Wireless LAN Access Point Users Manual Version 1.7 Copyright 2001 by manufacturer. All rights reserved. No part of this documentation may be reproduced in any form or by any means or used to make any derivative work (such as translation, transformation, or adaptation) without written permission from the copyright owner. All the other trademarks and registered trademarks are the property of their respective owners. Statement of Conditions The content described in this manual may be improved or changed at any time and it is subject to be changed without notice. Manufacturer assumes no responsibility for errors contained herein or for direct, indirect, special, incidental or consequential damages with the furnishing, performance, or use of this manual or equipment supplied with it, even if manufacturer of its suppliers have been advised of the possibility of such damages. Electronic Emission Notices This device complies with Part 15 of the FCC Rules and Canada RSS-210. Operation is subject to the following two conditions:
(1) This device may not cause harmful interference.
(2) This device will accept any interference received, including interference that may cause undesired operation. FCC Radio Frequency Interference Statement This equipment has been tested and found to comply with the limits for a class B digital device, pursuant to Part 15 of the FCC rules. These limits are designed to provide reasonable protection against harmful interference when the equipment is operated in a commercial environment. This equipment generates, uses, and can radiate radio frequency energy and, if not installed and used in accordance with the instruction manual, may cause harmful interference to radio communications. Operation of this equipment in a residential area is likely to cause harmful interference in which case the user need to correct the interference at his area. If the equipment causes interference to radio or television reception, try to correct the interference by using one or more of the following measures:
Plug the equipment into an outlet that is on a different circuit from the television or radio. disappears.
Change the direction of the television or radio antenna until the interference
Move the equipment to one side or the other of the television or radio.
Move the equipment farther away from the television or radio. To assure continued compliance, any changes or modifications not expressly approved by manufacturer could void the users authority to operate the equipment. 1 FCC Radiation Exposure Statement This device and its antennas must operate with a separation distance of at least 20 cm from all persons and must not be co-located or operating in conjunction with any other antenna or transmitter. End users must be provided with specific operating instructions for satisfying RF exposure compliance. This product has been certified in Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Sweden, Taiwan, UK, and US. Regulatory information / Disclaimers Installation and use of this Wireless LAN device must be in strict accordance with the instructions included in the user documentation provided with the product. Any changes or modifications (including the antennas) made to this device that are not expressly approved by manufacturer may void the users authority to operate the equipment. The manufacturer is not responsible for any radio or television interference caused by unauthorized modification of this device, or the substitution or attachment of connecting cables and equipment other than manufacturer specified. It is the responsibility of the user to correct any interference caused by such unauthorized modification, substitution or attachment. Manufacturer and its authorized resellers or distributors will assume no liability for any damage or violation of government regulations arising from failing to comply with these guidelines. 2 LIMITED WARRANTY This product is warranted by manufacturer to be free from defects in material and workmanship for one (1) year from the date of purchase. During this period if this product is found to be defective in material or workmanship, manufacturer or one of its authorized service facilities will at its option either repair or replace this product without charge, subject to the following conditions, limitations and exclusions:
1. This warranty extends to the original consumer purchaser only and is not assignable or transferable. 2. This warranty shall not apply to any product which has been subjected to misuse, abuse, abnormal use, negligence, alteration or accident, or has had its serial number altered or removed. 3. This warranty does not apply to any defects or damage directly or indirectly caused by or resulting from the use of unauthorized replacement parts and/or service performed by unauthorized personnel. 4. This warranty does not apply to the software driver that accompanies this product. This warranty is made expressly in lieu of all other warranties, expressed or implied, including but not limited to any implied warranty of merchantability of fitness for a particular purpose, and all other obligations on the part of Manufacturer provided, however, that if the disclaimer of implied warranties is ineffective under applicable law, the duration of any implied warranties arising by operation of law shall be limited to one
(1) year from the date of purchase or such longer period as may be required by applicable law. Manufacturer hereby disclaims any and all liabilities for consequential and incidental damages arising out of or in connection with any breach of this warranty or any other claim with respect to this product, including but not limited to claims of negligence, strict liability in tort or breach of contract. 3 Table of Contents 1. INTRODUCTION.............................................................................................5 1.1 Features......................................................................................................5 1.2 Applications ...............................................................................................5 2. INSTALLATION ..............................................................................................7 2.1 Product Kit.................................................................................................7 2.2 System Minimum Requirements ................................................................7 2.3 Placement of AP ........................................................................................7 2.4 Plug in Power.............................................................................................7 2.5 Connect to a Network.................................................................................8 2.6 Install Utilities............................................................................................8 2.7 Install APs Driver .....................................................................................9 3. CONFIGURATION ..........................................................................................9 3.1 APUtility....................................................................................................9 3.2 SNMP Manager .......................................................................................10 4. SPECIFICATIONS .........................................................................................11 5. GLOSSARY....................................................................................................13 6. DEFAULT SETTINGS ...................................................................................14 7. WIRELESS LAN SYSTEM ............................................................................17 7.1 802.11 Ad-Hoc Configuration..................................................................17 7.2 Infrastructure Configuration.....................................................................17 4 1. INTRODUCTION Wireless LAN is local area networking without wires, which uses radio frequencies to transmit and receive data between PCs or other network devices. Wireless LAN is able to configure independent networks and infrastructure networks. The former is suitable for small or temporary peer-to-peer configurations, and the later is offering fully distributed data connectivity via micro cells and roaming. The Wireless Access Point (AP) is designed to meet the mobility, performance, security, interoperability, management, reliability requirements of IEEE 802.11b high data rate standard and IEEE 802.3 Ethernet 10 Base-T standard. When installed, AP can communicate with other IEEE 802.11b and IEEE 802.3 compatible products to create a wireless network in your office or home. 1.1 Features
Compliant with IEEE 802.11b standard.
Automatic data rate fallback under noisy environment (11/5.5/2/1Mbps). Interoperable with IEEE 802.11b and IEEE 802.3 compliant equipment.
Supports full mobility and seamless roaming from cell to cell.
Local, remote and automatic configuration.
Easy client management with utility software under Windows 95/98/Me/2000/XP.
Desktop and wall/ceiling mount.
Up to 300m operating range (environment dependent).
Supports point-to-point and point-to-multipoint access.
Direct Sequence Spread Spectrum technology provides
(DSSS) robust, interference-resistant and secure wireless connection.
Supports bridging function.
Support TCP/IP, NETBEUI, and DHCP client.
Internal/external antenna versions available. 1.2 Applications
Home networking for device sharing - Remote access to corporate network information email, file transfer and terminal emulation.
Frequently changing environments - Retailers, manufacturers and banks that frequently rearrange the workplace and change location.
SOHO (Small Office and Home Office) users - SOHO users need easy and quick installation of a small computer network functions. Inter-building connection - The wireless building-to-building network installs quickly, requires no monthly lease fees, and provides the flexibility to reconfigure easily.
Typical applications include hard-to-wire buildings, campuses, hospitals/medical offices, warehouse, security huts, exhibition centers, etc. 5
Temporary LANs for special projects or peak time - Auditors require workgroups at customer sites. Trade shows, exhibitions, retailers, airline, and shipping companies need additional workstations for a peak period. 6 2. INSTALLATION Please follow steps described in the following Section 2.1 through 2.7 to install your AP including hardware, driver, and utilities. 2.1 Product Kit Before starting installation, please make sure the Wireless Access Point (AP) package you purchased includes the following four items:
1) Wireless Access Point with 2 antennas. 2) CD-ROM (containing Driver/Utility, and Users Manual). 3) Quick Start Guide. 4) Power adapter with power cord. If anything is missing, please contact your vendor. 2.2 System Minimum Requirements Your system should meet the following minimum requirements to install the AP successfully. 1) LAN with Ethernet network device such as hub or switch. 2) An A/C power outlet (100~240V, 50~60Hz) closed with the location of AP
(refer to Section 2.3). 3) UTP Ethernet cable (category 3, 4, or 5) with RJ-45 connectors and enough length from the location of AP to the hub. 2.3 Placement of AP Please choose a proper place for your AP. Normally, the best location to place the AP is at the center of all your mobile stations within line of sight. The higher up it is, the better performance you may have. 2.4 Plug in Power Plug the power cord of the power adapter into the socket symbolized with on the rear panel of AP, and plug the power adapter into an A/C power outlet. When completed, the power LED on the top panel should light up shown as Table 1. Note that only use the power adapter supplied with AP; otherwise, the AP may be damaged. Table 1. LED Indicators 7 LED Off No power. No network connection. No power. No full duplex operation. No power. LAN Duplex Power Nil. WLAN 2.5 Connect to a Network On Link to hub, but no network traffic. Under full duplex operation. Flash LAN traffic is detected. The heavier the traffic, the faster the flash. Nil. Power on Nil. Nil. Radio traffic is detected. The heavier the traffic, the faster the flash. Plug a RJ-45 of one end of the UTP Ethernet cable into the socket symbolized with on the rear panel of AP, then plug a RJ-45 of the other end of the UTP Ethernet cable into a free socket of the hub connected to LAN. When completed, the LAN LED on the top panel should light up shown as Table 1. Note that your wireless LAN is able to operate in some simple systems, i.e. only one AP and a DHCP server available, by using the default settings (refer to Section 6) whenever you have completed the above steps successfully. If it is a case, your installation process is done and you can omit the following steps. On the contrary, for complicated systems or you desire to change the APs settings, the following steps should be resumed. 2.6 Install Utilities Before installing the utilities into your PC, you have to ensure that your PC is running Windows 95, 98, Me, NT, 2000, or XP operating system and has minimum 5 Mbytes free disk space. Moreover, when your PC is running Windows 95, you have to download two files, w95ws2setup.exe website http://www.microsoft.com/windows/downloads/bin/w95ws2setup.exe and http://www.microsoft.com/com/dcom/dcom95/download.asp, the downloaded files and follow the prompt instructions to finish their installations. For legal considerations, these two files are not included in the supplied CD-ROM. respectively. Run dcom95.exe, from and the 8 Please follow the following steps to install two utilities, APUtility and SNMP Manager. The former is used for the local configuration, and the later is the remote configuration. Except that the password options and physical connections, two utilities perform the same functions. 1) Insert the supplied CD-ROM in the CD-ROM drive. 2) Run \Utilities\setup.exe in the CD-ROM. 3) Follow the prompted instructions to finish the installation. 4) Restart your PC when prompted. 2.7 Install APs Driver You may skip the APs driver installation on the condition that:
1) Your PC cannot connect to AP through USB cable. 2) Your PC is running Windows 95 or NT, which does not support USB. 3) The local configuration is not in need. Please follow the following steps to install the APs driver. 1) Plug one USB cable into on the rear panel of with end of the USB cable into the PC. socket symbolized AP, and plug the other USB port (type A) of 2) When plugged, your PC should detect the inserted AP automatically and display New Hardware Found on the display box. 3) Put the supplied CD-ROM in the CD-ROM drive. 4) The driver installation procedure will guide you through the steps standard for your operating system. 5) Restart your PC when prompted. 3. CONFIGURATION After you have completed the Installation process of Section 2 successfully, please follow this section to configure the settings of AP to fit in with your environment. There are two utilities available, APUtility and SNMP Manager. The former is used for local configuration, and the later is used for remote configuration. 3.1 APUtility Before running APUtility, you have to make sure that:
1) Your PC connects to AP through USB cable. 2) Your PC is running Windows 98, Me, 2000, or XP. 3) APUtility has been installed (refer to Section 2.6). 4) The APs driver has been installed (refer to Section 2.7). 5) The AP is turned on. 9 Run the APUtility from Start , Program, Access Point, and APUtility. A window AP Utility Application will be displayed. Three buttons allow you to do the following functions. 1) Configuration: Configure the settings of the AP. 2) Reset AP: Reset the AP and new configuration will take effect. 3) Restore Default: Restore the factory default values (refer to Section 6). After you press the Configuration button, a window AP Configuration with the current settings will be displayed. Press the Get button if you cannot receive the settings when the window is displayed. Clicking the listed identifier and pressing the Modify button, a window will be popped up to allow you to input the new setting. The new settings will be stored to the AP only after you press the Save button. Press the Exit button when completed. Please refer to Section 6 for the detailed information of each setting. 3.2 SNMP Manager Before running SNMP Manager, you have to make sure that:
1) The AP is turned on and is connected to a LAN. 2) Your PC can access to the AP. 3) Your PC is running Windows 95, 98, Me, 2000, XP, or NT. 4) SNMP Manager has been installed (refer to Section 2.6). Run the SNMP Manager from Start , Program, Access Point, and SNMP Manager. A window Access Point SNMP Manager will be displayed. If you have difficult in using it, please run from Start , Program, AP, and SNMP Help for detailed description about how to operate the SNMP Manager. 10 4. SPECIFICATIONS General Standards compliance Security Hardware RF Data rate Modulation Coding Number of channels Host interface IEEE 802.3 and 802.11b WEP 64-bit, 128-bit, encryption RC4 Frequency range: 2.4 ~ 2.4835GHz 11Mbps / 5.5Mbps / 2Mbps / 1Mbps DSSS (Direct Sequence Spread Spectrum) DBPSK/DQPSK 1, 2Mbps: 11 chip/bit Barker Coding 5.5, 11Mbps: Complementary Code Keying Europe: 13 (3 non-overlapping) US: 11 (3 non-overlapping) France: 4 (1 non-overlapping) Japan: 14 (3 non-overlapping) RJ-45 USB (local configuration) Transmit power +15dBm (Typ.) Receive sensitivity Power Range 600mA @ 5Vdc
-83dBm (Typ.) for 11Mbps; -88dBm (Typ.) for 5.5/2/1Mbps; (@BER 10E-5) Open environment: up to 300m (985ft) Office environment:
up to 30m(98ft ) @ 11Mbps up to 40m (131ft) @ 5.5Mbps up to 60m (197ft) @ 2Mbps up to 100m (328ft) @ 1Mbps Range for the AP depends on many factors and can vary greatly depending on the environment. The actual range may be less than stated. Software Management interface Mechanical Antenna Indicator Environmental Local: APUtility under Windows 98/2000/Me/XP Remote: SNMP under Windows 95/98/2000/Me/XP/NT Two RSMA connectors for external antennas LAN, Duplex, Power, WLAN 0 ~ 55C (operation), -10 ~ +85C (storage) Relative Humidity 95% (non-condensing) 11 Dimensions Weight Certificate EMC 167.0 x 117.5 x 35.5mm (w/o antenna) Less than 350g (excluding power adapter) U.S., Canada: FCC Part 15, sections 15.247, 15.205, 15.209; RSS-210 Europe: ETS 300 328, ETS 300 826, CE Marked 12 5. GLOSSARY Wireless Access Point (AP) Any entity that has station functionality and provides access to the distribution services, via the wireless medium (WM) for associated stations. Ad-Hoc A network composed solely of stations within mutual communication range of each other via the wireless medium (WM). An ad hoc network is typically created in a spontaneous manner. The principal distinguishing characteristic of an ad hoc network is its limited temporal and spatial extent. These limitations allow the act of creating and dissolving the ad hoc network to be sufficiently straightforward and convenient so as to be achievable by non-technical users of the network facilities; i.e., no specialized technical skills are required and little or no investment of time or additional resources is required beyond the stations that are to participate in the ad hoc network. The term ad hoc is often used as slang to refer to an independent basic service set (IBSS). BSS (Basic Service Set) An AP associated with several wireless stations. ESS (Extended Service Set) More than one BSS can be configured as an Extended Service Set. An ESS is basically a roaming domain. Ethernet A popular local area data communications network, originally developed by Xerox Corp., which accepts transmission from computers and terminals. Ethernet operates on 10 Mbps baseband transmission over shielded coaxial cable or over shielded twisted pair telephone wire. Infrastructure The infrastructure includes the distribution system medium (DSM), AP, and portal entities. It is also the logical location of distribution and integration service functions of an extended service set (ESS). An infrastructure contains one or more APs and zero or more portals in addition to the distribution system (DS). IEEE Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineering. LAN Local Area Network. Roaming A function that allows one to travel with a mobile end system (wireless LAN mobile station, for example) through the territory of a domain (an ESS, for example) while continuously connecting to the infrastructure. RTS (Request To Send) Threshold Transmitters contending for the medium may not hear each other. RTS/CTS mechanism can solve this Hidden Node Problem. SOHO Small Office Home Office SSID Service Set Identifier Wired Equivalent Privacy (WEP) The optional cryptographic confidentiality algorithm specified by IEEE 802.11 used to provide data confidentiality that is subjectively equivalent to the confidentiality of a wired local area network medium that does not employ cryptographic techniques to enhance privacy. 13 6. DEFAULT SETTINGS Description No. Identifier 1 Eth_IP_Address APs IP address 2 Eth_SubMask Subnet mask 3 ESSID 4 Auto Rate Fall Back 5 Channel Extended service set ID Transmission rate is subject to the past transmission status. Designate operating radio channel 6 WEP Type Type of Wired Equivalent Privacy Disable 7 WEP Key WEP keys to be used. None Default Value Possible Values 192.168.1.100 255.255.254.0 WLAN-AP Enable 1 for FCC, IC, ETSI, MKK. 10 for others. Enable, Disable. FCC/IC: 1 to 11, ETSI: 1 to 13, Spain: 10 to 11, France: 10 to 13, MKK: 1 to 14. Disable, 64-bit WEP, 128-bit WEP. None, Key1, Key2, Key3, Key4. 256 to 2346 bytes. 256 to 2346 bytes. 8 Fragmentation Threshold The size at which packets will be fragmented. 9 RTS Threshold Minimum size to enable 2346 10 Key1 11 Key2 12 Key3 13 Key4 RTS/CTS mechanism 64-bit WEP value of key 1 64-bit WEP value of key 2 64-bit WEP value of key 3 64-bit WEP value of key 4 2346 (stands for disabled) 10 11 12 13 14 00 to FF for 20 21 22 23 24 00 to FF for 30 31 32 33 34 00 to FF for 40 41 42 43 44 00 to FF for each field. each field. each field. 14 Preamble Type The appropriate frame format Long Both Type each field. Short, Long. Open System, Shared Key, Both. 15 Authentication Type for transmission to physical layer. Open System: the access to AP is valid if the security key of station is not set. Shared Key: the access to AP is valid if the security key of station matches with APs. Both: both Open System and Shared Key and are applicable. 14 No. Identifier 16 Access Point Description Name used for the AP Default Value Possible Values NONE 17 Operational Range of applicable data rate 82 84 8b 96 Name Rate Set 19 DTIM 20 Receive Antenna 21 Transmit Antenna 22 Operational Mode 23 Gateway IP Address 24 IP Filtering 18 Beacon Period Duration between beacon packets Interval of AP sends its broadcast traffic Antenna used for reception 100 2 (beacons) Diversity Antenna used for transmission Diversity Which operation mode is taken Access Point IP address of the gateway 0.0.0.0 25 DHCP Client Automatic IP address Allow only IP packets to pass through the WLAN Disable Enable assignment by the DHCP server 26 Primary Port Port connects to DHCP server Ethernet 27 Authorization Algorithm Enable authorized MAC address stations to access AP. 28 SNMP Traps The message indicates the 29 Preferred BBS Remote MAC address for APs actions. Disable Enable 00 00 00 00 00 00 connection in the operational mode of Access Point Client or Wireless Bridge. 30 WEP128 Key1 128-bit WEP value of key 1 31 WEP128 Key2 128-bit WEP value of key 2 15 10 11 12 13 14 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 20 21 22 23 24 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 to FF for each field. 00 to FF for each field. 82 84 8b 96 for 1 to 11Mbps, 82 84 0b 16 for 1 to 2 Mbps. 20 to 1000milliseconds. Left, Right, Diversity. Left, Right, Diversity. WBridge Point to MultiPoint, Access Point, Access Point Client, WBridge Point to Point. Enable, Disable. Enable, Disable. Ethernet, Wireless. Enable, Disable. Enable, Disable. 00 to FF for each field. No. Identifier 32 WEP128 Key3 128-bit WEP value of key 3 Description 33 WEP128 Key4 128-bit WEP value of key 4 34 User Community The user password used for SNMP 34 User Access: User access rights used for 35 Administrator Community 36 Administrator Access:
SNMP The administrator password used for SNMP Administrator access rights used for SNMP Default Value Possible Values 30 31 32 33 34 00 to FF for 00 00 00 00 00 each field. 00 00 00 40 41 42 43 44 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 public 00 to FF for each field. READ ONLY READ ONLY, READ\WRITE. public READ\WRITE READ ONLY, READ\WRITE. 16 7. WIRELESS LAN SYSTEM 7.1 802.11 Ad-Hoc Configuration An 802.11 Ad-Hoc wireless LAN is a group of computers, each equipped with one wireless LAN card, connected as an independent wireless LAN. Computers in a specific 802.11 Ad-Hoc wireless LAN must be configured at the same radio channel and BSS ID. 802.11 Ad-Hoc wireless LAN is applicable to a departmental scale for a branch or SOHO operation. Notebook with Wireless PC Card Desktop PC with Wireless PC Card Notebook with Wireless PC Card Figure 1. 802.11 Ad-Hoc Configuration 7.2 Infrastructure Configuration An integrated wireless and wired LAN is called an infrastructure configuration. A group of wireless LAN cards and an Access Point (AP) is called a Basic Service Set (BSS). Each wireless LAN card in this BSS can be linked to any computer in the wired LAN infrastructure via the AP. Infrastructure configuration not only extends the accessibility of a wireless LAN card to the wired LAN, but also doubles the effective wireless transmission range between two wireless LAN cards. BSS ID is, in essential, the ID of each independent wireless LAN card. All wireless LAN cards configured without roaming options in this independent BSS must be configured with BSS ID of that AP. You may need to check BSS ID of your AP by using its vendor supplied program. 17 Infrastructure configuration is applicable to enterprise scale for wireless access to central database, or wireless application for mobile workers. Two AP can be used as a point-to-point link between two LANs. LAN interconnection is applicable to a wireless backbone between buildings. File Server Desktop PC Desktop PC Hub Access Point Access Point Notebook with Wireless PC Card Desktop PC with Wireless PC Card Notebook with Wireless PC Card Desktop PC with Wireless PC Card Notebook with Wireless PC Card Notebook with Wireless PC Card BSS1 BSS2 ESS Figure 2. Infrastructure Configuration The infrastructure configuration supports roaming capability for mobile workers. More than one BSS can be jointly configured as an Extended Service Set (ESS). On account of a continuous connection to the network, users within this ESS can roam freely. All wireless LAN cards and APs within one ESS must be configured with the same ESS ID. Before setting up an ESS for roaming, it would be helpful to achieve good performance by choosing a feasible radio channel and right places for APs. 18 ADSL/Cable modem File Server Switch Switch Notebook with Wireless PC Card Notebook with Wireless PC Card Access Point Access Point Desktop PC with Wireless PC Card
<BSS1>
<BSS2>
ESS Figure 3. Seamless Roaming 19