DHCP Pool

DHCP (Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol) server pool configuration enables centralized IP address assignment to network clients. Each pool defines a scope of addresses along with associated network parameters such as the default gateway, DNS servers, domain name, lease duration, and custom DHCP options. Pools can be bound to a specific VRF for multi-tenant environments, and support both dynamic network-based allocation and static host bindings for devices that require fixed addresses.

Diagram

Classes

configuration (iosxe.devices)

Name	Type	Constraint	Mandatory	Default Value
dhcp_pools	List	[dhcp_pools]	No

dhcp_pools (iosxe.devices.configuration)

Name	Type	Constraint	Mandatory	Default Value
name	String		Yes
vrf	String		No
domain_name	String		No
bootfile	String		No
client_name	String		No
network_number	String		No
network_mask	String		No
secondary_networks	List	[secondary_networks]	No
host_number	String		No
host_mask	String		No
default_routers	List	String	No
dns_servers	List	String	No
next_servers	List	String	No
lease_days	Integer	min: 0, max: 365	No
lease_hours	Integer	min: 0, max: 23	No
lease_minutes	Integer	min: 0, max: 59	No
lease_infinite	Boolean	true, false	No
utilization_mark_high	Integer	min: 1, max: 100	No
utilization_mark_high_log	Boolean	true, false	No
utilization_mark_low	Integer	min: 1, max: 100	No
utilization_mark_low_log	Boolean	true, false	No
subnet_prefix_length	Integer	min: 1, max: 32	No
options	List	[options]	No

secondary_networks (iosxe.devices.configuration.dhcp_pools)

Name	Type	Constraint	Mandatory	Default Value
number	String		Yes
mask	String		Yes

options (iosxe.devices.configuration.dhcp_pools)

Name	Type	Constraint	Mandatory	Default Value
option_code	Integer	min: 0, max: 254	Yes
ascii	String		No
hex	String		No
ip	List	String	No
ip_legacy	List	String	No

Guidelines and Limitations

• DHCP pool option IP addresses have version-specific attributes:
  • IOS-XE 17.15 and later: Use ip within options
  • IOS-XE prior to 17.15: Use ip_legacy within options
  • These are mutually exclusive — configure only the appropriate one based on your target IOS-XE version.
• The lease_days, lease_hours, lease_minutes attributes and lease_infinite are mutually exclusive lease configurations.
• The network_number/network_mask and host_number/host_mask attributes configure the pool for dynamic vs. manual (static) binding and should not both be set on the same pool.

DHCP pools are the core building block for on-device DHCP services. By defining multiple pools you can segment address allocation across VLANs, VRFs, or functional groups while maintaining consistent network parameters for each client population.

Examples

Dynamic Pool with All Options

ip dhcp pool POOL_DATA
 network 10.1.1.0 255.255.255.0
 network 10.1.3.0 255.255.255.0 secondary
 default-router 10.1.1.1
 dns-server 8.8.8.8 8.8.4.4
 domain-name example.com
 bootfile boot.cfg
 next-server 10.1.1.10
 lease 7 12 30
 option 150 ascii 10.1.1.1
 option 66 hex 0a010101
 option 42 ip 10.1.1.20 10.1.1.21
 utilization mark high 80 log
 utilization mark low 20 log

iosxe:
  devices:
    - name: Router1
      configuration:
        dhcp_pools:
          - name: POOL_DATA
            network_number: "10.1.1.0"
            network_mask: "255.255.255.0"
            secondary_networks:
              - number: "10.1.3.0"
                mask: "255.255.255.0"
            default_routers:
              - "10.1.1.1"
            dns_servers:
              - "8.8.8.8"
              - "8.8.4.4"
            next_servers:
              - "10.1.1.10"
            domain_name: "example.com"
            bootfile: "boot.cfg"
            lease_days: 7
            lease_hours: 12
            lease_minutes: 30
            subnet_prefix_length: 24
            utilization_mark_high: 80
            utilization_mark_high_log: true
            utilization_mark_low: 20
            utilization_mark_low_log: true
            options:
              - option_code: 150
                ascii: "10.1.1.1"
              - option_code: 66
                hex: "0a010101"
              - option_code: 42
                ip:                    # IOS-XE 17.15+
                  - "10.1.1.20"
                  - "10.1.1.21"
              # - option_code: 42      # IOS-XE pre-17.15
              #   ip_legacy:
              #     - "10.1.1.20"
              #     - "10.1.1.21"

VRF-Bound Pool

ip dhcp pool POOL_VOICE
 vrf VOICE
 network 10.1.2.0 255.255.255.0
 default-router 10.1.2.1
 dns-server 10.1.2.1
 lease 0 8

iosxe:
  devices:
    - name: Router1
      configuration:
        dhcp_pools:
          - name: POOL_VOICE
            vrf: "VOICE"
            network_number: "10.1.2.0"
            network_mask: "255.255.255.0"
            default_routers:
              - "10.1.2.1"
            dns_servers:
              - "10.1.2.1"
            lease_days: 0
            lease_hours: 8

Static Host Binding with Infinite Lease

ip dhcp pool POOL_PRINTER
 host 10.1.1.100 255.255.255.0
 client-name printer1
 lease infinite

iosxe:
  devices:
    - name: Router1
      configuration:
        dhcp_pools:
          - name: POOL_PRINTER
            host_number: "10.1.1.100"
            host_mask: "255.255.255.0"
            client_name: "printer1"
            lease_infinite: true