Any server running the Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) service must be configured with at least one active scope before it can lease Internet Protocol (IP) addresses to DHCP clients. A scope is a range, or pool, of IP addresses that can be leased to DHCP clients on a given subnet. If there are multiple subnets, a DHCP server must be configured with multiple scopes.

Each scope you create consists of specific information. It is generally a good idea to do so pre-planning before creating the scope so you have all the necessary information on hand. This can reduce the likelihood of creating a scope with incorrect information. The information required to create a scope includes:

• A range of IP addresses that can be leased to clients
• A subnet mask that determines the subnet for a given IP address
• A scope name that appears in the DHCP management console
• The lease duration value that determines when DHPC clients must renew their dynamically assigned IP addresses

Scopes do not only contain IP addresses for DHCP clients. A scope can also include optional parameters such as the IP address of DNS servers and routers. The optional parameters can be assigned to DHCP clients when they lease an IP address.

Before you jump into the process of creating scopes, you should keep a few important points in mind:

• All DHCP servers on the network require at least one active scope.
• Any static IP addresses need to be excluded from the scope. This eliminates the possibility of one IP address being assigned to two computers.
• If necessary, a single DHCP server can have multiple scopes.
• Each subnet can have only a single DHCP scope with a single continuous range of IP addresses.

When you are ready to begin creating your scopes, you can use the DHCP management console, similar to Windows 2000 and Windows Server 2003. Creating scopes in Windows Server 2008 will be covered in a future article.

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