Dynamic host configuration protocol (DHCP) allows a host to obtain an IP address dynamically without the network administrator having to set up an individual each device.
All that is required when using DHCP is a defined range of IP addresses on a DHCP server.
The DHCP server chooses an address and leases it to that host.
The importance to this DHCP advancement is its ability to lease an IP address to a device and then reclaim that IP address for another user after the first user releases it.