RAS Reserves DHCP Addresses for Dial-Out Only Clients

ID: Q166149

The information in this article applies to:

SYMPTOMS

Windows NT systems send out requests to DHCP to reserve addresses for RAS, but the systems that are sending the requests are setup for Dial-out only.

In some cases, this is noticed by DHCP servers running out of leases completely.


CAUSE

Windows NT unattended setup provides the ability to install and configure Remote Access for Dial In, Dial Out, or Dial In and Out.

If the unattend answer file is configured to install Remote Access as a Dial Out client only, server components and registry values are installed that should not be.

Properties of the Remote Access Service are checked in the Control Panel Network Services tab. All options will appear as configured correctly for Dial Out Only. Upon exiting the configuration menu for Remote Access, the system will reset the bindings and update the registry. Once the updates are complete, a prompt will appear, asking that the system be rebooted. Upon reboot, everything is installed correctly and the server side of Remote Access has been removed.

Note that the machines affected will NOT act as RAS servers. They will only grab DHCP addresses.


WORKAROUND

To prevent the unattended setup machines from experiencing the problem of grabbing DHCP addresses, add the following to your unattended setup file: 


[RemoteAccess]
PortSections=RASDialOut
DialoutProtocols=ALL
;  Prevent the server componant from requesting an IP address.
UseDHCP=No
StaticAddressBegin=1.1.1.1
StaticAddressEnd=1.1.1.1
ClientCanRequestIPAddress=No

Currently, the only solution for machines already affected by this problem is to manually run through the configuration options for Remote Access via Control Panel and allow the system to update. Note that the Dial Out options should be configured as expected based on the unattended answer file, so there is no need to change any of the parameters.


STATUS

Microsoft has confirmed this to be a problem in Windows NT Server and Workstation version 4.0.


MORE INFORMATION

The following is an example of the Modem and Network sections of an Unattend.txt file that will install the extra components of RAS as described in the Cause section: 


   [Modem]
   InstallModem = ModemParameters

   [ModemParameters]
   COM2 = "Hayes V-Series Ultra Smartmodem 9600"

   [Network]
   DetectAdapters = ""
   InstallProtocols = ProtocolsSection
   InstallServices = ServicesSection
   JoinDomain = BOBSDOMAIN
   CreateComputerAccount = ADMINISTRATOR

   [ProtocolsSection]
   NBF = NBFParamSection
   NWLNKIPX = NWLNKIPXParamSection
   TC = TCParamSection

   [NBFParamSection]

   [NWLNKIPXParamSection]

   [TCParamSection]
   DHCP = yes

   [ServicesSection]
   RAS = RASParamSection

   [RASParamSection]
   PortSections = PortSection1
   DialoutProtocols = ALL

   [PortSection1]
   PortName = COM2
   DeviceType = Modem
   PortUsage = DialOut

For the latest information on Windows NT deployment, download the Windows NT 4.0 Deployment Guide from the following location:
http://www.microsoft.com/ntworkstation/
For additional information, please see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
ARTICLE-ID: Q155197
TITLE : Unattended Setup Parameters for Unattend.txt File

Additional query words: prodnt rip ipx nwlink sap agent 


Keywords          : kbsetup ntras ntreskit 
Version           : 4.0
Platform          : winnt 
Issue type        : kbhowto

Last Reviewed: February 12, 1999