Finding device on network without its ip

Question

We have developed a device that is connected to our clients network and we would like to be able to get its ip or set the ip without knowing its ip.

The device has a Linux OS.

We can save the device MAC Address before giving it to customers. We can program a service to broadcast the device IP and MAC Address to a certain IP or port/socket. We can listen to a certain port/socket for commands. Is this the right direction? Should we investigate in other network protocols other than TCP/IP?

We have seen this feature in hardware/device manufacturers provide a CD with a software that can locate their devices on a network even if they have been newly added to the network without network or ip configuration.

Best regards,

Hussam Kazah

Answer 1

Using propriety broadcasting protocol is a very common technique for detecting devices on network without knowing it's name. However there's a better option:

UPNP, is an excellent protocol for achieving your goals. libupnp can get you started in no time.

Answer 2

There's a standard protocol called DHCP which allows a network device to make a broadcast request for its IP address. This protocol is widely used by network appliances. On the other hand you may scan your local network for all connected devices using ARP (address resolution protocol) using for example arp-scan utility.