Introduction

Successfully connecting a PC to a network is perhaps an administrator s most important task. Therefore, knowing how to manage wired network connectivity is essential. In this chapter, we will review and guide you through the steps of successfully connecting a PC to a network. Connecting to a network requires an understanding of services such as domain name system (DNS) and the Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP); as such, in addition to discussing these services, we will also take you step by step through the tasks of DNS and DHCP configuration.

A New Generation of TCP/IP

In the 1990s, we kept hearing about the upcoming arrival of IP Next Generation (IPng). In 2007, IPng became IPNow! That s right; Windows Vista natively supports IPv6, and its the first Microsoft operating system to do so. You re probably thinking that XP supported IPv6; although that s true, XP did not fully support the IPv6 standard. Windows Vista comes right out of the box supporting it. IPv6 offers numerous benefits for users, administrators, developers, and Internet service providers (ISPs).

Why the push for IPv6? One of the biggest reasons is IPv4s limited address space. IPv4 uses a 32bit address space, whereas IPv6 uses a 128-bit space. Other issues with IPv4 include security, which is not natively built in. Yes, you can use IPSec, but these implementations are usually vendor-specific. Also, IPv4 does not natively support Quality of Service (QoS). To alleviate these shortcomings, Request for Comments (RFC) 2460 (www.faqs.org/rfcs/rfc2460.html) was created and defines IPv6.