There's nothing in your config file below to cause the kernel to do a DHCP. Are you sure that your rc scripts aren't doing it?

Ah -- this is a common confusion: 'vmid' != 'domid'.

The xmdefaults example configuration script is a slightly complex example that takes a parameter ('vmid') and hence enables you to use the same config file to start multiple domains, assuming you're assigning them consecutively numbered ip addresses and partitions.

When a domain starts, it's given a 'domid' which is a handle that xend uses to refer to the domain when talking to Xen (It's kind of like a PID in Unix). The very latest version of the tools hides domid's from users to avoid this confusion. (A VM's domid will change when it reboots or migrates, so it's a bad handle for users to use when talking about a domain).

The way most people user the tools is to write a separate config file for each domain they want to start, hence removing the part at the top of the script that expects a parameter to be set.

Ian