What makes a client connect to an dhcp server and not another

[hadi57]

hi

this seem a silly question, but this is happening to me always.

i have some clients that i cant control what they do at home, they use their dhcp  activated router as a switch to share their pc's and printer, but they are using my line coming from my server running dhcp to have internet connection, then all my clients on the network starts getting their IP's from that router and not from my pfsence box, and this happened many times, and keeps happening.

question:

1- why they respond to other router and not my server
2- is there something can be done on pfsense to force clients on the network to listen to pfsence and not any other router?

help really appreciated

thanks in advance

hadi57

[jimp]

You need to physically separate the networks (or logically separate them with VLANs) or you have two DHCP servers in one broadcast domain, which does not work. The clients will take the fastest reply.

[hadi57]

hi again

thanks for the reply,

so is there any think can be done in pfsense that increases the reply speed,because this issue keeps rising from time to time with lots of clients on the network connecting my network and other network to a same switch thinking that if my network is down so the other network will be there for them, and as i said before it is difficult to keep explaining to every appartment and to every member of the family.

thank you again for the reply

[jimp]

Put each separate network on a separate switch (or VLAN on a managed switch). There is no other way to properly run two separate DHCP setups without separating them.

[hadi57]

yes i understand thank you