Wikipedia
The Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) is a network management protocol used on Internet Protocol (IP) local area networks A DHCP server must be present on the network A device connected to the network requests an IP address from the DHCP server using the DHCP protocol the server assigns a unique address to the device, identifying it for TCP/IP communication, and supplies other network configuration parameters In the absence of a DHCP server, a device that needs an IP address must be manually assigned a static address by a network administrator, or must assign itself an APIPA address (which will not enable it to communicate outside its local subnet)
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