The informative discussion about DHCP vs Static IP missed a few important points regarding vulnerabilities of DHCP.
1) DHCP makes basic IP addressing completely dependent on the network connection to the server and on the server's integrity - security, updates, etc. If using DHCP this way, I would use a Linux-based server for reliability/stability if I had IT support with Linux knowledge. Whatever the case, be sure there is a backup DHCP server as well. The network traffic overhead is a minimal concern compared to the server administration.
2) DHCP attacks are easy to implement via virus's and free software putting up a rogue server, which can be very difficult to track down. Improper connection of a wireless router's LAN interface to our school network provided a rogue DHCP server (default settings) that caused problems for weeks until it was finally reported. I also had a local network down *twice* for a weekend due to a virus bringing up a rogue DHCP server, assigning addresses of the gateway router to client PC's (duplicates), thus bringing down the network for most of the clients configured for DHCP.
If you still choose to go with DHCP, keep these vulnerabilities in mind.
1) DHCP makes basic IP addressing completely dependent on the network connection to the server and on the server's integrity - security, updates, etc. If using DHCP this way, I would use a Linux-based server for reliability/stability if I had IT support with Linux knowledge. Whatever the case, be sure there is a backup DHCP server as well. The network traffic overhead is a minimal concern compared to the server administration.
2) DHCP attacks are easy to implement via virus's and free software putting up a rogue server, which can be very difficult to track down. Improper connection of a wireless router's LAN interface to our school network provided a rogue DHCP server (default settings) that caused problems for weeks until it was finally reported. I also had a local network down *twice* for a weekend due to a virus bringing up a rogue DHCP server, assigning addresses of the gateway router to client PC's (duplicates), thus bringing down the network for most of the clients configured for DHCP.
If you still choose to go with DHCP, keep these vulnerabilities in mind.