i tried to join a winxp computer to a domain(from the winxp computer). but was only successful after I assign the static IP and dns IP on the winxp computer.

my question is do you need to be able to ping the domain controller in order to join the domain?

my question is do you need to be able to ping the domain controller in order to join the domain?

Most certainly, yes.

Here's a futher explanation that might help you.

Servers require static IP addresses. I'm assuming that maybe you are using a router as a DHCP server and the IP scheme is different and that is why you are unable to connect to the server without a static address. The easiest way to fix this would be to make sure the IP scheme on the server and the DHCP server (router) are the same. My recommendation on how to fix it would be to disable DHCP on your router and to enable DHCP on your server.