🛠 Project 04 — DHCP, DNS & Web Services¶

Type: Hands-on Packet Tracer lab Modules: 03 (Addressing), 04 (Protocols) Difficulty: ⭐⭐⭐

🎯 Objective¶

Stand up the core services that make a network usable: DHCP (automatic addressing), DNS (name resolution), and an HTTP web server — then verify a client can browse a site by name.

🧭 Scenario¶

A small office needs: - Clients to receive addressing automatically. - Users to reach www.acme.local by name instead of IP. - An internal web page served over HTTP.

Device	Address
Router / gateway	192.168.1.1/24
DNS + Web server	192.168.1.10
DHCP pool	192.168.1.100 – 192.168.1.200

📡 Part A — DHCP¶

Configure a DHCP pool (on the router or a server):

Router(config)# ip dhcp excluded-address 192.168.1.1 192.168.1.99
Router(config)# ip dhcp pool OFFICE
Router(dhcp-config)# network 192.168.1.0 255.255.255.0
Router(dhcp-config)# default-router 192.168.1.1
Router(dhcp-config)# dns-server 192.168.1.10

Set PCs to DHCP and confirm they lease an address (watch the DORA exchange in Simulation mode).

🌐 Part B — DNS¶

On the server, enable the DNS service.
Add an A record: www.acme.local → 192.168.1.10.

📌 Part C — Web Server¶

Enable HTTP on the server and edit the default page.
From a PC, browse to http://www.acme.local.

✅ Verification¶

ipconfig on a PC shows a leased address, gateway, and DNS server.
nslookup www.acme.local resolves to 192.168.1.10.
The web page loads by name in the PC browser.
In Simulation mode you can identify DHCP (DORA) and DNS query packets.

📦 Deliverables¶

Packet Tracer file (local).
A captured description of the DORA exchange.
Answer: if the DNS server IP is wrong in DHCP, what symptom does the user see even though ping 192.168.1.10 works?

🚀 Stretch Goals¶

Add a DHCP relay (ip helper-address) so a client on another VLAN/subnet gets addresses from this central server.
Serve the page over HTTPS and discuss the certificate.

See also notes: [[03-04-dhcp]], [[03-05-dns]], [[04-03-core-protocols-and-ports]]