3Com WL-450 manual

http://www .3com.com/ http://www .3com.com/support/en_US/productreg/frontpg.html/ User Guide W ir eless LAN Access Points 8250/8500/8750 3CRWE825075A 3CRWE850075A 3CRWE875075A (Models WL-450, WL-462, WL-463) Ve r s i o n 2 Published January , 2004 V e rsion 2.3.12[...]

3Com Corporation 350 Campus Drive Marlbo rough, M A 01752-3064 Copyright © 2003 3Com Corporation . 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 adaptati on) without written permissi on from 3Com Corporation. 3Com Corpora[...]

Contents Introduction Product Features 6 Security 7 Performance and Reliability 7 Manageability 7 W ireless Ne twork St andards 8 Far-Reaching 802.1 1g 8 High-Performance 802.1 1a 8 Network Configuration and Planning 9 Ad Hoc W ireless LAN 9 Infrastructure Wireless LAN 9 Infrastructure Wireless LAN for Roaming W ireless PCs 10 T erminolog y 1 1 1 I[...]

2 System Configuration Using the 3Com W ireless Device Manager 26 Launching a W ireless Device Configuration 26 Using the Pre-IP Configuration W izard 28 Configurati on Login 28 Setting the Country Code 28 Basic Setup 29 Advanced Setup 30 Identification 30 TCP/IP Settings 30 DHCP Clie nt 30 Secure W eb Server Connection 31 RADIUS 31 Authentication [...]

3 T roubleshooting A T echnical Support Obtaining Support for yo ur Product 54 Register Y our Product to Gain Service Benefits 54 Purchase V alue-Added Services 54 Where T o Go For Help 54 T roubleshoot Online 54 Access Software Downloads 5 5 Contact Us 55 T elephone T echnical Support and Repair 55 Regulatory Compliance Information Index[...]

6 o I NTR ODUCTION The 3Com® W ireless LAN Access Points 82 50, 8500, and 8750 offer a dual -mode architecture tha t supports 802.1 1g, 802.1 1a and 802.1 1b wireless users on a single device. This means you can mi x and match radio band s to meet different coverage and bandwidth needs within the same area. Di f ferent a ccess point mo dels give y[...]

7 o Access Point 8750 —Creates a high-performance enterprise-class dual-mode 802.1 1g and 802.1 1a wireless LAN supporting up t o 250 simultaneous users up to 100 meters (328 feet). S ECURITY 3Com of fers one of the most robu st suite of standards-based secu rity on the market today . T o protect sensitive data broadcast over t he wireless LAN, 3[...]

8 need to cons ider AC powe r outlet lo cations. Po E support ma kes it easie r than ever to overcome installati on problems with dif ficult-to-wire or ha rd-to-reach locations. W IR ELESS N ETWORK S TANDARDS Understanding t he characteristics of the 802.1 1g and 802.1 1a standards can help you make the best choice for yo ur wireless implementa tio[...]

9 o Supporting a dense user base confin ed to a small coverage area. Because 802.1 1a has a greater number of non-overlappi ng channels, you can pack more access points in a tighter spac e. N ETWORK C ONFIGURATION AND P LANNING The wireless solution supp orts a stand-alone wirel ess network conf iguration as well as an integrated configuration with[...]

10 The infrastructure config uration not only extend s the accessibility of wirel ess PCs to the wired LAN, but also increases the ef fective wireless transmission range for wireless PCs by passing their signal through on e or more access poin ts. A wireless infrastructure can be used for access to a central database, or for connection between mobi[...]

11 T ERMINOLOGY Access Point —An internetwork ing device that seamlessly connects wired and wireless networks. Ad Hoc —An ad hoc wireless LAN is a group of computers, each with LAN adapters, connected as an i ndependent w ireless LAN. Backbone —The core infrastructure of a network. Th e portion of the network that transports information from [...]

12 ESS —Extended Service Set. More than one B SS is configured to bec ome an ESS. LAN mobile users can roam be tween diff erent BSSs in an ESS (ESS-ID, SSID). Ethernet —A popular local area data commun ications network, which accepts transmission from comp uters and terminals. Infrastructure —An in tegrated wireless a nd wired LAN is called a[...]

13 1 I NSTALLING THE A CCESS P OINT This equipment must be installed in compliance with lo cal and national building codes, regulatory restrictions, and FCC rul es. For the safety of people and equipment, th is product must be inst alled by a professi onal technician/ installer . I NSTALLATION R EQUIR EMENTS The following it ems are required for in[...]

14 workstation for man aging and configur ing the access point an d the wireless network. P OWER R EQUIR EMENTS The access point complies with the IEEE 802.3af power - over -Ethernet standard. It receives power over standard category 5 straig ht (8-wire) Ethernet cable. Insta llation requires the use of either the 3Com power sup ply provided or IEE[...]

15 D ECIDING W HER E TO P LACE E QUIPMENT AND P ERFORMING A S ITE S URVEY The access po int is ideally design ed for vertical installat ion on a wall surface, but ca n also be flat-su rface mounted in an elev ated location where it will not be disturbe d. Ceiling insta llation is not recomme nded. Whether you choose to mount th e access point on a [...]

16 B EFOR E Y OU B EGIN Record the access point MAC ad dress in a safe place before the access point is installed in a hard-to-re ach location. The MA C address is printed on the back of the access point housi ng. The following illustratio n shows the front and rear views of the access point, including the LEDs and connecting ports. C ONNECTING THE[...]

17 1 Carefully unpack th e standard de tachab le antenna s. 2 Screw an antenna into each of the sockets in the access p oint housing. 3 Hand-tighten the antennas at the very base of the SM A connectors without handling th e antenna tips. 4 Access Point 82 50 and Access Point 8750 : Position the ant ennas so they turn ou t and away from the access p[...]

18 o Connect the access point directly t o your own power -over -Ethernet hub or swi tch, which must also comply with the IEEE 802.3af standard. If you supply you r own Ethernet cable for c onnecting power , be sure that it is standard catego ry 5 straight-through (8-wire) ca ble that has not been altered in any way . Use of nonstandard cabl e coul[...]

19 4 T o link the access point to your Ethernet net work, plug one end of another Ethernet cable into the port lab eled T o Hub/Switch on the power supply , and plug the other end into a LAN po rt (on a hub or in a wall) . U SING A P OWER -O VER -E THERNET LAN P ORT If your LAN equi pment complies with t he IEEE 802.3af po wer-ove r-Etherne t stand[...]

20 1 Install the mounti ng plate as shown in the fo llowing illustration, on either a stud (or other hard wall surface), or ont o drywall. o Allow for a clearance of at least 25 cm (10 Inches) bet ween the ceiling an d the top of the mounting plate. o Make sure that “UP” o r “A” is oriented towa rd the top of the bra cket, and align the mou[...]

21 3 Position the access point at an a ngle to th e mounting plate bayonet connection and turn the unit clockwise until it sna ps into place, as shown bel ow . F LAT S URFACE I NSTALLATION The access point can also be placed on a flat surface such as a tabl e, desk top or filing cabinet. Do no t install the access point on any type o f metal surfac[...]

22 S ELECTING AND C ONNECTING A D IFFERENT A NTENNA M ODEL The standard detachable antennas suppl i ed with the Access Point 8250 and Access Point 8750 are suitable for a broad varie ty of environments. If yo u require a dif ferent type of ante nna for the Acce ss Point 825 0 or Access Point 8750, several options are available by mo del number fr o[...]

23 1 Position the an tenna so that there are minimal obstacles between it and any client with which it will communicate. While mai ntaining a direct li ne of sight between the antenna and a cl ient is not strictly nec essary , such an arrangement helps to ensure a strong signal . Ensure that access is availabl e for routing the ant enna cable from [...]

24 P OWER S ETTINGS ON THE A CCESS P OINT FOR E XTERNAL A NTENNAS USA European Community I NSTALLING S OFTWAR E U TILITIES The installation CD includes documentatio n and software utilities to help you set up and administer the wire less co mponents of your network. 2.5dBi (3CWE492) 4dBi (3CWE490, 3CWE497) 8dBi (3CWE491, 3CWE498) 6 ft (3CWE480) 100[...]

25 T o view product document ation, select V iew the Documentation from the CD Startup Menu and then select the item you wish to view . The software T ools and Utilities incl ude: o 3Com Wir eless Infrastructure Device Manager . Use this tool to discover access points and select devices for administrative changes. o 3Com 3CDaemon Server T ool. This[...]

26 2 S YSTEM C ONFIGURATION The access po int can be configured using a W eb browser that has Java su pport (Internet Explorer 5.0 or newer). Usin g the W eb management interface, you can configure the access point a nd view st atisti cs to m onitor n etwork a ctivit y . The 3Com W ireless Infrastructure Device Manager helps you locate 3Com wireles[...]

27 exclamation points (!). Y ou can re fresh this display by clicki ng Refr esh . Y ou should refre sh the display , for example, after you cha nge a device IP address. 2 In the W ireless Network T ree, select the device you want to config ure. If more than one wireless LAN devi ce appear s in the tree and you are not sure that you have sele cted t[...]

28 U SING THE P RE -IP C ONFIGURATION W IZARD Y ou can only configure de vices that are on the same subnet as your computer . T o configure a device on a different subnet, you must fi rst assign it an IP addr ess on the same subnet as your comp uter . Aft er you launch the configuratio n, you can change settings as usu al. Just befor e you finish, [...]

29 B ASIC S ETUP For a basic configuration, use the Setup W izard as described below . At any time, you c an click Home to return to the Home page of the config uration interface. If you want to configure more advanced features, click Advanced Set up in the Home page. 1 In the Home page, click Setu p W izar d. 2 In the “1-2-3” Setup W izard pag[...]

30 A DVANCED S ETUP The Advanced Setup pages allo w you to config ure features that are not available in the basic setup. On the Home page, click Advanced Setup to open the Advanced Setup menu. After making selec tions and entering d ata on each page, cl ick Apply to save the changes. The following sections describe th e Advanced Setup page s. I DE[...]

31 address of one or more domain name servers. Enter th ose addresses in Primary DNS Address and Secondary DNS Address fields. S ECURE W EB S ERVER C ONNECTION This option controls whe ther Secure Socket Layer (SSL) technology is used to encrypt information between the computer and the de vice during a configuration se ssion. By default this op tio[...]

32 In the RADIUS Authenticat ion section, enter the required parameters for a primary and secondary RADIUS authent ication server . In the RADIUS Accounting section, click the Enable radio button, then enter required parameters for a primary and seco ndary RAD IUS accounting server . When you are fin ished configuring i tems on this page, clic k Ap[...]

33 Configure the o ptions as described bel ow . When you are fini shed, click Apply . o MAC Authentication — Selecting MAC aut hentication allows yo u to define access permission and precedence. Opt ions are: Local MAC — W ith this op tion, the MAC address of the associating station is compared against the local access cont rol list. Y ou must [...]

34 o Access Point 802.1x Authentication to Network —802 .1x can also be enabled on the ethernet port of the switc h that the acc ess po int’ s ethernet cable is plug ged into. Having 802.1x e nabled on the switch prevents any device t hat is not able to successfully auth enticate from being a ble to use the ethernet port. This opti on is useful[...]

35 F ILTER C ONTR OL The Filter Control page allo ws you to contro l client communication within the wireless network. Y ou may enable o ne or more types of supp orted filtering ; however , some filter choices may sup ersede others. Configure the options as descri bed below . When you are finished, clic k Apply . F ILTERING BY VLAN The access po in[...]

36 VLAN Switch ports must be tagg ed ports that match the VLAN ID on the Access Point. Associated cli ent VLAN IDs will ap pear in the Syslog file i n ASCII Decimal format. When VLAN filtering is enab led, the ac cess point queries the server for the VLAN IDs of associating c lients and saves the VLAN IDs. If a client do es not have a VLAN ID, the [...]

37 the airport. Ho wever the clien t to client blocki ng feature of the AP will only block communications to other clients asso ciated with the same AP . And will not block client to client of an other AP communicat ions. By using the Upli nk Filterin g function of the AP communicat ions to all other clie nts of all other AP’ s on the same sub ne[...]

38 string for authentication. Select SNMP En a ble and enter data in to the fields as described below . When you are fi nished, click Apply . o Location —Specifies the acce ss point location. o Contact —Sets the system location string th at describes the system location. (Maximum length: 255 characters) o Community Name (Rea d Only) —Specifie[...]

39 T o back up a configuration — T ype the IP address of the TFTP server and a name for the back up file in the spaces provided. Click Basic (to save a partial configuration) or Complete (to save an entire co nfigurati on) and click Backup Configu ration . T o restor e a configuration — T y pe the IP address of the TFTP serve r and the name of [...]

40 T o set up a server for event logs : Select System Log Set up Enable, select a logging severity level from the pulldown list, enab le the Logg ing Host and Logg ing Console, and enter the IP address of the server in the space provided. T o designate an SNTP server for obtaining the date and time : Select SNTP Server Enable and enter the IP addre[...]

41 o SSID —Enter the Service Set ID (up to 32 al phanumeric characte rs). Clients must set their SSIDs to match the access point. The SSID is case sensitive. o Closed System — Enabling th is option will no t publicly broadcast the SSID. o T urbo Mode (802.1 1a only) —Turbo Mode is an enhanced wirel ess LAN operating mode that can provide a hi[...]

42 Fragmentation of the PDUs (Package Data Unit) can increase the reliability of transmissions because it increases the prob ability of a successful transmission due to smaller frame size. If there is signifi can t interf erence pr esent, or col lisions due to high network util ization, try setting th e fragment size to send smaller fragment s. Thi[...]

43 C ONFIGURING A UTHENTICATION Three types of authentica tion can be configure d: o Open System (the defa ult)—Allows access to everyone. o Shared Key —If Shared Key i s enabled, Encryp tion must also be enabled as described in “Configuring Encryptio n” on page 43. o 128-Bit Dynamic Security Link —This option can on ly be used with other[...]

44 The following sections describe ho w to configure each t ype of encryption. Whe n you are finished config uring the encrypti on, click Apply . WP A Configuration T o configur e WP A encrypti on: 1 Under WP A Configurat ion, click the Requir ed check box if you w ant to limit access to clients using WP A encryption. If you also want to allow WEP [...]

45 - If only one Radio is installed, and “WP A pre-shared key (PSK)” is selected on the security page, then the 802.1 x W ireless Setu p can be either “Disabled” or “Supported” on the Authenticatio n Page. -If only one Radio is installed and “WP A auth enticatio n over 802.1x” is selec ted on the security page, then 802.1x W ireless[...]

46 152-bit—Each key contains 32 hex adecima l digits or 16 alph anumeric characters. 3Com Passphrase—Th is encryption string is fo r use only with other 3Com W ireless LAN devices. It is a case-sensitiv e st ring between 6 and 30 characters long. T o ente r the stri ng, click 3Com Passphrase. Then type any combinati on of letters and numbers in[...]

47 e WEP Configuration has at least one valid WEP ke y . f Click on Apply . 11 The Access Poin t is now conf igured for RAD IUS Authenti cation. H OW TO SETUP THE ACCESS POINT FOR WP A WITH 802.1 X S ESSION KEYS 1 Using the W ireless Infrastru cture Device Manger access the configuration screen for the AP8x00/AP82x0. 2 Enter your User Name and Pass[...]

48 g Click on Apply . 11 The Access Point is n ow configured for WP A Authentication over 80 2.1x. H OW TO SETUP THE ACCESS POINT FOR WP A WITH P RE -S HAR ED (PSK) K EY 1 Using the W ireless Infrastru cture Device Manger access the configuration screen for the AP8x00/AP82x0. 2 Enter your User Name and Password and click LOGIN (Default : admin with[...]

49 WP A C ONFIGURATION FOR W INDOWS XP The following ta ble shows how to configure th e access point to supp ort the various authenticati on and encryption options available for W indows XP W ireless Zero Configuration. The following n otes apply to config uring the access point fo r WP A under W indows XP: o A WP A-capable w ireless network interf[...]

50 WPA-PSK AES Not available on 8200 TKIP Open System Enable WPA Configuration: Required Multicast Cipher Mode: TKIP WPA Key Manageme nt: WPA-PSK Select Key Type and en ter Pre-Shared Key WEP Open System Enable WPA Configuration: Required Multicast Cipher Mode: WEP WPA Key Manageme nt: WPA-PSK Select Key Type and en ter Pre-Shared Key Windows XP Wi[...]

51 3 T R OUBLESHOOTING If you have dif ficulty with the 3Com W ireless LAN access poin t, first check the following items in the configuration: o Radio Setting s page: Ensure that the SSID is the same on clients an d the access point. o Security page: Ensure that Encr yption is the same on clients and the access point. o Authentication pag e: Ensur[...]

52 No operation. Verify the access point configura tion. Review access point firmw are revisions and update firmware if necessary. Make sure that there are no duplicate IP addresses on the network. Unplug the access point and ping the assigned address to make sure that no other device responds to that address. Access point powers up, but does not a[...]

53 While you are configuring the access point, the Configuration Management System stops responding. To maintain wireless a ssociation, the service area and the security settings on the client and the access point must match exactly. Therefore, if you are associated with the access point that you are configuring and you change the access point serv[...]

54 A T ECHNICAL S UPPORT O BTAINING S UPPORT FOR YOUR P R ODUCT R EGISTER Y OUR P RODUCT TO G AIN S ERVICE B ENEFITS T o take advantage of warranty and o ther service benefits, you must first register your product at http://eSupp ort.3com.com/ . 3Com eSup port services are based on accounts that you crea te or ha ve authorization to access. First t[...]

55 Connection Assistant helps you ins tall, configure and troubleshoo t 3Com desktop and server NICs, wireless cards and Bluetooth device s. This diagnostic software is locate d at http://www .3com.com/prodforms/software/con nection_assistant/ca_tha nkyou.html A CCESS S OFTWARE D OWNLOADS Software Updates are the bug fix / maint enance rel eases fo[...]

56 Country T elephone Number Country T elephone Number Asia, Pacific Rim T elephone T echnical Support and Repair Australia Hong Kong India Indonesia Japan Malaysia New Zealand Pakistan 1 800 678 5 15 800 933 48 6 +61 2 9424 5179 or 0 0 0 8 0 0 6 5 0 1111 001 803 61 009 00531 616 439 or 03 5977 7991 1800 801 777 0800 446 398 +61 2 9937 5083 Philipp[...]

57 Latin Americ a: T elephone T echni cal Support an d Repair . Y ou can obtain support in this region u sing the followi ng URLs: Latin Amer ica. Spanish speakers, enter the URL: http://lat.3com.com/lat/support/form.html Portuguese speakers, enter the URL: http://lat.3com.com/br/support/form.html English speakers in Latin Amer ica should send e-ma[...]

R EGULATOR Y C OMPLIA NCE I NFORMATIO N 3Com Wir eless LAN Access Points 8250/ 8500/8750 (Models WL-450, WL462, WL-463) FCC Radio-Frequency Exposure Notice This device generates a nd radiates radio-frequency energy. In order to comp ly with FCC radio-frequency radiation exposure guidelines for an uncontrolled en vironment, this equipment has to b e[...]

Industry Canada Notice (Applicable to Use Within Canada) This device complies wit h Canadian RSS-210. To prevent radio interference to the li censed service, thi s device is intended to be operated indoo rs and away from windows to provide maximum shield ing. Equipment (or it s transmit antenn a) that is installed out doors is subject to l icensing[...]

European Community—CE Notice (WL-463, 802.1 1g Radio Module) Marking by the symbol: indicates compliance with t he essential requirements of Directiv e 73/23/EC and th e essential re q uirements of articles 3.1(b), 3 .2 and 3.3 of Directive 1999 /5/EC. Such marking is ind icative that this eq uipment meets or ex ceeds the following technical stan[...]

Consult user documen tation for informati on on how to configure this product. Safety Compliance Notice This device has been tested an d certi fied according to the following safety st andards and is i ntended for use only in Informati on Technology Equipment which has been tested and certi fied t o these or oth e r equivalent standards: n UL Stand[...]

I NDEX Numbers 3Com 3CDaemon Server T ool 25 3Com Network Supervisor 25 3Com Passphrase encryption 46 3Com W ireless Infrastruct ure Device Manager 25, 26 802.1 1a, turbo mode 41 802.1x reauthentication refresh rate 34 802.1x setup 33 A access control, 43 access point installation 13 IP address, troubleshooting 52 resetting 39 accounting 32 ad hoc [...]

E encryption 3Com Passphrase 46 configuring 43 shared key 45 WEP 43, 45 WP A 43, 44 Ethernet cable 13 Ethernet type filter 37 event logs 40 F filter control 35 firmware upgrade 38 flat surface inst allation 21 fragment length 41 G gateway , default 30 glossary of wireless networking terms 11 I identification 30 IEEE 802.3af power -over-Ethernet 17 [...]

RADIUS Authentica tion Setup S teps 46 RADIUS MAC authentication 33 reauthentication refresh rate 34 recording MAC address 16 Refresh button 27 resetting a bridge 31 resetting the access point 39 restore configuration 38 RF preamble 42 roaming 10 R TS threshold 42 S safety information 14 secure web server connection 31 session key refresh rate 34 s[...]