DHCP Client Systems and Name Services

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Oracle Solaris systems support the following name services: DNS, NIS, and a local file store (/etc/inet/hosts). Each name service requires some configuration before it is usable. The name-service/switch SMF service must also be appropriately configured. See the nsswitch.conf(4) man page for more information.

Before a DHCP client system can use a name service, you must configure the system as a client of the name service. By default, and unless configured otherwise during system installation, only local files are used.

The following table summarizes issues that are related to each name service and DHCP. The table includes cross-references to documentation that can help you set up clients for each name service.

Table 3-1 Name Service Client Setup Information for DHCP Client Systems

Name Service	Client Setup Information
NIS	If you are using DHCP to send Oracle Solaris network install information to a client system, you can use a configuration macro that contains the `NISservs` and `NISdmain` options. These options pass the IP addresses of NIS servers and the NIS domain name to the client. The client then automatically becomes an NIS client. If a DHCP client system is already running Oracle Solaris, the NIS client is not automatically configured on that system when the DHCP server sends NIS information to the client. If the DHCP server is configured to send NIS information to the DHCP client system, you can see the values given to the client if you use the `dhcpinfo` command on the client as follows: # `/usr/sbin/dhcpinfo NISdmain` # `/usr/sbin/dhcpinfo NISservs` Note - For DHCPv6, include `-v6` and different protocol keywords in the command as follows: # `/usr/sbin/dhcpinfo -v6 NISDomain` # `/usr/sbin/dhcpinfo -v6 NISServers` Use the values returned for the NIS domain name and NIS servers when you set up the system as an NIS client. You set up an NIS client for an DHCP client system in the standard way, as documented in Chapter 6, Setting Up and Configuring Network Information Service, in Working With Oracle Solaris 11.2 Directory and Naming Services: DNS and NIS . Tip - You can write a script that uses `dhcpinfo` and `ypinit` to automate NIS client configuration on DHCP client systems.
`/etc/inet/hosts`	You must set up the `/etc/inet/hosts` file for a DHCP client system that is to use `/etc/inet/hosts` for its name service. The DHCP client system's host name is added to its own `/etc/inet/hosts` file by the DHCP tools. However, you must manually add the host name to the `/etc/inet/hosts` files of other systems in the network. If the DHCP server system uses `/etc/inet/hosts` for name resolution, you must also manually add the client's host name on the system.
DNS	If the DHCP client system receives the DNS domain name through DHCP, then properties of the `dns/client` SMF service are also automatically configured. See Working With Oracle Solaris 11.2 Directory and Naming Services: DNS and NIS for more information about DNS.