Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol

The Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) is an Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) standard designed to reduce the administration burden and complexity of configuring hosts on a Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP)-based network, such as a private intranet.  

By using DHCP server computers to centrally manage IP addresses and other related configuration parameters, using DHCP client computers to request and accept TCP/IP configuration information from DHCP servers, and using DHCP relay agents to pass information between DHCP clients and servers, the process of configuring TCP/IP on DHCP clients is automatic.