DHCP- Computer Name Issue
 

Hi - I have 40 macs, nine are running OSx.3, 31 are running OS 9.2.

My DHCP server is on a w2k server and it maintains a database of address leases. When a OS9 client receives an address its computer name and MAC id are logged in the database. When a OSX client receives an address its computer name is blank - no name is listed. The lease is handed out, it works - its just the name issue.

I stated that I have nine macs running OSX. Well, one of the nine works correctly. Its name is listed in the database. I have compared settings between the working system and a non-working system and can find no difference in their settings.

Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Jose

I find that in order for the names to be properly 'registered' (in my work network situation), the names in both the "DHCP Client ID" field in the Network Prefpane, and the "Computer Name" in the Sharing Prefpane need to match each other exactly. Do they on your errant OS X boxes?

Also, do the entries (for the following 2 fields) in /etc/hostconfig on those boxes also look like this?:

# Network configuration
HOSTNAME=-AUTOMATIC-
ROUTER=-AUTOMATIC-

Yellow,

I checked the hostconfig file and it says automatic for both. Also I made sure that the DHCP Client ID (Network)matched the name in the shared control panel as well. So I did not have any luck. All I seen that was different on my Windows 2000 DHCP server was I got a long number under the unique ID. Do u have any other suggestions that I could try?
Thanks Yellow!

Jose

Did you try to renew the DHCP lease on the boxes you changed stuff on?
Are you running a firewall on anything?

Is the WINS setting in Directory Access the same on the Macs that don't work as the one which does? IIRC, at least in NT Server, it actually used WINS to set up the names for DNS.

Also, are the computer names less than 11 characters long, which I seem to recall as the NetBIOS limitation?

Great call! I believe it's 15 characters in my work network, but a definite limit in length.

Thanks for the suggestions Craig and Yellow, but we are not using WINS and all MAC computer names are under 15 characters. In our network we are running a Windows 2000 domain with active directory.

Jose

Hopefully got some answers to these questions? A restart even?

How did you bind the Macs to AD ? Did you bind them entirely from the Mac side or did you created the computer item first in the AD admin tools ?

Just want to know as I am having the same issue with no DNS name showing up for Macs in the AD Computer item... But I've only been successful at creating the computer item first in AD and then binding the Mac to it... I know its supposed to be possible to just do it from the Mac side and it will create the computer item, but for some reason it will always give me that I don't have sufficient priviledges even though I am login in with my AD admin credentials...

Our MACS are not a part of the active directory, they are just getting a IP address from our DHCP server. There is no other linkage between the MACS and the PC's. Yellow as far as restarting the computer, I already tried that and it did not work.

Jose

Ah ok... Oups on me for the reply :D

Firewalls?

Yellow

No we are not running any firewalls on anything.







Jose

Are all the macs connected the same way through the same switch, hub or router to the win2k server ?

A slight addition to Raven's last post:

And what is different about the 1 OS X box that does work? By that I mean how is it connected to the DHCP server? Are they hanging off the same router/hub/repeater? Are other "broken" OS X boxes hanging off the same router/hub/repeater as the working OS X box?

Yes all the MACS that are running OSX and OS 9.2 are connected to the same switch that my DHCP server is connected to. Plus I have compared setting with the working and Non working MACS running OSX and they all are set the same.

Jose

And the working Mac has the exact same version of OS X that the non-working Macs have? How does it's DHCP Client ID differ from the others? Does it's IP come in at a significantly different range then the non-working Macs?

I think the next step would be to create a new location in the Network prefpane on one of the non-working Macs and enter the information again. In effect, starting "fresh". Maybe go so far as to disconnect the working Mac and attaching the non-working Mac to the same cable, thereby eliminating some possible (but unlikely) culprits.

I checked the version of OS on our working MAC and it is running OSX 10.3.2 and the non working ones are running 10.2.8, 10.3, 10.3.2 , and 10.3.4. Also both the working and non working MAC's do not have anything in the DHCP Client ID field. Plus I created a new location under the Network Preferences and I also rebooted the computer. Next I rechecked my DHCP server and I am still coming up with a blank name for this particular computer. Any more suggestions?



Jose

Can you check to compare if all the same services are running on those computers ? Best thing is to take the working one as an example.

No network admin to help you with this? As I'm sure you can imagine, this is tremendously difficult to help you troubleshoot via a Forum.

As I posted before, in my similar experience, the DHCP Client ID and Computer name MUST match each other in order to have the Win2k Server doing DHCP/DNS properly register the DNS name when the IP is handed out. Apparently your situation is different.

Raven

I checked both a working and non working computer and they are both running the same exact services

Jose

Yellow

Yes I am the Network Administrator. Basically if I check my working MAC running OSX and look in the Network pref. under DHCP Client ID that field is blank. Next if I look at my sharing pref. under computer name I have "shop-mac". Next when I go into my Windows 2000 server and look in the DHCP database, I see the name "shop-mac" under the computer name field and under the Unique ID field I see the Ethernet Address of the "shop-mac". Now I know that this is the Ethernet address of the shop-mac because it is displayed in the Network pref. under the TCP/IP settings. Now if I match the DHCP Client ID with the computer name that I have in the sharing preferences on my non working MAC. Then I go into my DHCP database I will get a long Hexadecimal number for the Unique ID field and then I will get a blank field for the computer name.

Jose

I too have this same problem. Has anybody fixed it?
It is not...
...length of name (15+ is OK)
...OSX version
...long MAC address (it is IPv6 that causes this, turn it off)
...putting namd in client ID (I never do this)

I get the problem _most_ (possibly exclusively) with Powerbooks.
Can anyone refute this?

Simon

I too had this issue for a macbook pro
 

It was resolved by Yellows suggestion of: changing the computer name under System Prefs>Sharing to a shortname i.e. "TimOSX", adding "TimOSX" in System Prefs>Network>TCP/IP>DHCP Client ID field and then renewing the DHCP Lease.

Thank you Yellow for the help!! :)

Regards,

TimO