HP-UX IP Address and Client Management Administrator's Guide (October 2009)

DHCP Individual Device Configuration
In addition to allowing addresses to be assigned by groups, DHCP allows IP addresses to be
individually configured for devices. For administrative or security reasons, you may want certain
devices to have fixed addresses.
Using HP SMH, you can configure each individual device with the fixed-address device option.
You must provide the information about the device, including its own IP address.
NOTE: Devices that have fixed IP addresses in the /etc/bootptab file have priority over
pool groups. Devices with fixed IP addresses are placed first in /etc/bootptab file.
Figure 4-3 DHCP Devices Can Have Fixed IP Addresses
In Figure 4-3, assume that you have configured a DHCP group (group A) to include Client1 and
Client2, meaning that each client receives an IP address from a pool of available addresses at
boot request. If you configure Client3 and Client4 to have fixed IP addresses then client3 and
client4 are assigned the addresses you configured for them upon boot request. Client3 and Client4
will always be assigned the same addresses unless you change the configuration.
DHCP also allows you to define many optional parameter values for clients with fixed addresses.
Fixed address devices are configured in the /etc/bootptab file. HP recommends you to use
HP SMH to configure the /etc/bootptab file.
DHCP Configuration through BOOTP Relay Agent
In this method, DHCP distributes IP addresses to clients through a BOOTP Relay Agent. A
BOOTP Relay Agent is a machine on the local network that forwards boot requests from a DHCP
or BOOTP client to a configured DHCP or BOOTP server.
Configuring DHCP to Assign and Distribute IP Addresses 125