Why use DHCPv6 over Stateless Address Autoconfiguration?

Solution 1:

One thing that DHCPv6 supplies that autoconfig doesn't is DNS servers.

Solution 2:

You want DHCPv6 if

  • the network administrator should have control over who gets (which) IPv6 addresses, e.g. because they need to be in sync with AAAA DNS records, or
  • if you don't want to tell the outside your MAC addresses (i.e. what hardware vendors you use), but don't want to use privacy extensions either, e.g. to still use permanent IPv6 addresses, or
  • if you want the same dynamic DNS updates for IPv6 which you're used from your DHCP(v4) server for IPv4.

Solution 3:

DHCPv6 provides more control to the administrator in assigning addresses. If you really want that sort of control over your IPv6 addresses, you don't understand IPv6 yet.

It also can be used to provide additional configuration parameters beyond the basic address/gateway supported through autoconfiguration. An example might be WINS servers, NTP servers, TFTP boot servers, and other less common options. None of which are worth the pain of deploying a DHCPv6 architecture in my opinion.

Stick with autoconfig.


Solution 4:

DHCPv6 has many features not present in SLAAC. Most of those features are rarely needed.

There is however one DHCPv6 feature, which would be useful in many cases. That is prefix delegation. If you are a network administrator at an ISP, that one feature may be enough for you to make it worthwhile to deploy a DHCPv6 server. If you are not working for an ISP, you probably don't need prefix delegation.

What prefix delegation can do is that the DHCPv6 server at the ISP can tell the CPE router which range of addresses it can use for its internal LAN(s). Without prefix delegation only the WAN interface of the router could be autoconfigured. The LAN would need to be manually configured.

The CPE router would act as DHCPv6 client. It would not need to act as DHPv6 server, since the LAN(s) can just use SLAAC.

Tags:

Ipv6

Dhcp

Ndp

Radvd