A DHCP lease must be obtained by the switchbefore the ZTP process proceeds. Juniper documentation clarifies: "Ensure that a DHCP server is reachable. In addition to providing an IP address to the switch, your DHCP server must provide the following information: a default gateway, an NTP server, and a DNS server address..." The initial event in the ZTP workflow is the switch receiving a valid IP address via DHCP. Only after obtaining an address can the switch connect to the Mist cloud and proceed with zero-touch provisioning. Other requirements, such as user account, NETCONF, or NTP sync, occur later or are handled automatically via cloud policy after onboarding.