DHCP Backup Server?

[puelly]

I would like to create a DHCP backup server that can assume the duties of the main DHCP server should any failure to the main one occour. I would prefer the failover to be seamless as possible. Does anyone have any configuration suggestions for such a setup?

[craigp84]

Hi Puelly,

ISC DHCPD has supported this for a while. It's as simple as "apt-get install dhcpd" - or otherwise installing the same version on both boxes, then configuring /etc/dhcpd.conf as normal, with an extra stanza for the failover that looks like the following on one box:


failover peer "dhcp-failover" {
primary;
address 10.0.0.254;
port 520;
peer address 10.0.0.253;
peer port 520;
max-response-delay 30;
max-unacked-updates 10;
load balance max seconds 3;
mclt 1800;
split 128;
}

and like:

failover peer "dhcp-failover" {
secondary;
address 10.0.0.253;
port 520;
peer address 10.0.0.254;
peer port 520;
max-response-delay 30;
max-unacked-updates 10;
load balance max seconds 3;
}

On the other box.

Hope this helps,

-c

[hogman23]

Where do you put this statement??? I keep getting this error:

Feb 21 12:53:41 ####### dhcpd: failover peer dhcp-failover: I move from recover to startup
Feb 21 12:53:41 ####### dhcpd: failover peer declaration with no referring pools.
Feb 21 12:53:41 ####### dhcpd: In order to use failover, you MUST refer to your main failover declaration
Feb 21 12:53:41 ####### dhcpd: in each pool declaration. You MUST NOT use range declarations outside
Feb 21 12:53:41 ####### dhcpd: of pool declarations.

[Neunerball]

see URL: http://www.madboa.com/geek/dhcp-failover/