Symptoms
- The device intermittently disappears from WinDiscovery
- The device’s IP address changes unexpectedly
- Communication drops and then returns without configuration changes
Causes
- DHCP lease changes or DHCP service is unreliable on the connected network
- Device is configured for DHCP but the network does not provide DHCP consistently
- IP address conflict on the network (two devices using the same address)
- Network segmentation or packet loss causes WinDiscovery sessions to appear intermittent
Suggested solutions or troubleshooting steps
- Confirm whether the device is using DHCP. If DHCP is enabled, the IP may change as leases renew.
- If DHCP is not reliable, use a static IP. Configure a static IP in WinDiscovery to prevent unexpected address changes.
- Check for missing DHCP on the network. If the network does not provide DHCP, the device may repeatedly attempt to renew. See Understanding Fallback IP Addresses (169.254.x.x).
- Check for IP conflicts. Ensure no other device is using the same IP address.
- Review boot and initialization behavior. See Device Boot and Network Initialization Behavior.
Article ID: KB-NET-011
KB Version: