How to Register for a DHCP addresses at Fermilab

 

DHCP service is only provided to registered systems.  A user will need to register his/her system to obtain a DHCP address.  There are two types of registration:

 

• Permanent system registration in the MISCOMP database.  This is intended for users who work at the Laboratory, or visit at regular or frequent intervals.  Once permanently registered, a system will transparently be issued a DHCP address when attached to the network.  No additional user actions would be required. 

 

• Transient registration for a temporary DHCP address, usable for the rest of the day.  This is intended for users who are casual or infrequent visitors to the Laboratory.  The temporary registration process is similar to DHCP services commonly seen at hotels.  The registration information is minimal, and after the user has successfully registered, the issued DHCP address will have site-wide access.  However, the transient DHCP address expires at midnight, and a user will have to re-register to obtain a transient DHCP address for the next day.

 

Permanent registration in the MISCOMP database :

 

The MISCOMP system registration web page can be found at the URL below and can only be accessed from On-site or via the VPN:

 

                                                       http://fncdug1.fnal.gov:7777/pls/nodereg/node_registration.html

 

Turn around time for processing the registration information is one working day. Registration processing is not performed over the weekend. Users that register after mid-afternoon on a Friday should expect to be prompted for temporary registration until the registration is processed on Monday.  The ethernet hardware (MAC) address for each interface on the system, including any wireless interface or wireless NIC card, should be registered.  DHCP requests from interfaces on the system that are not registered in MISCOMP will not transparently receive a DHCP address, but rather will be forced into the transient registration process.

 

Transient DHCP registration:

 

Systems that are not properly registered in the MISCOMP database will not transparently receive usable DHCP addresses.  The user will be required to provide some basic registration information before obtaining a usable DHCP address.  The process to register as a transient, one-day DHCP user is as follows:

 

1. The user connects to the network (wireless or wired), and brings up a browser
2. The user’s web page will automatically be redirected to the registration web page
3. The user completes the registration form, then waits several minutes while the system is scanned for worms, viruses, & vulnerabilities
4. The registration process informs the user that he/she is successfully registered
5. The user reboots his/her system or performs a DHCP release and renew to obtain a usable DHCP address

 

The transient DHCP registration address will only be usable for the rest of the current day, and the user will have to re-register on succeeding days to obtain a usable address.  Users who are more than casual or infrequent visitors to the Laboratory are strongly encouraged to register their systems permanently in the MISCOMP database.

 

Known issues with transient DHCP registration:

 

• Systems configured to use DHCP but that have specific DNS servers listed in their configuration will need to remove those configured DNS servers.   The transient registration process will not work unless the system uses the DNS server provided by the DHCP server.

 

• Following successful registration, the user may have to close the browser used for registration, and open a new one. Browsers on some Apple machines will need to have their cache cleared.

 

Problems should be reported to the HelpDesk {x2345; helpdesk@fnal.gov}