2. Double-tap or double-click Internet Protocol Version 6 (TCP/IPv6) or Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP/IPv4) as appropriate for the type of IP address you are configuring.
3. Select Obtain An IPv6 Address Automatically or Obtain An IP Address Automatically as appropriate for the type of IP address you are configuring. You can select Obtain DNS Server Address Automatically, or you can select Use The Following DNS Server Addresses, and then enter a preferred and alternate DNS server address in the text boxes provided.
4. When you use dynamic IPv4 addressing, you can configure an automatic alternate address or manually configure the alternate address. To use an automatic configuration, on the Alternate Configuration tab, select Automatic Private IP Address. Tap or click OK, tap or click Close, and then skip the remaining step.
5. To use a manual configuration, on the Alternate Configuration tab, select User Configured, and then enter the IP address you want to use in the IP Address text box. The IP address you assign to the computer should be a private IP address, as shown earlier in Table 7–1, and it must not be in use anywhere else when the settings are applied. Complete the alternate configuration by entering a subnet mask, default gateway, DNS server, and Windows Internet Name Service (WINS) settings. When you have finished, tap or click OK, and then tap or click Close.
Configuring multiple gateways
To provide fault tolerance in case of a router outage, you can choose to configure Windows Server 2012 R2 computers so that they use multiple default gateways. When you assign multiple gateways, Windows Server 2012 R2 uses the gateway metric to determine which gateway is used and at what time. The gateway metric indicates the routing cost of using a gateway. The gateway with the lowest routing cost, or metric, is used first. If the computer can’t communicate with this gateway, Windows Server 2012 R2 tries to use the gateway with the next lowest metric.
The best way to configure multiple gateways depends on the configuration of your network. If your organization’s computers use DHCP, you probably want to configure the additional gateways through settings on the DHCP server. If computers use static IP addresses or you want to set gateways specifically, assign them by following these steps:
1. In Network And Sharing Center, tap or click Change Adapter Settings. In Network Connections, press and hold or right-click the connection with which you want to work, and then tap or click Properties.
2. Double-tap or double-click Internet Protocol Version 6 (TCP/IPv6) or Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP/IPv4) as appropriate for the type of IP address you are configuring.
3. Tap or click Advanced to open the Advanced TCP/IP Settings dialog box, shown in Figure 7–4.
FIGURE 7–4 Configure multiple IP addresses and gateways in the Advanced TCP/IP Settings dialog box.
4. The Default Gateways panel shows the current gateways that have been manually configured (if any). You can enter additional default gateways as necessary.
a. Tap or click Add, and then enter the gateway address in the Gateway text box.
b. By default, Windows Server 2012 R2 automatically assigns a metric to the gateway. You can also assign the metric yourself. To do this, clear the Automatic Metric check box, enter a metric in the text box provided, and then tap or click Add.
c. Repeat steps a through b for each gateway you want to add.
5. Tap or click OK, and then tap or click Close.
Configuring networking for Hyper-V
After you install Hyper-V and create an external virtual network, your server uses a virtual network adapter to connect to the physical network. When you work with the Network Connections page, you will find the original network adapter and a new virtual network adapter. The original network adapter will have nothing bound to it except the Microsoft Virtual Network Switch Protocol, and the virtual network adapter will have all the standard protocols and services bound to it. The virtual network adapter that appears under Network Connections will have the same name as the virtual network switch with which it is associated.
NOTE As part of the Hyper-V configuration, you can create an internal virtual network, which enables communications only between the server and hosted virtual machines. This configuration exposes a virtual network adapter to the parent server without the need to have a physical network adapter associated with it and isolates the virtual machine from the Internet and the rest of the LAN. hyper-V binds the virtual network service to a physical network adapter only when an external virtual network is created. An external virtual network is required for communications on the LAN and the Internet.
Following this, when you install Hyper-V on a server and enable external virtual networking, you’ll find that virtual network switching is being used. As shown in Figure 7–5, the server has a network connection with the Hyper-V Extensible Virtual Switch protocol enabled and all other networking components not enabled in the dialog box on the left and an entry for a virtual connection with the key networking components enabled and the Hyper-V Extensible Virtual Switch Protocol disabled in the dialog box on the right. This is the configuration you want to use to ensure proper communications for the server and any hosted virtual machines that use networking. If this configuration is changed, virtual machines won’t be able to connect to the external network.
FIGURE 7–5 Use switched virtual networking to ensure communications with hosted virtual machines.
Managing network connections
Network connections make it possible for computers to access resources on the network and the Internet. One network connection is created automatically for each network adapter installed on a computer. This section examines techniques you can use to manage these connections.
Checking the status, speed, and activity for network connections
To check the status of a network connection, follow these steps:
1. In Network And Sharing Center, tap or click Change Adapter Settings. In Network Connections, press and hold or right-click the connection with which you want to work, and then tap or click Status to display the Status dialog box for the network connection.
2. If the connection is disabled or the media is unplugged, you won’t be able to access the Status dialog box. Enable the connection or connect the network cable to resolve the problem, and then try to display the Status dialog box again.
Enabling and disabling network connections
Network connections are created and connected automatically. If you want to disable a connection so that it cannot be used, follow these steps:
1. In Network And Sharing Center, tap or click Change Adapter Settings. In Network Connections, press and hold or right-click the connection, and then tap or click Disable to deactivate the connection and disable it.
2. If you want to enable the connection later, press and hold or right-click the connection in Network Connections, and then tap or click Enable.