Atheros AR5BAP-00032 User Manual

AR5BAP-00032 Access Point

User's Guide

Revision March 2003

© 2000–2003 by Atheros Communications, Inc. All rights reserved.

ATH ERO S
is Cleaner at 5-GHz
trademark of Atheros Communications, Inc. All other trademarks are the property of their respective
holders.

Subject to change without notice.

™

, 5-UP™, Driving the Wireless Future™, Atheros Driven™, Atheros Turbo Mode™, and the Air

™

are trademarks of Atheros Communications, Inc. The Atheros logo is a registered

Notice

The information in this document has been carefully reviewed and is believed to be accurate. Nonetheless,
this document is subject to change without notice, and Atheros Communications, Inc. (Atheros) assumes no
responsibility for any inaccuracies that may be contained in this document, and makes no commitment to
update or to keep current the contained information, or to notify a person or organization of any updates.
Atheros reserves the right to make changes, at any time, in order to improve reliability, function or design
and to attempt to supply the best product possible. Atheros does not represent that products described
herein are free from patent infringement or from any other third party right.

No part of this document may be reproduced, adapted or transmitted in any form or by any means,
electronic or mechanical, for any purpose, except as expressly set forth in a written agreement signed by
Atheros. Atheros or its affiliates may have patents or pending patent applications, trademarks, copyrights,
maskwork rights or other intellectual property rights that apply to the ideas, material and information
expressed herein. No license to such rights is provided except as expressly set forth in a written agreement
signed by Atheros.

ATHEROS MAKES NO WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND WITH REGARD TO THE CONTENT OF THIS
DOCUMENT. IN NO EVENT SHALL ATHEROS BE LIABLE FOR DIRECT, INDIRECT, SPECIAL,
INCIDENTAL SPECULATORY OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES ARISING FROM THE USE OR
INABILITY TO USE THIS PRODUCT OR DOCUMENTATION, EVEN IF ADVISED OF THE POSSIBLITY
OF SUCH DAMAGES. IN PARTICULAR, ATHEROS SHALL NOT HAVE LIABILITY FOR ANY
HARDWARE, SOFTWARE, OR DATA TRANSMITTED OR OTHERWISE USED WITH THE PRODUCT,
INCLUDING THE COSTS OF REPAIRING, REPLACING, INTEGRATING, INSTALLING OR
RECOVERING SUCH HARDWARE, SOFTWARE OR DATA. ATHEROS SPECIFICALLY DISCLAIMS
THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTIBILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE
AS THEY MIGHT OTHERWISE APPLY TO THIS DOCUMENT AND TO THE IDEAS, MATERIAL AND
INFORMATION EXPRESSED HEREIN.

Document Number: 984-00023-003

ii • AP User’s Guide Atheros Communications, Inc.

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Document Conventions

Text Conventions

bold Bold type within paragraph text indicates commands, file names,

directory names, paths, output, or returned values.

Example: The DK_Client package will not function unless the
wdreg_install batchfile is used.

italic Within commands, italics indicate a variable that the user must

specify.

Example: mem_alloc size_in_bytes

Titles of manuals or other published documents are also set in
italics.

Notices

Courier

[ ] Within commands, items enclosed in square brackets are optional

{ } Within commands, items enclosed in braces are options from

| Within commands, the vertical bar separates options.

… An ellipsis indicates a repetition of the preceding parameter.

> The right angle bracket separates successive menu selections.

The Courier font indicates output or display.

Example:

parameters or values that the user can choose to specify or omit.

which the user must choose.

Example: Start > Programs > DK > wdreg_install.

Error: Unable to allocate memory for transfer!

NOTE: This message denotes neutral or positive information that calls out important

points to the text. A note provides information that may apply only in special cases.

CAUTION: Cautions call special attention to hazards that can cause system damage or data corruption,

to a lesser degree than warnings.

WARN ING: Warnings call special attention to hazards that can cause system damage, data corruption,

personal injury, or death.

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Contents

List of Figures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vii

List of Tables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ix

Preface. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xi

About this Document . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xi

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1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-1

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System Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-1

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2 AP Network Attachment and Configuration . . . . . . . . . 2-1

AP Network Connections . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-1

Network Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-2

AP Hardware Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-5

AP Initial Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-6

Web Browser. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-6

Command-Line Interface. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-10

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A AP Web Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-1

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Accessing the AP Web Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-1

Configuration Windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-5

Working with Configuration Windows. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-6

System Configuration Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-7

5 GHz Radio Configuration Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-9

5GHz Security Configuration Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-11

Edit Security Server Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-12

5 GHz 802.1X Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-14

5 GHz Access Control List Configuration Window . . . . . . . . . . . A-15

Adding New Access Control Lists . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-16

Adding Access Control List Permissions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-18

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5 GHz Radio Advanced Configuration Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-19

2.4 GHz Radio Configuration Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-21

2.4 GHz Security Configuration Window. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-23

Edit Security Server Settings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-25

2.4 GHz 802.1X Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-26

2.4 GHz Access Control List Configuration Window . . . . . . . . . A-27

Adding New Access Control Lists . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-28

Adding Access Control List Permissions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-29

2.4 GHz Radio Advanced Configuration Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-30

Script Configuration Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-32

Firmware Update Configuration Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-33

Statistics Windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-35

AP Statistics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-35

Station Statistics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-37

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B Regulatory Compliance Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . B-1

FCC Requirements for Operation in the Unites States . . . . . . . . . . . . B-2

Radio Frequency Interference Warnings & Instructions. . . . . . . . . B-2

RF Exposure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . B-3

Declaration Of Conformity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . B-3

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List of Figures

Figure 2-1. Access Point to HPC Connections. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-2

Figure 2-2. AP Physical Description . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-5

Figure 2-3. AP Web Server Homepage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-7

Figure 2-4. 5 GHz Statistics Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-8

Figure 2-5. System Configuration Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-9

Figure A-1. AP Web Server Homepage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-2

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Figure A-2. 5 GHz Statistics Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-4

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Figure A-3. AP Web Server Navigation Bar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-5

Figure A-4. AP System Configuration Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-7

Figure A-5. 5 GHz Radio Configuration Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-9

Figure A-6. AP 5 GHZ Security Configuration Window . . . . . . . . . A-11

Figure A-7. 5 GHz RADIUS Server Configuration Window . . . . . . . A-13

Figure A-8. 5 GHz Access Control List Configuration Window . . . . . A-15

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Figure A-9. 5 GHz New Access Control List Configuration Window. . A-16

Figure A-10. 5 GHz Security Edit ACL Configuration Window . . . . . A-18

Figure A-11. 5 GHz Radio Advanced Configuration Window . . . . . . A-19

Figure A-12. 2.4 GHz Radio Configuration Window . . . . . . . . . . . . A-21

Figure A-13. 2.4 GHZ Security Configuration Window . . . . . . . . . . A-23

Figure A-14. 2.4 GHz RADIUS Server Configuration Window . . . . . . A-25

Figure A-15. 2.4 GHz Access Control List Configuration Window . . . . A-27

Figure A-16. 2.4 GHz New Access Control List Configuration Window. A-28

Figure A-17. 2.4 GHz Security Edit ACL Configuration Window . . . . A-29

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Figure A-18. 2.4 GHz Radio Advanced Configuration Window . . . . . A-30

Figure A-19. Configuration Script Configuration Window . . . . . . . . A-32

Figure A-20. AP Firmware Update Configuration Window. . . . . . . . A-33

Figure A-21. Advanced Firmware Update Configuration Window . . . A-34

Figure A-22. Basic Service Set Statistics Window for an AP . . . . . . . . A-35

Figure A-23. Basic Service Set Statistics Window for Station . . . . . . . A-37

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List of Tables

Table 2-1. Ethernet Port Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-5

Table A-1. Homepage .GIF Files. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-2

Table A-2. System Configuration Window Field Descriptions. . . . . . A-8

Table A-3. 5 GHz Radio Configuration Window Field Descriptions . . A-10

Table A-4. 5 GHz Security Field Descriptions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-12

Table A-5. RADIUS Server Configuration Field Descriptions . . . . . . A-13

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Table A-6. 5 GHz New Access Control List Field Descriptions . . . . . A-16

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Table A-7. 5 GHz Edit Access Control List Field Descriptions. . . . . . A-18

Table A-8. 5 GHz Radio Advanced Configuration Window Field

Descriptions A-20

Table A-9. 2.4 GHz Radio Configuration Window Field Descriptions . A-22

Table A-10. 2.4 GHz Security Field Descriptions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-24

Table A-11. 2.4 GHz RADIUS Server Configuration Field Descriptions . A-25

Table A-12. 2.4 GHz New Access Control List Field Descriptions . . . . A-28

Table A-13. 2.4 GHz Security Edit Access Control List Field Descriptions A-

Table A-14. 2.4 GHz Radio Advanced Configuration Window Field

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Table A-15. BSS Stats Field for AP Descriptions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-36

Table A-16. BSS Stats Fields for STA Descriptions . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-38

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Descriptions A-31

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Preface

The intent of this document is to familiarize users with the Atheros AR5BAP­00032 Access Point (AP), its setup, configuration, and usage. After reading
this user's guide, the user should be able to install, configure, control, and
maintain the Atheros Access Point.

About this Document

The document consists of the following chapters and appendices:

Chapter 1 Introduction—Describes the Access Point package contents

Chapter 2 AP Network Attachment and Configuration—Describes the

Appendix A AP Web Server—Describes the use of the web server to

Appendix B Regulatory Compliance Information—Important user

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and system requirements.

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Access Point network connections and initial software
configuration.

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configure the Access Point.

information and instructions concerning operating this
device in accordance with National spectrum usage laws for
radio devices.

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1

Introduction

The Atheros Access Point implements an IEEE 802.11a/b/g wireless LAN
(WLAN) AP or data-oriented Residential Gateway (RG) supporting up to 256
station associations. Rates of 6 to 54 Mbps are supported in standard IEEE

802.11a/g modes, up to 11 Mbps in 802.11b mode, and up to 108 Mbps in
Atheros Turbo Mode

System Requirements

The AP contains a small boot executive that allows the main operating system
software to be downloaded using the Ethernet port over an FTP connection.
The Operating system software can also reside in the Flash memory of the AP,
which allows booting without the need to download the operating system
from the host PC over an FTP connection. A configuration file is created in
Flash memory to store user-configurable parameters such as WEP keys. A
terminal or PC with an Ethernet connection is required to perform the initial

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AP configuration. An FTP server is required for firmware update to the AP.

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Use the AP Web Server for firmware updates. Refer to Appendix A,

“Firmware Update Configuration Window” for information on the web

server.

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AP Network Attachment and

Configuration

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This section provides procedures for connecting and configuring the AP to a
Host PC (HPC). Configuration can be performed either from a web browser
accessing the built-in web server, or by entering command using the
command line interface (CLI). For detailed information on using the web
server, refer to “AP Web Server” in Appendix A. For detailed information on
using CLI, refer to “AP Command-Line Interface” in Appendix B. For

“Factory Default Settings” refer to Appendix B.

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AP Network Connections

Connect the HPC to the AP using one of the following two methods:

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■ Use an Ethernet crossover cable (not supplied) to connect directly to the

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Ethernet port of the HPC. For more information on Ethernet cables, see

Table 2-1 .

■ Use standard Ethernet cables (not supplied) to connect through a hub or

Ethernet switch.

See Figure 2-1 for an example of the AP to the HPC connections.

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Follow these steps to establish the network connections:

1. Connect the AP Ethernet port to the HPC Ethernet card through the
Ethernet hub/switch or an Ethernet crossover cable.

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Chapter

2. Connect the optional RS-232 port to the HPC serial port through a serial
cable. Refer to Appendix C for more information on the serial interface.

3. Plug in the provided power supply to the AP power supply connector.

Host PC
(HPC)

RS-232
Port

Ethernet Port

Serial Cable

Ethernet Cable

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Ethernet

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Hub/Switch

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Figure 2-1. Access Point to HPC Connections

Atheros Access Point

(AP)

Optional

RS-232

Port

Ethernet
Port

Ethernet
Cable

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Power

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Power
Supply

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Network Configuration

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Follow these steps to configure the HPC for AP network control:

1. From the HPC’s Start menu, choose Settings and open the Network and
Dial-up Connections dialog box.

2. Right-click on the Local Area Connection icon that belongs to the Ethernet
controller connected to the AP, and select Properties.

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Chapter

3. Within the Local Area Connection Properties dialog box, choose Internet

Protocol (TCP/IP) and click Properties.

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4. Configure the IP address for the Ethernet connection in the Internet
Protocol (TCP/IP) Properties dialog box.

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5. Click OK to continue and close the Internet Protocol Properties dialog
box.

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AP Hardware Configuration

The Atheros AP hardware allows the configuration of one or two WLANs.

Figure 2-2 shows the physical location of WLAN, panel connectors on the AP

hardware, and the location of the antennae cables. Ta bl e 2 -1 summarizes the
type of cable to use when using the Ethernet wired ports on the AP. You may
use either, or both Ethernet ports.

2.4 GHz
Antennae

(black)

WLAN 0

Chapter

2

5 GHz
Antennae

(red)

WLAN 1

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Power Ethernet 1

Figure 2-2. AP Physical Description

Ethernet 0

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Serial Connection

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Table 2-1. Ethernet Port Configuration

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Ethernet Port Number Dumb Hub or Switch Computer Auto-Sensing Hub or Switch

0 Crossover cable Straight cable Crossover or straight cable

1 Straight cable Crossover cable Crossover or straight cable

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Chapter

AP Initial Configuration

This section describes how to configure the AP after booting from Flash
memory. Refer to “Firmware Update Configuration Window” on page A-33
to load the Operating image file to the Flash file system, if the operating
system software should be updated.

Configure the AP for its channel frequency and Service Set Identifier (SSID)
unique to the application. This configuration can be done either through a
web browser with access to the built-in AP web server, or by issuing
commands through the command line interface (CLI).

The AP can be configured at any time to tailor it for the application
environment. For more information on configuring the AP using the web
browser, refer to “AP Web Server” in Appendix A. For more information on
using the CLI, refer to “AP Command-Line Interface” in Appendix B.

Web Browser

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The following description illustrates the use of the web browser. For
information on using the CLI, refer to “Command-Line Interface” on

page 2-10.

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Follow these steps to configure the channel frequency and SSID using a web
browser:

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1. Launch a web browser (Netscape Navigator or Internet Explorer are
examples of commonly used web browsers).

2. From the HPC, enter the IP address that is assigned to the AP as the URL
address, for example http://192.168.1.1.

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