If Windows cannot find an active DHCP server, which network does it use by default for the network port?

If Windows cannot find an active DHCP server, which network does it use by default for the network port?

• 192.168.0.0/16
• 169.254.0.0/16
• 172.16.0.0/12
• 127.0.0.1/32 

 

EXPLANATION

The 169.254.0.0/16 network is used for Automatic Private IP Addressing, or APIPA. If a DHCP client attempts to get an address, but fails to find a DHCP server after the timeout and retries period it will randomly assume an address from this network. This is defined in RFC 3927.
192.168.0.0/16 and 172.16.0.0/12 are defined for private use networks (LANs). It has to be configured by manual installation as a static IP or by a DHCP Server.
127.0.0.1/32 is the loopback address of the PC. The loopback address can be used to test the performance of TCP/IP by pinging 127.0.0.1. Upon receiving a response, you can assume that the software associated with the protocol is fine.