[Dnsmasq-discuss] Specific treatment of Class C addresses

[Jan Ceuleers]

On 25/09/2024 11:06, Simon Kelley wrote:
> Downsides to this proposed change.
>
> 1) Old versions of Windows might break.
> 2) Newer versions of windows might break - we've not done testing on
> which do and don't.
> 3) Other platforms which have made the same mistake might break.
> 4) Dnsmasq installations which unkowningly rely on this behaviour in
> other respects might break.
>
> Upsides to the proposed change.
> 1) ~1% more available addresses in DHCP pools.
> 2) A small amount of code which no longer needs maintenance.
>
> It's not clear to me what the balance is here. Opinions, list?
>
> Simon. 

The reason why I raised this subject is of course the fact that it
enables the use of IP addresses in DHCP pools that are not otherwise
available for use.

IPv4 addresses are a scarce resource, and maximising their use is, in my
opinion, a worthy goal.

But if the dnsmasq project isn't ready to remove this restriction, would
a patch be accepted that makes it configurable? If so, what should the
default be?

Thanks, Jan