I am looking for an expert in IPs and VLAN to give me some insight into these very important networking technologies. I would like the expert to explain what programmatically allocating IPs and VLAN means. Does this mean that you can write a computer program in such a manner that it will allocate IPs and VLAN when the request is made or it has an entirely different connotation?
No you don't have to write a program, there are built in features in many hardware and Software. Open source Software can also be an option.
Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) is a protocol used to allocate IPs dynamically or you can say it programmatically. You have to either enable DHCP Server function on the Hardware or install DHCP server software or feature in a particular Server OS or Application.
To assign VLANs programmatically or through prescribed procedure e.g On CISCO products, VLAN Trunking Protocol (VTP) that is their proprietary protocol. It propagates VLAN information or we can say definition over the LAN. VTP carries VLAN information to all CISCO switches in a VTP domain. VTP advertisements are sent via trunk ports.
