Windows Vista cannot obtain an IP address from certain routers or from certain non-Microsoft DHCP servers

 

Consider the following scenario:

  • You connect a Windows Vista-based computer to a network.
  • A router or other device that is configured as a Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) server is configured on the network.
  • The router or the other device does not support the DHCP BROADCAST flag.

In this scenario, Windows Vista cannot obtain an IP address.

Consider the following scenario:

  • You just bought your son a new Toshiba tablet with Vista Business pre-installed on it. You want to make sure that when the tablet goes off to school it has all critical patches applied.
  • You are using pfSense as a DHCP server.
  • The XP, Linux, and Windows 7 computers are able to connect to the network and get an IP address.

You would have thought DHCP problems were solved twenty years ago but here is the solution.

Windows Vista cannot obtain an IP address from certain routers or from certain non-Microsoft DHCP servers