HP-UX IP Address and Client Management Administrator's Guide HP-UX 11i v2, HP-UX 11i v3

1 Overview
This manual discusses the IP address and client management techniques implemented in the
HP-UX 11i v2 and HP-UX 11i v3 operating systems. With the success of the Internet, an
ever-increasing demand for IP addresses and IP address management has presented a challenging
task for administrators. In the past, administrators could manage the IP addresses in a single file
containing all the host information, that is, name-to-address mappings for every host connected
to the network. Now, due to an explosive growth in the networks, assigning and maintaining
new IP addresses and resolving domain names to IP addresses have become difficult and
cumbersome tasks. An effective solution to this problem is the Domain Name System (DNS), a
distributed database that implements the machine name hierarchy for TCP/IP-based networks.
DNS defines the rules for name syntax in a hierarchical name space and for delegation of authority
over names. A name server is a server program that maps domain names to IP addresses. A set
of DNS name servers operating at multiple sites co-operatively solve the domain name to IP
address mapping problem and provide other information.Every time you use a domain name,
a DNS service translates the name into the corresponding IP address. For example, the domain
name www.sample.com translates to 188.135.212.3.The Berkeley Internet Name Domain server
(BIND) is a commonly used DNS implementation. The client software, called a name resolver,
uses one or more name servers when translating a name.At its current rate of development, the
present system, which can support 4 billion addresses, might run out of space in a few years.
Researchers claim that switchover to IPv6, which has a huge address space, is the optimal solution
to the overcrowded system. To overcome this problem, the Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol
(DHCP) is used to assign IP address dynamically. DHCP provides a framework for passing
configuration information to hosts on a TCP/IP network. DHCP, based on the Bootstrap Protocol
(BOOTP), adds the capability of automatic allocation of reusable network addresses and additional
configuration options. DHCPv6 supports IPv6, the next-generation Internet protocol, and enables
DHCP servers to pass configuration parameters using extensions of IPv6 nodes.Client management
involves identifying services on the network. To locate services on the network, users of network
applications are required to supply the host name or network address of the machine that provides
the desired service. The Service Location Protocol (SLP) eliminates the need for users to know
the description of the service offered by the network. With SLP, a user only needs to know the
description of the service required. Based on this description, SLP returns the desired service.The
IP address management implementations in the HP-UX 11i v2 and HP-UX 11i v3 operating
systems are as follows:
• BIND
• BOOTP and TFTP
• DHCPv6
SLP is the client management implementation in the HP-UX 11i v2 and HP-UX 11i v3 operating
systems. A detailed description of the IP address and client management implementations is
provided in this manual.
NOTE: System Administration Manager (SAM) is deprecated in HP-UX 11i v3. HP System
Management Homepage (HP SMH) is the system administration tool for managing HP-UX. HP
SMH provides systems management functionality, at-a-glance monitoring of system component
health and consolidated log viewing. HP SMH provides Graphical User Interface (GUI), Text
User Interface (TUI), and Command Line Interface (CLI) for managing HP-UX. You can access
these interfaces using the /usr/sbin/smh command.
When you run either the /usr/sbin/sam or /usr/sbin/smh command and the DISPLAY
environment variable is set, HP SMH opens in the default web browser. If the DISPLAY
environment variable is not set, HP SMH opens using its terminal interface.
This chapter contains information about the following topics:
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