Forescout CounterAct relies on specific components to analyze different types of network traffic. For DHCP, the DHCP Classifier is the essential service that must be running on the Forescout Appliance. This classifier is part of the DHCP Client Plugin and is responsible for actively listening to, decoding, and extracting endpoint properties from DHCP packets (e.g., DHCPDISCOVER, DHCPOFFER). Information such as MAC address, IP address, hostname, and OS-related hints (from DHCP options) are learned through this parsing process. Without the DHCP classifier running, the appliance would not be able to interpret and use this valuable source of host information.

A. Symmetrical traffic is not a strict requirement; Forescout can learn properties from one-way DHCP broadcasts (e.g., DHCPDISCOVER).

B. The Forescout Appliance monitors and parses network traffic. The Enterprise Manager is for centralized management and reporting.

C. The DNS client is an endpoint service for name resolution, which is a separate process from DHCP packet parsing.

E. This describes the location of the functionality, but the specific, active component required to perform the parsing is the classifier.

1. Forescout Administration Guide, Version 8.2.2. In the section "How the Forescout Platform Discovers Endpoints," the guide details the methods used for discovery, stating, "The Forescout platform uses both passive and active methods to discover endpoints... Passive monitoring of network traffic, for example, DHCP, RADIUS, and DNS traffic." The component responsible for this passive monitoring and analysis is the respective classifier within a plugin. (Reference points to the core function of passive monitoring of protocols like DHCP).

2. Forescout DHCP Client Plugin Configuration Guide, Version 2.2. Chapter 1, "About the DHCP Client Plugin," states: "The DHCP Client Plugin monitors DHCP traffic on your network. The plugin's DHCP Classifier analyzes this traffic to learn properties about endpoints..." This document explicitly links the DHCP Classifier as the component that analyzes (parses) the traffic.

3. Forescout Architecture & Deployment Guide. The architectural diagrams and descriptions consistently show that Forescout Appliances connect to the network (via SPAN/TAP ports) to monitor traffic, while the Enterprise Manager serves as a central management console, which does not perform direct traffic inspection. This supports the reasoning for why option B is incorrect.