DOCUMENT:Q163055 21-FEB-2002 [winnt] TITLE :DHCP Client May Fail with WinNT 4.0 SP2 Multinetted DHCP Server PRODUCT :Microsoft Windows NT PROD/VER::4.0 OPER/SYS: KEYWORDS:kbnetwork kbWinNT400sp4fix ====================================================================== ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The information in this article applies to: - Microsoft Windows NT Server version 4.0 - Microsoft Windows NT Server version 4.0, Terminal Server Edition ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- SYMPTOMS ======== A DHCP client may fail to obtain a DHCP lease if multiple logical subnets exist and there is a Windows NT 4.0 Service Pack 2 (SP2) DHCP server on the network. Also, you may receive the following error message when you run the IPCONFIG /RENEW command: Access Denied - Renewing Adapter "xxxx" Prior to Service Pack 2, when multiple logical subnets existed, the DHCP client was able to receive the DHCPOFFER and send a DHCPREQUEST to the offering DHCP server. After applying Service Pack 2, the DHCP servers on other logical subnets issue a DHCPNACK, which forces the client to release the address and perform a DHCPDISCOVER again. In addition to the above error message, you may receive the following event log messages: On the Client ------------- Event ID: 1006 Source: Dhcp Type: Warning Category: None Description: DHCP service is shutting down. The following error occurred: Access is denied. On the Server ------------- Event ID: 1011 Source: DhcpServer Type: Warning Category: None Description: The DHCP server issued a NACK to the client (MAC Address of the Requesting Client) for the address (Requested IP Address) request. CAUSE ===== Windows NT 4.0 SP2 DHCP servers issue a DHCPNACK to any DHCPREQUEST that does not appear to be valid for the subnet. This problem occurs when you are using multiple logical IP subnets (multinetting) and two DHCP servers on the same physical network are serving two different logical subnets. For example, a client broadcasts DHCPREQUEST and receives ACK from server A and NACK from server B. Because there is no communication between server B and server A, server B is not aware of the existence of server A. If it does not send a NACK, then a client who has just moved to this network will never know that its old address is invalid. RESOLUTION ========== To resolve this problem, obtain the latest service pack for Windows NT 4.0 or Windows NT Server 4.0, Terminal Server Edition. For additional information, please see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base: Q152734 How to Obtain the Latest Windows NT 4.0 Service Pack To workaround this issue, use one of the following: - Windows NT 4.0 SP2 includes the ability to create DHCP superscopes. After creating a scope and defining each logical subnet in a superscope, the DHCP server recognizes the DHCPREQUEST as valid and will not NACK the request. For example, you have a multinet environment with the following DHCP servers on a single LAN: 192.168.10.1 192.168.20.1 192.168.30.1 On each DHCP server you must create a superscope with a minimum of one IP address from each of the 10.x, 20.x and 30.x scopes. Be sure not to duplicate IP addresses in the scopes. -or- - Another possibility is to take advantage of the superscoping feature and create one DHCP server to serve all scopes. For more information on superscopes, please see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base: ARTICLE-ID: Q161571 TITLE : Using DHCP "Superscopes" to Serve Multiple Logical Subnets STATUS ====== Microsoft has confirmed this to be a problem in Windows NT 4.0 and Windows NT Server 4.0, Terminal Server Edition. This problem was first corrected in Windows NT 4.0 Service Pack 4.0 and Windows NT Server 4.0, Terminal Server Edition Service Pack 4. Additional query words: 4.00 prodnt sp2 multinet ====================================================================== Keywords : kbnetwork kbWinNT400sp4fix Technology : kbWinNTsearch kbWinNT400search kbWinNTSsearch kbWinNTS400search kbWinNTS400 kbNTTermServ400 kbNTTermServSearch Version : :4.0 Issue type : kbbug Solution Type : kbfix ============================================================================= THE INFORMATION PROVIDED IN THE MICROSOFT KNOWLEDGE BASE IS PROVIDED "AS IS" WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND. MICROSOFT DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING THE WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. IN NO EVENT SHALL MICROSOFT CORPORATION OR ITS SUPPLIERS BE LIABLE FOR ANY DAMAGES WHATSOEVER INCLUDING DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, LOSS OF BUSINESS PROFITS OR SPECIAL DAMAGES, EVEN IF MICROSOFT CORPORATION OR ITS SUPPLIERS HAVE BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES. SOME STATES DO NOT ALLOW THE EXCLUSION OR LIMITATION OF LIABILITY FOR CONSEQUENTIAL OR INCIDENTAL DAMAGES SO THE FOREGOING LIMITATION MAY NOT APPLY. Copyright Microsoft Corporation 2002.