A remote employee reports that after restarting their desktop computer, they can no longer access local file shares or internet resources. Running network diagnostics reveals that the client computer has an IPv4 address of 169.254.45.12 with a subnet mask of 255.255.0.0 and no default gateway configured. Which network host service has failed to communicate with or assign network settings to this client?
- DHCP serverAnswer
- BDNS server
- CAPIPA server
- DWeb proxy server
Answer
The DHCP server is the service failing to communicate with the client. When a client fails to receive a response from a DHCP server during boot or lease renewal, the local operating system assigns an Automatic Private IP Addressing (APIPA) address in the 169.254.0.0/16 address block.
The correct answer identifies the DHCP server. Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) is the host network service responsible for automatically issuing IP addresses, subnet masks, default gateways, and DNS server addresses to client endpoints. When the DHCP server is offline or unreachable across subnets, client operating systems auto-generate a link-local APIPA address (169.254.x.x).
Step-by-Step Solution
Key Concept
DHCP Host Role and APIPA Fallback
Estimated Time:1m 0s