State switch interval Server2012R2 DHCP Failover

[tehsteve86]

Hi guys! I configured Load Balancing for DHCP Failover. There is an option called "state switch interval". Leaving it unchecked would mean that in the event one of the DHCP servers going down, I would have to manually intervene and set a "partner down state". I tried to research the answers to the following questions online, but came up short.

 

Question #1)

If I forget to manually set "partner down" when disaster strikes, will DHCP be broken completely or will DHCP Services just be running at a sluggish 50%?

I think that it will run sluggish since Load Balancing is still technically enabled right?

 

Question #2)

Let's say that I decide to enable the "state switch interval". The "partner down state" was applied without my intervention.

Load Balancing is auto disabled and the healthy DHCP server has assumed all responsibilities.

 

Everything is working as intended while I am fixing the broken DHCP server.

Let's say that I get the broken DHCP server running again.

Will the "state switch interval" see after 60 minutes that the broken DHCP server is back up and running and automatically bring itself back into Load Balancing Mode?

[binaryzero]

State switch over interval controls how long standby server waits after losing communication with primary server before assuming active state and servicing DHCP clients. In load balance mode it may not be important factor as both servers can serve clients based on defined percentage of scope IP addresses. In Hot standby mode, it will be important to select, or the standby server will never switch over automatically.

 

Really, how often does your DHCP go down? For me, it's pretty much been a set and forget type of thing. I may occasionally go in there to hunt down an IP address, or see which VLAN a machine is plugged into. Design your infrastructure correct and DHCP will be the least of your worries.