How to Create DHCP Superscopes

In small companies, the network architecture has only a few computers, so IP addresses are made with a pool of few numbers. As the company grows, IP addresses run out, creating a problem for administrators who need to expand the corporate network without causing downtime for users. Instead of re-creating the DHCP IP range and causing reconfiguration issues, DHCP superscopes allow the administrator to provide a larger scope for new computers while keeping the original IP addresses. Windows 2000 and 2003 servers have DHCP superscopes available through the Control Panel.

Instructions

1. Open the DHCP management console for Windows 2000 or Windows 2003. Click on the Windows "Start" button and choose "Control Panel." From the Control Panel, double-click "DHCP."

2. Open the superscope wizard. In the list of DHCP servers, right-click on the server you want to configure, and choose "New Superscope."

3. Enter a new superscope name. The DHCP wizard asks for a name and scope. Enter the configuration name and an IP address. For instance, a superscope for an existing 192.168.0.1 IP range is 192.168.0.0. Click "OK."

4. Enter a child range. Right-click the DHCP server again and choose "New Scope." In the IP text box, enter an IP range to assign to new computers on the network. For instance, using a superscope of 192.168.0.0, a valid IP address range is 192.168.1.0 to 192.168.1.254. Press "OK."

5. Define the lease duration. The wizard prompts for a date range. This can be anywhere from 1 day to several months. Press "OK."

Tips & Warnings

• Defining DHCP superscopes requires administrator privileges.