autoMAC: A Tool for Automating Network Moves, Adds, and Changes

It is often difficult and time-consuming to manage computer `moves, adds, and changes' that take place in a switched, subnetted environment. It is even more difficult when the accepted network policy requires that a computer be configured and always connected to the network on a specific Virtual LAN (VLAN) based on its usage. An on-going problem is to keep all of the network host information up-to-date, and to ensure that hosts always land on the correct subnet when they are plugged into switch ports. Utilizing some freely-available tools, as well as some home-grown software, we have built a system that automates a number of the tasks associated with moves, adds, and changes. Where We Were The Department of Computer Science at Princeton University has a routed IP network of 1500+ hosts, with a VLAN assigned to each subnet. IP addresses are assigned either from Princeton's address space or from any of a number of private IP address blocks, as defined in RFC 1918.1 Hosts with ...

• Type: Conference
• Year: 2004
• Where: LISA
• Authors: Christopher J. Tengi, James M. Roberts, Joseph R. Crouthamel, Chris M. Miller, Christopher M. Sanchez
• Keywords: IP Address, IP Addresses, LISA 2004, Network Model, Operating System