco.com is not
required.

Information About DHCP

DHCP Server
The DHCP server assigns IP addresses from specified address pools on a switch or router to DHCP clients
and manages them. If the DHCP server cannot give the DHCP client the requested configuration parameters
from its database, it forwards the request to one or more secondary DHCP servers defined by the network
administrator.
The switch can act as a DHCP server.

DHCP Relay Agent

A DHCP relay agent is a Layer 3 device that forwards DHCP packets between clients and servers. Relay
agents forward requests and replies between clients and servers when they are not on the same physical subnet.
Relay agent forwarding is different from the normal Layer 2 forwarding, in which IP datagrams are switched

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DHCP Snooping

transparently between networks. Relay agents receive DHCP messages and generate new DHCP messages
to send on output interfaces.

DHCP Snooping
DHCP snooping is a DHCP security feature that provides network security by filtering untrusted DHCP
messages and by building and maintaining a DHCP snooping binding database, also referred to as a DHCP
snooping binding table.
DHCP snooping acts like a firewall between untrusted hosts and DHCP servers. You use DHCP snooping to
differentiate between untrusted interfaces connected to the end user and trusted interfaces connected to the
DHCP server or another switch.

Note For DHCP snooping to function properly, all DHCP servers must be connected to the switch through
trusted interfaces.

An untrusted DHCP message is a message that is received through an untrusted interface. By default, the
switch considers all interfaces untrusted. So, the switch must be configured to trust some interfaces to use
DHCP Snooping. When you use DHCP snooping in a service-provider environment, an untrusted message
is sent from a device that is not in the service-provider network, such as a customer’s switch. Messages from
unknown devices are untrusted because they can be sources of traffic attacks.
The DHCP snooping binding database has the MAC address, the IP address, the lease time, the binding type,
the VLAN number, and the interface information that corresponds to the local untrusted interfaces of a switch.
It does not have information regarding hosts interconnected with a trusted interface.
In a service-provider network, an example of an interface you might configure as trusted is one connected to
a port on a device in the same network. An example of an untrusted interface is one that is connected to an
untrusted interface in the network or to an interface on a device that is not in the network.
When a switch receives a packet on an untrusted interface and the interface belongs to a VLAN in which
DHCP snooping is enabled, the switch compares the source MAC address and the DHCP client hardware
address. If the addresses match (the default), the switch forwards the packet. If the addresses do not match,
the switch drops the packet.
The switch drops a DHCP packet when one of these situations occurs:
• A packet from a DHCP server, such as a DHCPOFFER, DHCPACK, DHCPNAK, or
DHCPLEASEQUERY packet, is received from outside the network or firewall.
• A packet is received on an untrusted interface, and the source MAC address and the DHCP client hardware
address do not match.
• The switch receives a DHCPRELEASE or DHCPDECLINE broadcast message that has a MAC address
in the DHCP snooping binding database, but the interface information in the binding database does not
match the interface on which the message was received.
• A DHCP relay agent forwards a DHCP packet that includes a relay-agent IP address that is not 0.0.0.0,
or the relay agent forwards a packet that includes option-82 information to an untrusted port.

If the switch is an aggregation switch supporting DHCP snooping and is connected to an edge switch that is
inserting DHCP option-82 information, the switch drops packets with option-82 information when packets
are received on an untrusted interface. If DHCP snooping is enabled and packets are received on a trusted

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Option-82 Data Insertion

port, the aggregation switch does not learn the DHCP snooping bindings for connected devices and cannot
build a complete DHCP snooping binding database.
When an aggregation switch can be connected to an edge switch through an untrusted interface and you enter
the ip dhcp snooping information option allow-untrusted global configuration command, the aggregation
switch accepts packets with option-82 information from the edge switch. The aggregation switch learns the
bindings for hosts connected through an untrusted switch interface. The DHCP security features, such as
dynamic ARP inspection or IP source guard, can still be enabled on the aggregation switch while the switch
receives packets with option-82 information on untrusted input interfaces to which hosts are connected. The
port on the edge switch that connects to the aggregation switch must be configured as a trusted interface.

Related Topics
Prerequisites for Configuring DHCP Snooping and Option 82, on page 12

Option-82 Data Insertion

In residential, metropolitan Ethernet-access environments, DHCP can centrally manage the IP address
assignments for a large number of subscribers. When the DHCP option-82 feature is enabled on the switch,
a subscriber device is identified by the switch port through which it connects to the network (in addition to
its MAC address). Multiple hosts on the subscriber LAN can be connected to the same port on the access
switch and are uniquely identified.

Note The DHCP option-82 feature is supported only when DHCP snooping is globally enabled on the VLANs
to which subscriber devices using option-82 are assigned.

The following illustration shows a metropolitan Ethernet network in which a centralized DHCP server assigns
IP addresses to subscribers connected to the switch at the access layer. Because the DHCP clients and their
associated DHCP server do not reside on the same IP network or subnet, a DHCP relay agent (the Catalyst
switch) is configured with a helper address to enable broadcast forwarding and to transfer DHCP messages
between the clients and the server.

Figure 1: DHCP Relay Agent in a Metropolitan Ethernet Network

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Option-82 Data Insertion

When you enable the DHCP snooping information option 82 on the switch, the following sequence of
events occurs:
• The host (DHCP client) generates a DHCP request and broadcasts it on the network.
• When the switch receives the DHCP request, it adds the option-82 information in the packet. By default,
the remote-ID suboption is the switch MAC address, and the circuit-ID suboption is the port identifier,
vlan-mod-port, from which the packet is received.You can configure the remote ID and circuit ID.
• If the IP address of the relay agent is configured, the switch adds this IP address in the DHCP packet.
• The switch forwards the DHCP request that includes the option-82 field to the DHCP server.
• The DHCP server receives the packet. If the server is option-82-capable, it can use the remote ID, the
circuit ID, or both to assign IP addresses and implement policies, such as restricting the number of IP
addresses that can be assigned to a single remote ID or circuit ID. Then the DHCP server echoes the
option-82 field in the DHCP reply.
• The DHCP server unicasts the reply to the switch if the request was relayed to the server by the switch.
The switch verifies that it originally inserted the option-82 data by inspecting the remote ID and possibly
the circuit ID fields. The switch removes the option-82 field and forwards the packet to the switch port
that connects to the DHCP client that sent the DHCP request.
•
In the default suboption configuration, when the described sequence of events occurs, the values in these
fields do not change (see the illustration,Suboption Packet Formats):
• Circuit-ID suboption fields
◦Suboption type
◦Length of the suboption type
◦Circuit-ID type
◦Length of the circuit-ID type

• Remote-ID suboption fields

◦Suboption type
◦Length of the suboption type
◦Remote-ID type
◦Length of the remote-ID type

In the port field of the circuit ID suboption, the port numbers start at 3. For example, on a switch with 24
10/100/1000 ports and four small form-factor pluggable (SFP) module slots, port 3 is the Gigabit Ethernet
1/0/1 port, port 4 is the Gigabit Ethernet 1/0/2 port, and so forth. Port 27 is the SFP module slot Gigabit
Ethernet1/0/25, and so forth.
The illustration, Suboption Packet Formats. shows the packet formats for the remote-ID suboption and the
circuit-ID suboption when the default suboption configuration is used. For the circuit-ID suboption, the module

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Option-82 Data Insertion

number corresponds to the switch number in the stack. The switch uses the packet formats when you globally
enable DHCP snooping and enter the ip dhcp snooping information option global configuration command.

Figure 2: Suboption Packet Formats

The illustration, User-Configured Suboption Packet Formats, shows the packet formats for user-configured
remote-ID and circuit-ID suboptions The switch uses these packet formats when DHCP snooping is globally
enabled and when the ip dhcp snooping information option format remote-id global configuration command
and theip dhcp snooping vlan information option format-type circuit-id string interface configuration
command are entered.
The values for these fields in the packets change from the default values when you configure the remote-ID
and circuit-ID suboptions:
• Circuit-ID suboption fields
◦The circuit-ID type is 1.
◦The length values are variable, depending on the length of the string that you configure.

• Remote-ID suboption fields

◦The remote-ID type is 1.

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Cisco IOS DHCP Server Database

◦The length values are variable, depending on the length of the string that you configure.

Figure 3: User-Configured Suboption Packet Formats

Cisco IOS DHCP Server Database

During the DHCP-based autoconfiguration process, the designated DHCP server uses the Cisco IOS DHCP
server database. It has IP addresses, address bindings, and configuration parameters, such as the boot file.
An address binding is a mapping between an IP address and a MAC address of a host in the Cisco IOS DHCP
server database. You can manually assign the client IP address, or the DHCP server can allocate an IP address
from a DHCP address pool. For more information about manual and automatic address bindings, see the
“Configuring DHCP” chapter of the Cisco IOS IP Configuration Guide, Release 12.4.
For procedures to enable and configure the Cisco IOS DHCP server database, see the “DHCP Configuration
Task List” section in the “Configuring DHCP” chapter of the Cisco IOS IP Configuration Guide, Release 12.4.

DHCP Snooping Binding Database

When DHCP snooping is enabled, the switch uses the DHCP snooping binding database to store information
about untrusted interfaces. The database can have up to 64,000 bindings.
Each database entry (binding) has an IP address, an associated MAC address, the lease time (in hexadecimal
format), the interface to which the binding applies, and the VLAN to which the interface belongs. The database
agent stores the bindings in a file at a configured location. At the end of each entry is a checksum that accounts
for all the bytes from the start of the file through all the bytes associated with the entry. Each entry is 72 bytes,
followed by a space and then the checksum value.
To keep the bindings when the switch reloads, you must use the DHCP snooping database agent. If the agent
is disabled, dynamic ARP inspection or IP source guard is enabled, and the DHCP snooping binding database

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DHCP Snooping and Switch Stacks

has dynamic bindings, the switch loses its connectivity. If the agent is disabled and only DHCP snooping is
enabled, the switch does not lose its connectivity, but DHCP snooping might not prevent DHCP spoofing
attacks.
When reloading, the switch reads the binding file to build the DHCP snooping binding database. The switch
updates the file when the database changes.
When a switch learns of new bindings or when it loses bindings, the switch immediately updates the entries
in the database. The switch also updates the entries in the binding file. The frequency at which the file is
updated is based on a configurable delay, and the updates are batched. If the file is not updated in a specified
time (set by the write-delay and abort-timeout values), the update stops.
This is the format of the file with bindings:

<initial-checksum>
TYPE DHCP-SNOOPING
VERSION 1
BEGIN
<entry-1> <checksum-1>
<entry-2> <checksum-1-2>
...
...
<entry-n> <checksum-1-2-..-n>
END

Each entry in the file is tagged with a checksum value that the switch uses to verify the entries when it reads
the file. The initial-checksum entry on the first line distinguishes entries associated with the latest file update
from entries associated with a previous file update.
This is an example of a binding file:

2bb4c2a1
TYPE DHCP-SNOOPING
VERSION 1
BEGIN
192.1.168.1 3 0003.47d8.c91f 2BB6488E Gi1/0/4 21ae5fbb
192.1.168.3 3 0003.44d6.c52f 2BB648EB Gi1/0/4 1bdb223f
192.1.168.2 3 0003.47d9.c8f1 2BB648AB Gi1/0/4 584a38f0
END

When the switch starts and the calculated checksum value equals the stored checksum value, the switch reads
entries from the binding file and adds the bindings to its DHCP snooping binding database. The switch ignores
an entry when one of these situations occurs:
• The switch reads the entry and the calculated checksum value does not equal the stored checksum value.
The entry and the ones following it are ignored.
• An entry has an expired lease time (the switch might not remove a binding entry when the lease time
expires).
• The interface in the entry no longer exists on the system.
• The interface is a routed interface or a DHCP snooping-trusted interface.

DHCP Snooping and Switch Stacks

DHCP snooping is managed on the stack master. When a new switch joins the stack, the switch receives the
DHCP snooping configuration from the stack master. When a member leaves the stack, all DHCP snooping
address bindings associated with the switch age out.

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How to Configure DHCP Features

All snooping statistics are generated on the stack master. If a new stack master is elected, the statistics counters
reset.
When a stack merge occurs, all DHCP snooping bindings in the stack master are lost if it is no longer the
stack master. With a stack partition, the existing stack master is unchanged, and the bindings belonging to the
partitioned switches age out. The new master of the partitioned stack begins processing the new incoming
DHCP packets.

How to Configure DHCP Features

Default DHCP Snooping Configuration
Table 1: Default DHCP Configuration

Feature Default Setting

DHCP server Enabled in Cisco IOS software, requires configuration1

DHCP relay agent Enabled2

DHCP packet forwarding address None configured

Checking the relay agent information Enabled (invalid messages are dropped)

DHCP relay agent forwarding policy Replace the existing relay agent information

DHCP snooping enabled globally Disabled

DHCP snooping information option Enabled

DHCP snooping option to accept packets on untrusted Disabled

input interfaces3

DHCP snooping limit rate None configured

DHCP snooping trust Untrusted

DHCP snooping VLAN Disabled

DHCP snooping MAC address verification Enabled

Cisco IOS DHCP server binding database Enabled in Cisco IOS software, requires configuration.
Note The switch gets network addresses and
configuration parameters only from a device
configured as a DHCP server.

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DHCP Snooping Configuration Guidelines

Feature Default Setting

DHCP snooping binding database agent Enabled in Cisco IOS software, requires configuration.
This feature is operational only when a destination is
configured.

1 The switch responds to DHCP requests only if it is configured as a DHCP server.

2 The switch relays DHCP packets only if the IP address of the DHCP server is configured on the SVI of the DHCP client.
3 Use this feature when the switch is an aggregation switch that receives packets with option-82 information from an edge switch.

DHCP Snooping Configuration Guidelines

• If a switch port is connected to a DHCP server, configure a port as trusted by entering the ip dhcp
snooping trust interface configuration command.
• If a switch port is connected to a DHCP client, configure a port as untrusted by entering the no ip dhcp
snooping trust interface configuration command.
• You can display DHCP snooping statistics by entering the show ip dhcp snooping statistics user EXEC
command, and you can clear the snooping statistics counters by entering the clear ip dhcp snooping
statistics privileged EXEC command.

Configuring the DHCP Server

The switch can act as a DHCP server.
For procedures to configure the switch as a DHCP server, see the “Configuring DHCP” section of the “IP
addressing and Services” section of the Cisco IOS IP Configuration Guide, Release 12.4.

DHCP Server and Switch Stacks

The DHCP binding database is managed on the stack master. When a new stack master is assigned, the new
master downloads the saved binding database from the TFTP server. If the stack master fails, all unsaved
bindings are lost. The IP addresses associated with the lost bindings are released. You should configure an
automatic backup by using the ip dhcp database url [timeout seconds | write-delay seconds] global
configuration command.
When a stack merge occurs, the stack master that becomes a stack member loses all of the DHCP lease
bindings. With a stack partition, the new master in the partition acts as a new DHCP server without any of
the existing DHCP lease bindings.

Configuring the DHCP Relay Agent

Beginning in privileged EXEC mode, follow these steps to enable the DHCP relay agent on the switch:

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Specifying the Packet Forwarding Address

SUMMARY STEPS

1. configure terminal
2. service dhcp
3. end

DETAILED STEPS

Command or Action Purpose

Step 1 configure terminal Enters the global configuration mode.

Example:
Switch# configure terminal

Step 2 service dhcp Enables the DHCP server and relay agent on your switch.
By default, this feature is enabled.
Example:
Switch(config)# service dhcp

Step 3 end Returns to privileged EXEC mode.

Example:
Switch(config)# end

What to Do Next
See the “Configuring DHCP” section of the “IP Addressing and Services” section of the Cisco IOS IP
Configuration Guide, Release 12.4 for these procedures:
• Checking (validating) the relay agent information
• Configuring the relay agent forwarding policy

Specifying the Packet Forwarding Address

If the DHCP server and the DHCP clients are on different networks or subnets, you must configure the switch
with the ip helper-address address interface configuration command. The general rule is to configure the
command on the Layer 3 interface closest to the client. The address used in the ip helper-address command
can be a specific DHCP server IP address, or it can be the network address if other DHCP servers are on the
destination network segment. Using the network address enables any DHCP server to respond to requests.
Beginning in privileged EXEC mode, follow these steps to specify the packet forwarding address:

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Specifying the Packet Forwarding Address

SUMMARY STEPS

1. configure terminal
2. interface vlan vlan-id
3. ip address ip-address subnet-mask
4. ip helper-address address
5. end
6. interface range port-range or interface interface-id
7. switchport mode access
8. switchport access vlan vlan-id
9. end

DETAILED STEPS

Command or Action Purpose

Step 1 configure terminal Enters the global configuration mode.

Example:
Switch# configure terminal

Step 2 interface vlan vlan-id Creates a switch virtual interface by entering a VLAN ID, and
enter interface configuration mode.
Example:
Switch(config)# interface vlan 1

Step 3 ip address ip-address subnet-mask Configures the interface with an IP address and an IP subnet.

Example:
Switch(config-if)# ip address 192.108.1.27
255.255.255.0

Step 4 ip helper-address address Specifies the DHCP packet forwarding address.

The helper address can be a specific DHCP server address, or it
Example: can be the network address if other DHCP servers are on the
Switch(config-if)# ip helper-address destination network segment. Using the network address enables
172.16.1.2 other servers to respond to DHCP requests.
If you have multiple servers, you can configure one helper address
for each server.

Step 5 end Returns to global configuration mode.

Example:
Switch(config-if)# end

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Prerequisites for Configuring DHCP Snooping and Option 82

Command or Action Purpose

Step 6 interface range port-range or interface Configures multiple physical ports that are connected to the DHCP
interface-id clients, and enter interface range configuration mode.
or
Example:
Configures a single physical port that is connected to the DHCP
Switch(config)# interface client, and enter interface configuration mode.
gigabitethernet1/0/2

Step 7 switchport mode access Defines the VLAN membership mode for the port.

Example:
Switch(config-if)# switchport mode access

Step 8 switchport access vlan vlan-id Assigns the ports to the same VLAN as configured in Step 2.

Example:
Switch(config-if)# switchport access vlan
1

Step 9 end Returns to privileged EXEC mode.

Example:
Switch(config-if)# end

Prerequisites for Configuring DHCP Snooping and Option 82

The prerequisites for DHCP Snooping and Option 82 are as follows:
• Before configuring the DHCP snooping information option on your switch, be sure to configure the
device that is acting as the DHCP server. You must specify the IP addresses that the DHCP server can
assign or exclude, or you must configure DHCP options for these devices.
• For DHCP snooping to function properly, all DHCP servers must be connected to the switch through
trusted interfaces.
• Before configuring the DHCP relay agent on your switch, make sure to configure the device that is
acting as the DHCP server. You must specify the IP addresses that the DHCP server can assign or
exclude, configure DHCP options for devices, or set up the DHCP database agent.
• The following prerequisites apply to DHCP snooping binding database configuration:
◦Because both NVRAM and the flash memory have limited storage capacity, we recommend that
you store the binding file on a TFTP server.
◦For network-based URLs (such as TFTP and FTP), you must create an empty file at the configured
URL before the switch can write bindings to the binding file at that URL. See the documentation
for your TFTP server to determine whether you must first create an empty file on the server; some
TFTP servers cannot be configured this way.

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Enabling DHCP Snooping and Option 82

◦To ensure that the lease time in the database is accurate, we recommend that you enable and
configure Network Time Protocol (NTP).
◦If NTP is configured, the switch writes binding changes to the binding file only when the switch
system clock is synchronized with NTP.

• If you want the switch to respond to DHCP requests, it must be configured as a DHCP server.
• If you want the switch to relay DHCP packets, the IP address of the DHCP server must be configured
on the switch virtual interface (SVI) of the DHCP client.
• To use the DHCP snooping option of accepting packets on untrusted inputs, the switch must be an
aggregation switch that receives packets with option-82 information from an edge switch.
• You must configure the switch to use the Cisco IOS DHCP server binding database to use it for DHCP
snooping.
• You must configure a destination on the DHCP snooping binding database to use the switch for DHCP
snooping.
• For DHCP snooping to function properly, all DHCP servers must be connected to the switch through
trusted interfaces. In a service-provider network, a trusted interface is connected to a port on a device
in the same network.
• You must globally enable DHCP snooping on the switch.
• Before globally enabling DHCP snooping on the switch, make sure that the devices acting as the DHCP
server and the DHCP relay agent are configured and enabled.
•

Note Do not enable Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) snooping on RSPAN
VLANs. If DHCP snooping is enabled on RSPAN VLANs, DHCP packets might not
reach the RSPAN destination port.

Related Topics
DHCP Snooping, on page 2

Enabling DHCP Snooping and Option 82

Beginning in privileged EXEC mode, follow these steps to enable DHCP snooping on the switch:

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Enabling DHCP Snooping and Option 82

SUMMARY STEPS

1. configure terminal
2. ip dhcp snooping
3. ip dhcp snooping vlan vlan-range []
4. ip dhcp snooping information option
5. ip dhcp snooping information option format remote-id [string ASCII-string | hostname]
6. ip dhcp snooping information option allow-untrusted
7. interface interface-id
8. ip dhcp snooping vlan vlan information option format-type circuit-id [override] string ASCII-string
9. ip dhcp snooping trust
10. ip dhcp snooping limit rate rate
11. exit
12. ip dhcp snooping verify mac-address
13. end

DETAILED STEPS

Command or Action Purpose

Step 1 configure terminal Enters the global configuration mode.

Example:
Switch# configure terminal

Step 2 ip dhcp snooping Enables DHCP snooping globally.

Example:
Switch(config)# ip dhcp snooping

Step 3 ip dhcp snooping vlan vlan-range [] Enables DHCP snooping on a VLAN or range of VLANs. The range is
1 to 4094.
Example: • You can enter a single VLAN ID identified by VLAN ID number,
Switch(config)# ip dhcp snooping vlan a series of VLAN IDs separated by commas, a range of VLAN
10 IDs separated by hyphens, or a range of VLAN IDs separated by
entering the starting and ending VLAN IDs separated by a space.

Step 4 ip dhcp snooping information option Enables the switch to insert and remove DHCP relay information
(option-82 field) in forwarded DHCP request messages to the DHCP
Example: server. This is the default setting.

Switch(config)# ip dhcp snooping

information option

Step 5 ip dhcp snooping information option format (Optional) Configures the remote-ID suboption.
remote-id [string ASCII-string | hostname] You can configure the remote ID as:

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Enabling DHCP Snooping and Option 82

Command or Action Purpose

• String of up to 63 ASCII characters (no spaces)
Example: • Configured hostname for the switch
Switch(config)# ip dhcp snooping Note If the hostname is longer than 63 characters, it is truncated
information option format remote-id
string acsiistring2
to 63 characters in the remote-ID configuration.

The default remote ID is the switch MAC address.

Step 6 ip dhcp snooping information option (Optional) If the switch is an aggregation switch connected to an edge
allow-untrusted switch, this command enables the switch to accept incoming DHCP
snooping packets with option-82 information from the edge switch.
Example: The default setting is disabled.
Switch(config)# ip dhcp snooping Note Enter this command only on aggregation switches that are
information option allow-untrusted
connected to trusted devices.
Step 7 interface interface-id Specifies the interface to be configured, and enter interface configuration
mode.
Example:
Switch(config)# interface
gigabitethernet2/0/1

Step 8 ip dhcp snooping vlan vlan information (Optional) Configures the circuit-ID suboption for the specified interface.
option format-type circuit-id [override] Specify the VLAN and port identifier, using a VLAN ID in the range
string ASCII-string of 1 to 4094. The default circuit ID is the port identifier, in the format
vlan-mod-port.
Example:
You can configure the circuit ID to be a string of 3 to 63 ASCII
Switch(config-if)# ip dhcp snooping vlan characters (no spaces).
1 information option format-type
curcuit-id override string ovrride2 (Optional) Use the override keyword when you do not want the
circuit-ID suboption inserted in TLV format to define subscriber
information.

Step 9 ip dhcp snooping trust (Optional) Configures the interface as trusted or untrusted. Use the no
keyword to configure an interface to receive messages from an untrusted
Example: client. The default setting is untrusted.

Switch(config-if)# ip dhcp snooping

trust

Step 10 ip dhcp snooping limit rate rate (Optional) Configures the number of DHCP packets per second that an
interface can receive. The range is 1 to 2048. By default, no rate limit
Example: is configured.

Switch(config-if)# ip dhcp snooping Note We recommend an untrusted rate limit of not more than 100
limit rate 100 packets per second. If you configure rate limiting for trusted
interfaces, you might need to increase the rate limit if the port
is a trunk port assigned to more than one VLAN with DHCP
snooping.

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Enabling the Cisco IOS DHCP Server Database

Command or Action Purpose

Step 11 exit Returns to global configuration mode.

Example:
Switch(config-if)# exit

Step 12 ip dhcp snooping verify mac-address (Optional) Configures the switch to verify that the source MAC address
in a DHCP packet received on untrusted ports matches the client
Example: hardware address in the packet. The default is to verify that the source
MAC address matches the client hardware address in the packet.
Switch(config)# ip dhcp snooping verify
mac-address

Step 13 end Returns to privileged EXEC mode.

Example:
Switch(config)# end

Enabling the Cisco IOS DHCP Server Database

For procedures to enable and configure the Cisco IOS DHCP server database, see the “DHCP Configuration
Task List” section in the “Configuring DHCP” chapter of the Cisco IOS IP Configuration Guide, Release 12.4

Monitoring DHCP Snooping Information

Table 2: Commands for Displaying DHCP Information

show ip dhcp snooping Displays the DHCP snooping configuration for a switch

show ip dhcp snooping binding Displays only the dynamically configured bindings in the DHCP snooping
binding database, also referred to as a binding table.

show ip dhcp snooping Displays the DHCP snooping binding database status and statistics.
database

show ip dhcp snooping Displays the DHCP snooping statistics in summary or detail form.
statistics

show ip source binding Display the dynamically and statically configured bindings.

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Configuring DHCP Server Port-Based Address Allocation

Note If DHCP snooping is enabled and an interface changes to the down state, the switch does not delete the
statically configured bindings.

Configuring DHCP Server Port-Based Address Allocation

Information About Configuring DHCP Server Port-Based Address Allocation
DHCP server port-based address allocation is a feature that enables DHCP to maintain the same IP address
on an Ethernet switch port regardless of the attached device client identifier or client hardware address.
When Ethernet switches are deployed in the network, they offer connectivity to the directly connected devices.
In some environments, such as on a factory floor, if a device fails, the replacement device must be working
immediately in the existing network. With the current DHCP implementation, there is no guarantee that DHCP
would offer the same IP address to the replacement device. Control, monitoring, and other software expect a
stable IP address associated with each device. If a device is replaced, the address assignment should remain
stable even though the DHCP client has changed.
When configured, the DHCP server port-based address allocation feature ensures that the same IP address is
always offered to the same connected port even as the client identifier or client hardware address changes in
the DHCP messages received on that port. The DHCP protocol recognizes DHCP clients by the client identifier
option in the DHCP packet. Clients that do not include the client identifier option are identified by the client
hardware address. When you configure this feature, the port name of the interface overrides the client identifier
or hardware address and the actual point of connection, the switch port, becomes the client identifier.
In all cases, by connecting the Ethernet cable to the same port, the same IP address is allocated through DHCP
to the attached device.
The DHCP server port-based address allocation feature is only supported on a Cisco IOS DHCP server and
not a third-party server.

Default Port-Based Address Allocation Configuration

By default, DHCP server port-based address allocation is disabled.

Port-Based Address Allocation Configuration Guidelines

• By default, DHCP server port-based address allocation is disabled.
• To restrict assignments from the DHCP pool to preconfigured reservations (unreserved addresses are
not offered to the client and other clients are not served by the pool), you can enter the reserved-only
DHCP pool configuration command.

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 Configuring DHCP
Enabling the DHCP Snooping Binding Database Agent

Enabling the DHCP Snooping Binding Database Agent

Beginning in privileged EXEC mode, follow these steps to enable and configure the DHCP snooping binding
database agent on the switch:

SUMMARY STEPS

1. configure terminal
2. ip dhcp snooping database {flash[number]:/filename | ftp://user:password@host/filename |
http://[[username:password]@]{hostname | host-ip}[/directory] /image-name.tar |
rcp://user@host/filename}| tftp://host/filename
3. ip dhcp snooping database timeout seconds
4. ip dhcp snooping database write-delay seconds
5. end
6. ip dhcp snooping binding mac-address vlan vlan-id ip-address interface interface-id expiry seconds

DETAILED STEPS

Command or Action Purpose

Step 1 configure terminal Enters the global configuration mode.

Example:
Switch# configure terminal

Step 2 ip dhcp snooping database {flash[number]:/filename Specifies the URL for the database agent or the binding file by
| ftp://user:password@host/filename | using one of these forms:
http://[[username:password]@]{hostname |
• flash[number]:/filename
host-ip}[/directory] /image-name.tar |
rcp://user@host/filename}| tftp://host/filename (Optional) Use the number parameter to specify the stack
member number of the stack master. The range for number
Example: is 1 to 9.

Switch(config)# ip dhcp snooping database • ftp://user:password@host/filename

tftp://10.90.90.90/snooping-rp2
• http://[[username:password]@]{hostname |
host-ip}[/directory] /image-name.tar
• rcp://user@host/filename
• tftp://host/filename

Step 3 ip dhcp snooping database timeout seconds Specifies (in seconds) how long to wait for the database transfer
process to finish before stopping the process.
Example: The default is 300 seconds. The range is 0 to 86400. Use 0 to
Switch(config)# ip dhcp snooping database define an infinite duration, which means to continue trying the
timeout 300 transfer indefinitely.

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Enabling DHCP Server Port-Based Address Allocation

Command or Action Purpose

Step 4 ip dhcp snooping database write-delay seconds Specifies the duration for which the transfer should be delayed
after the binding database changes. The range is from 15 to 86400
Example: seconds. The default is 300 seconds (5 minutes).

Switch(config)# ip dhcp snooping database

write-delay 15

Step 5 end Returns to privileged EXEC mode.

Example:
Switch(config)# end

Step 6 ip dhcp snooping binding mac-address vlan vlan-id (Optional) Adds binding entries to the DHCP snooping binding
ip-address interface interface-id expiry seconds database. The vlan-id range is from 1 to 4904. The seconds range
is from 1 to 4294967295.
Example: Enter this command for each entry that you add.
Switch# ip dhcp snooping binding Use this command when you are testing or debugging the switch.
0001.1234.1234 vlan 1 172.20.50.5 interface
gi1/1 expiry 1000

Enabling DHCP Server Port-Based Address Allocation

Beginning in privileged EXEC mode, follow these steps to globally enable port-based address allocation and
to automatically generate a subscriber identifier on an interface.

SUMMARY STEPS

1. configure terminal
2. ip dhcp use subscriber-id client-id
3. ip dhcp subscriber-id interface-name
4. interface interface-id
5. ip dhcp server use subscriber-id client-id
6. end

DETAILED STEPS

Command or Action Purpose

Step 1 configure terminal Enters the global configuration mode.

Example:
Switch# configure terminal

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 Configuring DHCP
Monitoring DHCP Server Port-Based Address Allocation

Command or Action Purpose

Step 2 ip dhcp use subscriber-id client-id Configures the DHCP server to globally use the subscriber
identifier as the client identifier on all incoming DHCP
Example: messages.

Switch(config)# ip dhcp use subscriber-id

client-id

Step 3 ip dhcp subscriber-id interface-name Automatically generates a subscriber identifier based on the
short name of the interface.
Example: A subscriber identifier configured on a specific interface takes
Switch(config)# ip dhcp subscriber-id precedence over this command.
interface-name

Step 4 interface interface-id Specifies the interface to be configured, and enter interface
configuration mode.
Example:
Switch(config)# interface gigabitethernet1/0/1

Step 5 ip dhcp server use subscriber-id client-id Configures the DHCP server to use the subscriber identifier
as the client identifier on all incoming DHCP messages on the
Example: interface.

Switch(config-if)# ip dhcp server use

subscriber-id client-id

Step 6 end Returns to privileged EXEC mode.

Example:
Switch(config)# end

Monitoring DHCP Server Port-Based Address Allocation

Table 3: Commands for Displaying DHCP Port-Based Address Allocation Information

Command Purpose
show interface interface id Displays the status and configuration of a specific interface.

show ip dhcp pool Displays the DHCP address pools.

show ip dhcp binding Displays address bindings on the Cisco IOS DHCP server.

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 Configuring DHCP
Additional References

Additional References
Related Documents

Related Topic Document Title

DHCP Configuration Information and Procedures IP Addressing: DHCP Configuration Guide, Cisco
IOS XE Release 3S
http://www.cisco.com/en/US/docs/ios-xml/ios/
ipaddr_dhcp/configuration/xe-3s/
dhcp-xe-3s-book.html

Error Message Decoder

Description Link
To help you research and resolve system error https://www.cisco.com/cgi-bin/Support/Errordecoder/
messages in this release, use the Error Message index.cgi
Decoder tool.

MIBs

MIB MIBs Link

All supported MIBs for this release. To locate and download MIBs for selected platforms,
Cisco IOS releases, and feature sets, use Cisco MIB
Locator found at the following URL:
http://www.cisco.com/go/mibs

Technical Assistance

Description Link
The Cisco Support website provides extensive online http://www.cisco.com/support
resources, including documentation and tools for
troubleshooting and resolving technical issues with
Cisco products and technologies.
To receive security and technical information about
your products, you can subscribe to various services,
such as the Product Alert Tool (accessed from Field
Notices), the Cisco Technical Services Newsletter,
and Really Simple Syndication (RSS) Feeds.
Access to most tools on the Cisco Support website
requires a Cisco.com user ID and password.

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 Configuring DHCP
Additional References

Consolidated Platform Configuration Guide, Cisco IOS XE 3.3SE (Catalyst 3850 Switches)
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