When Grid members are configured to manage Microsoft DHCP servers in read/write mode, you can use Grid Manager to view, edit and delete the DHCP data of those servers. You can add and manage networks and DHCP ranges that are synchronized as scopes to the Microsoft server, and add and manage reservations and superscopes. All updates are synchronized to the Microsoft servers at regular intervals.
Grid Manager also allows you to set admin permissions, extensible attributes, and thresholds. These apply only when the DHCP data is managed on Grid Manager. These properties are not synchronized to Microsoft servers.
The following sections provide guidelines for managing Microsoft DHCP data from Grid Manager:

Adding and Managing Scopes

To add a scope from Grid Manager, you must create an IPv4 network and a DHCP range, and then assign the Microsoft server to the network and range. To add a split-scope from Grid Manager, you must create an IPv4 network and a DHCP range, and then assign two Microsoft server to the network and range.
To edit a scope synchronized from a Microsoft server, you must edit the properties of its corresponding DHCP range. The following sections describe how to add, edit and remove scopes using Grid Manager.


Note: Microsoft servers do not support Infoblox hosts and reservations. You cannot add them to networks and DHCP ranges served by Microsoft servers.


Adding Networks for Scopes

Following are guidelines for adding a network for Microsoft scopes:

You can run discoveries on networks served by Microsoft servers. For information about network discoveries, see IP Discovery and vDiscovery.


Note: Networks served by Microsoft DHCP servers do not support the split, join, and expand functions.


You can create a network from scratch or use a network template. For information about creating network templates, see Adding IPv4 Network Templates. To add an IPv4 network for a scope:

  1. From the Data Management tab, select the DHCP tab.
  2. If you have more than one network view in the system, select the network view in which you want to add the network. It must be the same network view to which the Microsoft server is assigned.
  3. Expand the Toolbar and click Add -> Network.
  4. In the Add Network wizard, select one of the following and click Next:
  5. Complete the following and click Next:
  6. Click Next to add Microsoft servers as DHCP servers for the network. Click the Add icon and select the following:
  7. Click Next to enter values for required extensible attributes or add optional extensible attributes. For information, see About Extensible Attributes.
  8. Save the configuration and click Restart if it appears at the top of the screen.
    or
    Click the Schedule icon at the top of the wizard to schedule this task. In the Schedule Change panel, enter a date, time, and time zone. For information, see Scheduling Tasks.

Setting Network Properties

You can change the Microsoft servers assigned to the network, and define extensible attributes and admin permissions to the network. You can also set thresholds for the network, to enable the appliance to make a syslog entry when address usage goes above or below the thresholds.
To set network properties:

  1. From the Data Management tab, select the DHCP tab -> Networks tab -> Networks -> network check box, and then click the Edit icon.
  2. The Network editor contains the following basic tabs from which you can modify data:

3. Optionally, you can click Toggle Expert Mode to display the following tabs from which you can modify advanced data.

  1. Save the configuration and click Restart if it appears at the top of the screen.
    or

Deleting and Restoring a Network

When you delete a network, Grid Manager moves it and its DHCP ranges and fixed addresses to the Recycle Bin, and permanently deletes its leases. The corresponding scopes and reservations are deleted from the Microsoft server at the next synchronization. If you restore the network on Grid Manager, its DHCP ranges and fixed addresses are restored as well. The Grid member then adds the corresponding scopes and reservations to the Microsoft server on the next synchronization. For information about deleting networks, see Deleting IPv4 Networks. For information about restoring data, see Using the Recycle Bin.

Adding a DHCP Range/Scope

After you add a network for a scope, you must then define its DHCP range. You can create the DHCP range from scratch or use a DHCP Range template. For information about DHCP templates, see About IPv4 Range Templates.
You can add multiple ranges to the same network, as long as each range is served by a different Microsoft server and the ranges do not overlap.
When you add a split-scope, you must specify the Microsoft servers that serve the scopes and their exclusion ranges. Each scope inherits its options from its respective Microsoft server. Note that the enabled/disabled setting of the first range automatically applies to the second range. Therefore, if the first range is initially disabled, then the second range is initially disabled as well.
To add a DHCP range for a scope:

  1. From the Data Management tab, select the DHCP tab.
  2. Navigate to the network to which you want to add a DHCP range, and then click Add -> DHCP Range from the Toolbar. You can also add a DHCP range from any panel in the DHCP tab.
  3. In the Add Range wizard, select one of the following and click Next:

Click Select Template and select the template that you want to use. Note that when you use a template to create a DHCP range, the configurations of the template apply to the new range. The appliance automatically populates the DHCP range properties in the wizard. You can then edit the pre-populated properties.

4. Complete the following:

5. Click Next and select one of the following to provide DHCP services for the DHCP range:

None: Select this if you do not want to synchronize this range to the Microsoft DHCP server.

Microsoft Server: This field displays the Microsoft server that you selected for the network. If several servers were assigned to the network, you can select one from the list.

6. Click Next, and optionally set operational parameters for the scope. Otherwise, the scope inherits its parameters from the first Microsoft DHCP server.

7. Click Next to enter values for required extensible attributes or add optional extensible attributes. For information, see Using Extensible Attributes.

8. Save the configuration and click Restart if it appears at the top of the screen.

or

Click the Schedule icon at the top of the wizard to schedule this task. In the Schedule Change panel, enter a date, time, and time zone. For information, see Scheduling Tasks.

Setting DHCP Range/Scope Properties

A Microsoft scope inherits its properties from its Microsoft server. In Grid Manager, you can override the inherited values or set other properties by editing the DHCP range. You can also configure an exclusion range within the scope and set thresholds, to enable the appliance to make a syslog entry when address usage goes above or below the thresholds.
You can modify a scope's properties, including its start and end addresses, servers, and exclusion ranges. If you edit the properties of a split-scope and it results in gaps or overlapping exclusion ranges so that the ranges are no longer identical, Grid Manager displays a warning indicating that continuing with the operation automatically removes the split-scope flag. Grid Manager also removes the flag when the start or end address of a scope changes, so its range is no longer the same.
To set DHCP range properties:

  1. From the Data Management tab, select the DHCP tab -> Networks tab -> Networks -> network -> addr_range check box, and then click the Edit icon.
  2. The DHCP Range editor contains the following basic tabs from which you can modify data:

3. Optionally, you can click Toggle Expert Mode to display the following tabs from which you can modify advanced data.

4. Save the configuration and click Restart if it appears at the top of the screen.

   or

Deleting and Restoring a DHCP Range/Scope

When you delete a DHCP range, Grid Manager moves it and its exclusion range and fixed addresses to the Recycle Bin, and permanently deletes its leases. At the next synchronization, the member deletes the scope, its exclusion range and reservations from the Microsoft server. If you restore a DHCP range on Grid Manager, then the Grid member adds its corresponding scope, exclusion range and reservations to the Microsoft server at the next synchronization. For information about deleting DHCP ranges, see Deleting IPv4 Address Ranges. For information about restoring data, see Using the Recycle Bin.
If you delete a scope that is part of a split-scope, Grid Manager automatically removes the split-scope flag from the remaining scope.

Viewing Scopes

To view the scopes in a network, navigate to DHCP -> Networks -> network. The panel displays the objects in the network, including the scopes and split-scopes. For split-scopes, the panel displays both scopes with the same start and end address. It displays the following information about each object:

You can select the following additional columns for display:

You can also do the following in this panel:

You can also view the scopes in the IP Map.

Adding Fixed Addresses/Microsoft Reservations

To add a reservation from Grid Manager, add a fixed address and Grid Manager synchronizes it to the Microsoft server as a reservation. You can create fixed addresses from scratch or use fixed address templates. For information about fixed address templates, see Adding IPv4 Fixed Address/Reservation Templates.
To add a fixed address:

  1. From the Data Management tab, select the DHCP tab.
  2. Expand the Toolbar and click Add -> Fixed Address.
  3. In the Add Fixed Address wizard, select one of the following and click Next:

4. Complete the following:

5. Click Next, and optionally set operational parameters for the fixed address. Otherwise, the fixed address inherits its parameters from its scope.

6. Click Next to enter values for required extensible attributes or add optional extensible attributes. For information, see Using Extensible Attributes.

7. Save the configuration and click Restart if it appears at the top of the screen.

or

Setting Fixed Address/Reservation Properties

Microsoft reservations inherit their properties from their scopes. In Grid Manager, you can override the inherited values or set other properties of a Microsoft reservation, by editing its fixed address.
To modify a fixed address:

  1. From the Data Management tab, select the DHCP tab -> Networks tab -> Networks -> network -> fixed_address check box, and then click the Edit icon.
  2. The Fixed Address editor contains the following basic tabs from which you can enter data:

3. Optionally, you can click Toggle Expert Mode to display the DDNS tab. To set DDNS parameters for the fixed address, complete the following:

4. Save the configuration and click Restart if it appears at the top of the screen.

or

Deleting and Restoring a Fixed Address/Reservation

When you delete a fixed address, Grid Manager moves it to the Recycle Bin. At the next synchronization, the Grid member deletes its corresponding reservation from the Microsoft server. If you restore fixed address, then the Grid member adds its corresponding reservation to the Microsoft server at the next synchronization. For information about deleting fixed addresses, see Deleting Fixed Addresses. For information about restoring data, see Using the Recycle Bin.

About Superscopes

In Grid Manager, you can group DHCP ranges served by Microsoft servers into a superscope. You can add multiple DHCP ranges to a superscope, as long as the ranges are all served by the same Microsoft DHCP server. The Grid member then synchronizes the superscope and its associated DHCP ranges as superscopes and scopes to the Microsoft DHCP server.
You can also associate extensible attributes with superscopes in Grid Manager. Extensible attributes are not synchronized to the Microsoft DHCP server.
Only admins with read/write permission to superscopes can add and manage superscopes.

Adding Superscopes

Before you add a superscope, you must first create at least one DHCP range to include in the superscope. To add a superscope:

  1. From the Data Management tab, select the DHCP tab.
  2. If you have more than one network view in the system, select the network view in which you want to add the superscope. The network view must be the same one that is assigned to the Microsoft server.
  3. Expand the Toolbar and click Add -> Superscope.
  4. In the Add Superscope wizard, complete the following and click Next:
  5. Click the Add icon and select a range from the Select Range dialog box. This dialog box lists only the address ranges that are served by a Microsoft server.
  6. Click Next to enter values for required extensible attributes or add optional extensible attributes. For information, see Managing Extensible Attributes.
  7. Save the configuration and click Restart if it appears at the top of the screen.
    or

Viewing Superscopes

To view superscopes, navigate to the Data Management tab -> DHCP tab -> Networks tab -> Microsoft Superscopes. Grid Manager displays the following information about each superscope that is displayed:

You can add the following columns for viewing:

You can do the following in this section:

Modifying Superscopes

To modify a superscope:

  1. From the Data Management tab, select the DHCP tab -> Network tab -> Microsoft Superscopes -> ms_superscope check box, and then click the Edit icon.
  2. The Superscopes editor contains the following tabs from which you can modify data:
  3. Save the configuration and click Restart if it appears at the top of the screen.

Deleting Superscopes

When you delete a superscope in Grid Manager, it is permanently deleted from the database. The superscope is deleted from the Microsoft server at the next synchronization. Note that deleting a superscope does not delete the DHCP ranges in the superscope. These are retained in the database.
To delete a superscope:

  1. From the Data Management tab, select the DHCP tab -> Network tab -> Microsoft Superscopes -> ms_superscope check box, and then click the Delete icon.
  2. Click Yes when the confirmation dialog appears.

Synchronizing Updates

A Grid member synchronizes DHCP data with each of its managed Microsoft server at regular intervals. During each synchronization, updates from Grid Manager are applied to the Microsoft server and updates from the Microsoft server are applied to the Grid as well.
Because admins can update DHCP data from both the Microsoft server and from Grid Manager, conflicts can occur during synchronization. The following guidelines describe how the Grid member resolves conflicts and handles any differences when DHCP data is synchronized between a Microsoft server and the Grid.

Table 36.2

Grid Manager Admin...Microsoft Server Admin...After Synchronization

Deletes the 10.1.1.0/24 network which has two DHCP ranges

Adds a scope that is within the 10.1.1.0/24 network

The 10.1.1.0/24 network is created on the Grid with the updates and is assigned to the Microsoft server.

Changes the DHCP options of a scope

Deletes the scope.The scope is deleted from the Grid as well.