Q 1 Address Resolution Protocol (ARP)

Updated: January 21, 2005 Applies To: Windows Server 2003, Windows Server 2003 R2, Windows Server 2003 with SP1, Windows Server 2003 with SP2

Address Resolution Protocol (ARP)

Address Resolution Protocol (ARP) is a required TCP/IP standard defined in RFC 826, "Address Resolution Protocol (ARP)." ARP resolves IP addresses used by TCP/IP-based software to media access control addresses used by LAN hardware. ARP provides the following protocol services to hosts located on the same physical network:
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Media access control addresses are obtained by using a network broadcast request in the form of the question "What is the media access control address for a device that is configured with the enclosed IP address?" When an ARP request is answered, both the sender of the ARP reply and the original ARP requester record each other's IP address and media access control address as an entry in a local table called the ARP cache for future reference.

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Reverse Address Resolution Protocol (RARP)

RARP provides the opposite service to ARP in that it is used when only the ethernet address is known and the IP address is needed. RARP requests are most commonly sent by diskless clients and JumpStart clients during bootup. A diskless client contains no local storage and knows only its own ethernet address. A JumpStart client contains local storage, but uses the ethernet address to locate the JumpStart boot server (to start a remote installation of the Solaris operating environment). The client uses the RARP protocol to broadcast this ethernet address and asks for the corresponding IP address. The following fragment of output from the snoop command shows a client that is

Q2

Benefits of DHCP Deploying DHCP on your enterprise network provides the following benefits:
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Safe and reliable configuration. DHCP minimizes configuration errors caused by manual IP address configuration, such as typographical errors, as well as address conflicts caused by a currently assigned IP address accidentally being reissued to another computer. Reduced network administration. o TCP/IP configuration is centralized and automated. o Network administrators can centrally define global and subnet-specific TCP/IP configurations. o Clients can be automatically assigned a full range of additional TCP/IP configuration values by using DHCP options. o Address changes for client configurations that must be updated frequently, such as remote access clients that move around constantly, can be made efficiently and automatically when the client restarts in its new location. o Most routers can forward DHCP configuration requests, eliminating the requirement of setting up a DHCP server on every subnet, unless there is another reason to do so.

Q5 This article describes how to use the Alternate Configuration functionality to establish multiple-network connectivity. If you are a mobile computer user, you can use the Alternate Configuration functionality to maintain seamless operations on both office and home networks without having to manually reconfigure TCP/IP settings. This feature specifies that TCP/IP uses an alternative configuration if a DHCP server is not found. The Alternate Configuration functionality is useful in situations where you use the computer on more than one network, where one of those networks does not have a DHCP server, and you do not want to use an automatic private Internet protocol (IP) addressing configuration. You can use the Alternate Configuration functionality if you use a mobile computer at your office and at your home. When you are in the office, the computer uses a DHCP-allocated TCP/IP configuration. When you are at home (where you do not have access to a DHCP server), the computer automatically uses the alternative configuration. Using the Alternate Configuration feature To use the Alternate Configuration feature: 1. On the Start menu, click Control Panel. 2. Click Network and Internet Connections. 3. Click Network Connections.

4. Right-click the local area network (LAN) or high-speed Internet connection that you want to configure and click Properties. 5. Click Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) and click Properties. 6. Click the Alternate Configuration tab.

Q 6 Question: What Is a Default Gateway? You will sometimes see the term default gateway on network configuration screens in Microsoft Windows. Answer: In computer networking, a default gateway is the device that passes traffic from the local subnet to devices on other subnets. The default gateway often connects a local network to the Internet, although internal gateways for local networks also exist. Internet default gateways are typically one of two types:
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On home or small business networks with a broadband router to share the Internet connection, the home router serves as the default gateway. On home or small business networks without a router, such as for residences with dialup Internet access, a router at the Internet Service Provider location serves as the default gateway.

Q 8 The DNS name space is an important part of DNS, as it gives an

understanding of why domain names look the way they do, and how DNS works. The namespace refers to the hierarchical layout of DNS names; the DNS namespace is laid out in an inverted tree. This means the root of the tree is at the top, and the branches of the tree grow downwards; of course this is all figuratively speaking. At the top of the DNS namespace is the root; all domain names start at the root which is defined by a null character. Note that domain names read from right to left, that is the highest level of the name space, the root, is the furthest right portion of the DNS name. The root is not normally explicitly specified in user applications, as most applications assume it. It is often explicitly specified in DNS server configuration files and is denoted by a trailing period. Below the root in the DNS namespace, are the top level domains or TLDs. These are the highest names in the name space, for example, .com or .net. These TLDS are maintained by the Internet corporation for assigned names and numbers, or ICAN, for Internet use. On the Internet, you must use one of the ICAN approve TLDs, if you're using the standard root servers. On a private network though, you can use any TLDs you want. You may see some examples in this course where I use the .tld domain as a TLD. This is not a legal Internet TLD and I do this just for the sake of example. It is bad practice to use illegal

TLDs, even on a private network, in case you ever need to connect that network to the Internet. If you did you'd need to change all your illegal domain names. The remainder of the namespace is open for use more or less; there are few names that you can t use but for the most part of it's wide open. You can register domain names beneath several of the TLDs including .com, .net, .org, .biz and .nam for example. There are also restricted TLDs such as .gov and .mil which can only be used by the US government, and .edu which can only be used educational institutions. You also have the option of country TLDs, based on your country codes, such as .us for the USA and .ca for Canada. Once you have a domain under a TLD, you can create as many sub-domains as you like, as long as they don't reach more than hundred and twenty seven layers below the root. For example, if you register the domain vtc.com, you can use sub-domains such as east.vtc.com and west.vtc.com without needing the register them. I cover the configurations of sub-domains later on in the course. Here you can see an example of the DNS namespace, with the root at the top; under the root are the TLDs, next come the regular domains, below those are hosts or sub-domains.