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Strange DHCP Lease Problem After Upgrading to Windows 11

June 2, 2025 5 answers
Asked by TechGuru42
I'm running into a weird issue after upgrading a laptop from Windows 10 to Windows 11 using an enablement package. The laptop is able to receive a valid DHCP lease from the PXE scope without a hitch, but when I try to connect it to the user network, it ends up getting a 169.254.x.x address instead, which means it can't get an IP from the DHCP server. Both scopes are functioning correctly for Windows 10 laptops; they can get leases without issue. The user scope is a /23 and has plenty of free IP addresses available. I've confirmed that there are no routing or IP-helper misconfigurations on the router. I've also checked that the DHCP service is running on the laptop, and Event Viewer has no logs indicating a DHCP failure. The only difference I can see is the OS itself. I've compared the scope configurations, and everything seems identical. Can anyone offer some insights or troubleshooting steps?
DHCP ip address network issues PXE sysadmin System Operations Windows 11

Answers

ProxyPanda
Check if the WinHTTP Web Proxy Auto-Discovery service is disabled. Sometimes group policies set it to disabled, and that can interfere with DHCP. It usually works fine when set to Manual, so give that a shot!

TechGuru42: I'll look into that, but since the PXE scope works, I'm not sure it’s the issue.

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NetworkNerd88
It sounds like you're saying that the laptop gets a DHCP lease from the PXE VLAN but not from the user VLAN? If so, that definitely complicates things, but it's not entirely unexpected with the OS change.

TechGuru42: Exactly! I just get that 169.254 address on the user VLAN.

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PacketSniffer
Consider running a packet capture to see if your computer is even sending out a DHCP discover. If you see that, check for responses from the DHCP server. Also, can you try connecting with a static IP to rule out any other issues?
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LogMaster3000
You should check the DHCP server logs located in System32DHCP. They might give you a clue if it's trying to assign an IP before failing.

TechGuru42: I checked those logs—they're empty for the user scope.

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PXEWhiz
What happens if you disable PXE unexpectedly? Does it manage to pull a DHCP lease then? It might help narrow down the issue further.
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