[tlug] dhcp.conf

["Stephen J. Turnbull" <stephen@example.com>]

Shawn writes:

 > ?? um internal subnet.  again this is just one box.  Do I need to
 > configure this.  Can I get the info from my fc3 box running dhcp
 > fine somehow?

?? um, if you only have one box, you don't need dhcpd.  It's like
this: if you have one box and you're getting service from someone
else, you can (a) have a static address configured with ifconfig(8),
static routes configured with route(8), and a nameserver(s) configured
in /etc/resolv.conf[1], or (b) you can get the address etc (which may
be static, doesn't matter) from your provider via DHCP[2], and
dhclient (or some other DHCP client) does all the work.

Configuration of the client is supposed to be a no-brainer in the
default case.[3]  If it's not for you, then either FC6 is borked, or
your provider is, or maybe your hardware is.  (Your borkage state is
irrelevant; yes, it should be that much of a no-brainer.  Remember,
this is a technology that saves providers about 1 billion support
calls from Windows users every year!)

Have you tried plugging in all the wires, turning on all the hardware,
becoming root, and running the command "dhclient"?

Footnotes: 
[1]  Most likely, there's a single file where you configure the data
and a script such ip-up picks it up at boot time or on network wake.
Those are the commands called by the script.

[2]  There are other possibilities like BOOTP, but DHCP is surely what
you'll see.

[3]  There are tweaks that can be done, like requesting different term
on leases or a specific address, but you shouldn't need them to
establish basic connectivity.