Toolman

Port 67 — DHCP server

UDP well-known

What runs on port 67

Hands out IP addresses to clients on a local network.

Security considerations

Two DHCP servers on one network cause address conflicts — a classic cause of "the internet is down" in small offices.

Checking whether something is listening

# Linux / macOS — what is bound to the port
sudo lsof -i :67
sudo ss -lntp | grep :67

# Windows
netstat -ano | findstr :67
Get-NetTCPConnection -LocalPort 67

# is it reachable from outside?
nc -zv example.com 67
curl -v telnet://example.com:67

Freeing the port

# find the process, then stop it
sudo lsof -ti :67 | xargs kill        # Linux / macOS
netstat -ano | findstr :67            # note the PID, then:
taskkill /PID <pid> /F                    # Windows

Should this port be open to the internet?

Usually not. Expose it only if a specific external client needs it, and restrict by source address where you can.

Quick reference

Port67
ProtocolUDP
ServiceDHCP server
RangeWell-known (0–1023) — binding requires root on Unix

Frequently asked questions

What is port 67 used for?

Hands out IP addresses to clients on a local network.

Is it safe to open port 67?

Two DHCP servers on one network cause address conflicts — a classic cause of "the internet is down" in small offices.

How do I check if port 67 is open?

Locally, sudo lsof -i :67 on macOS or Linux, or netstat -ano | findstr :67 on Windows. From outside, nc -zv host 67 tells you whether anything answers.

Why do I get "address already in use" on port 67?

Another process is bound to it — often a previous run of your own program that did not exit cleanly. Find it with lsof -ti :67 and stop it, or configure your application to use a different port.

Can I change the port this service uses?

Almost always yes, in the service's configuration. Moving off a default port reduces automated scan noise, but it is obfuscation rather than security — a real attacker scans all 65,535.

Other common ports

All port numbers