Static IP?

[Jackson]

I'm using DCHP and basically have 3 devices (laptop, Obi, desktop) and a few ports forwarded based on specific IPs.  Seems that after some recent power outages IPs have shifted.

In my router I have the option  to create a fixed DHCP lease based on the MAC address.

Will this approach accomplish the same thing as assigning static IPs to each?

[gderf]

It should, try it and see.

[ProfTech]

Depending on your router, you may be able to do both. Set the router to give a specific IP to the Obi mac address and also configure the Obi for the same static address set it to static. That way the router should reserve the IP for the Obi but since the Obi will never request any address everything should be hunky-dory. I set up my daughters this way and haven't seen a problem.

Another option if your router supports it is to specify a range of say .1 to .2 that the router will give out for DHCP and then simply set the Obi to a static address of .3. My first router didn't have the mac address option so I simply set it up this way. The key is to make sure the IP address for the Obi doesn't change as the Obi [by design] will reboot if it does.

[sdb-]

In my router I have the option  to create a fixed DHCP lease based on the MAC address.
Will this approach accomplish the same thing as assigning static IPs to each?

Effectively the same, unless something is broken.

I've been using that approach for over 20 years.    The only device that ever gave me a problem was an early ReplayTV.  The last ReplayTV version worked better using the reserved DHCP than it did trying to assign a static IP, because they actually had multiple network stacks in the device (boot loader, operating system, and DVR application) and trying to set static on the device only set it for the application, leading to the device possibly having two IP addresses simultaneously and a third that was reserved by the DHCP server during a recent reboot.

The differences between using reserved DHCP and configuring a static on the device include:

• Easier, especially with multiple devices, to change the assigned IP(s) in the future, just change the reservation(s) in one place, not on each device
• Easier to change DNS server(s) if needed
• DHCP server will know about the address even if the device is temporarily offline
• Device will still request and periodically renew its IP

I highly recommend setting such a reserved address.

[Jackson]

All locked in now.

Thanks