Hosts should require no manual configuration

Hosts should require no manual configuration. Each host should
be able to discover appropriate local configuration parameters
without user intervention and incorporate those parameters into
its own configuration.

o Networks should require no hand configuration for individual
hosts. Under normal circumstances, the network manager should
not have to enter any per-host configuration parameters.

o DHCP should not require a server on each subnet. To allow for
scale and economy, DHCP must work across routers or through the
intervention of BOOTP/DHCP relay agents.

o A DHCP host must be prepared to receive multiple responses to a
request for configuration parameters. Some installations may
include multiple, overlapping DHCP servers to enhance
reliability and increase performance.

o DHCP must coexist with statically configured, non-participating
hosts and with existing network protocol implementations.

o DHCP must interoperate with the BOOTP relay agent behavior as
described by RFC 951 and by Wimer [21].

o DHCP must provide service to existing BOOTP clients.

The following list gives design goals specific to the transmission of
the network layer parameters. DHCP must:

o Guarantee that any specific network address will not be in
use by more than one host at a time,

o Retain host configuration across host reboot. A host should,
whenever possible, be assigned the same configuration parameters
(e.g., network address) in response to each request,

o Retain host configuration across server reboots, and, whenever
possible, a host should be assigned the same configuration
parameters despite restarts of the DHCP mechanism,

o Allow automatic assignment of configuration parameters to new
hosts to avoid hand configuration for new hosts,

o Support fixed or permanent allocation of configuration
parameters to specific hosts.