IP Addresses and DHCP (#1813)

IP Addressing Rules

IP Addresses and DHCP Policy

The University's IP address space is a finite resource administered by VCU Network Services. Blocks of addresses may be assigned for use by other units to ease installation and change management. In these cases, the units must report back to VCU Network Services all assignments and changes so that the master IP database may be updated. Change reports should be provided monthly as needed.

Changes in technology, increases in bandwidth demands, and other factors may require a reconfiguration of the network resulting in a change of address assignments. VCU Network Services will make every effort to contact affected users prior to making plans for any changes.

Dynamic IP address assignment via DHCP is a very important service; for example, course delivery in technology enabled classrooms is dependent on reliable DHCP service. In order to provide a uniform level of service for all VCU Network Services users and help prevent addressing conflicts, all DHCP (and similar) services shall be provided by VCU Network Services only. IP addresses will be dynamically assigned via DHCP wherever possible. Devices requiring a stable address assignment such as servers and printers may be assigned a static IP address or receive a reserved DHCP address.

DHCP is enabled in all residence hall rooms, networked classrooms and public access ports on campus; however, DHCP is not yet enabled throughout the network. Unless you are in a residence hall, classroom or using a public access port, you should not try using DHCP unless a Network Services staff member or your desktop support person has confirmed that it is available in your area. Since some legacy network segments are not yet configured for DHCP a static IP address assignment will be made by VCU Network Services when necessary.

DNS Server Addresses

University machines that are taken off campus should not be setup to connect to a specific DNS server. In November 2009, a networking change was made to restrict the use of VCU's DNS servers to machines on campus, meaning that if a PC is setup to connect to a VCU DNS server and it is taken off campus, DNS requests will be denied resulting in an unusable Internet connection. To fix this issue, please set the IP properties of the network adapter to "Obtain DNS server address automatically" instead of specifying specific DNS server IP addresses. Visit the Microsoft sites listed below to learn how to change these settings if using one of their operating systems:

This article was updated: November 20, 2009

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What is Technology Services?

Technology Services is responsible for implementing and supporting the technology used around campus, such as the network, phones, enhanced classrooms, and Internet-based systems including myVCU, Blackboard, email, and more.