Dell PowerConnect W-Airwave 7.4 Practices Guide
Dell PowerConnect W-
AirWave 7.4
Best Practices Guide
Copyright
®
© 2011 Aruba Networks, Inc. Aruba Networks trademarks include , Aruba Networks
registered Aruba the Mobile Edge Company logo, and Aruba Mobility Management System
®
. Dell™, the DELL™ logo, and PowerConnect™ are
, Aruba Wireless Networks®, the
trademarks of Dell Inc.
All rights reserved. Specifications in this manual are subject to change without notice.
Originated in the USA. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
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this site:
www.arubanetworks.com/open_source
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The use of Aruba Networks, Inc. switching platforms and software, by all individuals or corporations, to terminate other vendors’ VPN client
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Dell PowerConnect W-AirWave | Best Practices Guide 0510824-04 | November 2011
Contents
Preface....................................................................................................................................................................... 5
Document Organization.....................................................................................................................5
Note, Caution, and Warning Icons ..................................................................................................6
Contacting Support ...........................................................................................................................6
Chapter 1 Overview ............................................................................................................................... 7
Prerequisites for Integrating Dell PowerConnect W-Series Infrastructure............................. 7
Chapter 2 Configuring AirWave for Global Dell PowerConnect W-Series Infrastructure ........ 9
Disabling Rate Limiting in AMP Setup > General .......................................................................... 9
Entering Credentials in Device Setup > Communication .............................................................9
Setting Up Recommended Timeout and Retries .........................................................................10
Setting Up Time Synchronization...................................................................................................11
Setting up NTP on AirWave.................................................................................................... 11
Manually Setting the Clock on a Controller ......................................................................... 11
Enabling Support for Channel Utilization and Statistics ............................................................ 11
AirWave Setup..........................................................................................................................12
Controller Setup (Master and Local)..................................................................................... 12
Chapter 3 Configuring a Dell PowerConnect W Group in AMP ................................................... 13
Basic Monitoring Configuration ..................................................................................................... 13
Advanced Configuration.................................................................................................................. 14
Chapter 4 Discovering Dell PowerConnect
W-Series Infrastructure ................................................................................................... 15
Discovering Master Controllers ..................................................................................................... 15
Local Controller Discovery..............................................................................................................17
Thin AP Discovery ............................................................................................................................17
Chapter 5 AMP and Dell PowerConnect W-Series Integration Strategies ............................... 19
Integration Goals .............................................................................................................................. 19
Example Use Cases .......................................................................................................................... 20
When to Use Enable Stats ...................................................................................................... 20
When to Use WMS Offload.....................................................................................................20
When to Use RTLS....................................................................................................................20
When to Define AMP as Trap Host ....................................................................................... 20
When to use Channel Utilization............................................................................................ 20
Prerequisites for Integration .......................................................................................................... 21
Enable Stats Utilizing AMP .............................................................................................................21
WMS Offload Utilizing AMP............................................................................................................22
Define AMP as Trap Host using ArubaOS CLI ............................................................................. 22
ArubaOS Traps Utilized by AMP ............................................................................................23
Auth Traps .........................................................................................................................23
IDS Traps ...........................................................................................................................23
ARM Traps.........................................................................................................................24
Dell PowerConnect W AirWave 7.4 | Best Practices Guide | 3
Ensuring That IDS and Auth Traps Display in AMP Using CLI..........................................24
Understanding WMS Offload Impact on Dell PowerConnect W-Series infrastructure.......26
Chapter 6 Dell PowerConnect W-Specific Capabilities in AMP.................................................. 29
Dell PowerConnect W Traps for RADIUS Auth and IDS Tracking ........................................... 29
Remote AP Monitoring .................................................................................................................... 30
ARM and Channel Utilization Information .................................................................................... 30
VisualRF and Channel Utilization ........................................................................................... 31
Configuring Channel Utilization Triggers ..............................................................................31
Viewing Channel Utilization Alerts ........................................................................................ 32
View Channel Utilization in RF Health Reports .................................................................... 32
Viewing Controller License Information .......................................................................................32
Rogue Device Classification ........................................................................................................... 33
Rules-Based Controller Classification ..........................................................................................34
Using RAPIDS Defaults for Controller Classification.......................................................... 34
Changing RAPIDS based on Controller Classification .......................................................35
Appendix A CLI ArubaOS and AMP Commands ................................................................................ 37
Enable Channel Utilization Events Utilizing ArubaOS CLI (Local and Master Controllers) .. 37
Enable Stats With the ArubaOS CLI (Local Controller in Master Local Environment) .......... 37
Offload WMS Utilizing ArubaOS CLI and AMP CLI (SNMP Walk)............................................ 38
ArubaOS CLI .............................................................................................................................. 38
AMP SNMP ...............................................................................................................................38
Ensuring Master Controller Pushes Config to Local Controllers Utilizing ArubaOS CLI....... 39
Disable Debugging Utilizing ArubaOS CLI....................................................................................39
Restart WMS on Local Controllers Utilizing ArubaOS CLI.........................................................39
Configure the ArubaOS CLI ............................................................................................................. 39
Enable Proper Traps With the ArubaOS CLI ................................................................................40
Appendix B How AMP Acquires Data from Dell PowerConnect W-Series devices................... 41
Appendix C WMS Offload Details ........................................................................................................ 43
State Correlation Process ............................................................................................................... 43
Benefits of using AMP as Master Device State Manager ........................................................ 44
Appendix D Increasing Location Accuracy........................................................................................ 45
Understand Band Steering's Impact on Location.......................................................................45
Leveraging RTLS to Increase Accuracy.......................................................................................45
Deployment Topology ..............................................................................................................45
Prerequisites .............................................................................................................................46
Enable RTLS service on the AMP server.............................................................................. 46
Enable RTLS on Controller ...................................................................................................... 47
Troubleshooting RTLS.............................................................................................................. 47
Wi-Fi Tag Setup Guidelines .................................................................................................... 48
4 | Dell PowerConnect W AirWave 7.4 | Best Practices Guide
Preface
This preface provides an overview of the best practices guide and contact information for Dell, and includes the
following sections:
“Document Organization” on page5
“Note, Caution, and Warning Icons” on page6
“Contacting Support” on page6
Document Organization
This best practices guide includes instructions and examples of optimal ways to use and integrate the AirWave
Management Platform (AMP) with Dell PowerConnect W-Series devices and infrastructure.
Table 1 Document Organization and Purposes
Chapter Description
Chapter 1, “Overview” on page 7 This chapter explains the minimum requirements, prerequisites, topology of an Dell
Chapter 2, “Configuring AirWave for
Global Dell PowerConnect W-Series
Infrastructure” on page 9
Chapter 3, “Configuring a Dell
PowerConnect W Group in AMP” on
page 13
Chapter 4, “Discovering Dell
PowerConnect W-Series
Infrastructure” on page 15
Chapter 5, “AMP and Dell
PowerConnect W-Series Integration
Strategies” on page 19
Chapter 6, “Dell PowerConnect WSpecific Capabilities in AMP” on
page 29
Appendix A, “CLI ArubaOS and AMP
Commands” on page 37
Appendix B, “How AMP Acquires
Data from Dell PowerConnect WSeries devices” on page 41
PowerConnect W-Series infrastructure integrated with AMP.
This chapter explains global configuration options in AMP.
This chapter explains how to create and monitor an Dell PowerConnect W group in AMP.
This chapter explains how to discover and manage your Dell PowerConnect W-Series
infrastructure.
This chapter highlights recommended integration strategies.
This chapter highlights AMP capabilities that are specific to Dell PowerConnect W-Series
devices.
This appendix explains command line interface (CLI) commands.
This appendix provides a table that explains how AMP acquires data from Dell
PowerConnect W-Series devices.
Appendix C, “WMS Offload Details”
on page 43
Appendix D, “Increasing Location
Accuracy” on page 45
Dell PowerConnect W-AirWave 7.4 | Best Practices Guide Preface | 5
This appendix explains WMS Offload in further detail.
This appendix explains ways to increase location accuracy in AMP.
Note, Caution, and Warning Icons
This document uses the following note, caution, and warning icons to emphasize advisories for certain actions,
configurations, or concepts:
NOTE: Indicates helpful suggestions, pertinent information, and important things to remember.
CAUTION: Indicates a risk of damage to your hardware or loss of data.
WARNING: Indicates a risk of personal injury or death.
Contacting Support
Table 2 Website contact
Web Site
Main Website dell.com
Support Website support.dell.com
Documentation Website support.dell.com/manuals
6 | Preface Dell PowerConnect W-AirWave 7.4 | Best Practices Guide
Chapter 1
Overview
This document provides best practices for leveraging Dell PowerConnect W-AirWave 7.4 (AMP, Master Console
and Failover) to monitor and manage your Dell PowerConnect W-Series infrastructure. Dell PowerConnect WSeries wireless infrastructure provides a wealth of functionality such as firewall, VPN, remote AP, IDS, IPS, and
ARM, as well as an abundance of statistical information.
Follow the simple guidelines in this document to garner the full benefit of the Dell PowerConnect W-Series
infrastructure.
This overview chapter contains the following topics:
“Prerequisites for Integrating Dell PowerConnect W-Series Infrastructure” on page7
“Auth protocol” on page7
Prerequisites for Integrating Dell PowerConnect W-Series Infrastructure
You will need the following information to monitor and manage your Dell PowerConnect W infrastructure:
SNMP community string (monitoring and discovery)
Telnet/SSH credentials (configuration only)
enable password (configuration only)
NOTE: Without proper Telnet/SSH credentials AMP will not be able to acquire license and serial information from controllers.
SNMPv3 credentials are required for WMS Offload:
Username
Auth password
Privacy password
Auth protocol
Dell PowerConnect W-AirWave 7.4 | Best Practices Guide Overview | 7
8 | Overview Dell PowerConnect W-AirWave 7.4 | Best Practices Guide
Chapter 2
Configuring AirWave for Global Dell PowerConnect W-Series Infrastructure
This chapter explains how to optimally configure Dell PowerConnect W-AirWave 7.4 to globally manage your
Dell PowerConnect W-Series infrastructure, and contains the following topics:
“Disabling Rate Limiting in AMP Setup > General” on page9
“Entering Credentials in Device Setup > Communication” on page9
“Setting Up Recommended Timeout and Retries” on page10
“Setting Up Time Synchronization” on page11
“Enabling Support for Channel Utilization and Statistics” on page11
Disabling Rate Limiting in AMP Setup > General
In AMP Setup > General, the SNMP Rate Limiting for Monitored Devices option adds a small delay between
each SNMP GET request, thus the actual polling intervals will be longer than what is configured. For example,
setting a 10-minute polling interval will result in an actual 12-minute polling interval. Disabling rate limiting is
recommended in most cases.
To disable rate limiting in AirWave, follow these steps:
1. Navigate to AMP Setup > General.
2. Locate the Performance section on this page.
3. In the SNMP Rate Limiting for Monitored Devices field, select No, as shown in Figure 1.
4. Select Save.
Figure 1 SNMP Rate Limiting in AMP Setup > General
Entering Credentials in Device Setup > Communication
AMP requires several credentials to properly interface with Dell PowerConnect W-Series infrastructure. To enter
these credentials, follow these steps:
1. Navigate to Device Setup > Communication.
2. In the Default Credentials section, select the Edit link next to Dell PowerConnect W. The page illustrated
in Figure 2 appears.
Best Practices GuideBest Practices GuideBest Practices Guide | Best Practices Guide Configuring AirWave for Global Dell PowerConnect W-Series
3. Enter the SNMP Community String.
NOTE: Be sure to note the community string, because it must match the SNMP Trap community string which is configured later in
this document.
Figure 2 Dell PowerConnect W Credentials in Device Setup > Communication
4. Enter the required fields for configuration and basic monitoring:
Telnet/SSH Username
Telnet/SSH Password
“enable” Password
5. Enter the required fields for WMS Offload:
SNMPv3 Auth Protocol
SNMPv3 Privacy Protocol
SNMPv3 Username
Auth Password
Privacy Password
NOTE: The protocols should be SHA and DES in order for WMS Offload to work.
6. When finished, select Save.
Setting Up Recommended Timeout and Retries
To set recommended timeout and retries settings, follow these steps:
1. In the Device Setup > Communication page, locate the SNMP Setting section.
2. Change SNMP Timeout setting to 10.
3. Change SNMP Retries to 1.
Figure 3 Timeout settings in Device Setup > Communication
4. Select Save.
10 | Configuring AirWave for Global Dell PowerConnect W-Series Infrastructure Dell PowerConnect W-AirWave 7.4 | Best Practices Guide
Setting Up Time Synchronization
Setting up NTP on AirWave
On the AMP Setup > Network page, locate the Network Time Protocol (NTP) section. The Network Time
Protocol is used to synchronize the time between AMP and your network reference NTP server. NTP servers
synchronize with external reference time sources, such as satellites, radios, or modems.
NOTE: Specifying NTP servers is optional. NTP servers synchronize the time on the AMP server, not on individual access points.
To disable NTP services, clear both the Primary and Secondary NTP server fields. Any problem related to
communication between AMP and the NTP servers creates an entry in the event log. For more information on
ensuring that AMP servers have the correct time, please see http://support.ntp.org/bin/view/Servers/
NTPPoolServers.
Table 3 AMP Setup > Network > Secondary Network Fields and Default Values
Setting Default Description
Primary ntp1.yourdomain.com Sets the IP address or DNS name for the primary NTP server.
Secondary ntp2.yourdomain.com Sets the IP address or DNS name for the secondary NTP server.
You can set the clock on a controller manually or by configuring the controller to use a Network Time Protocol
(NTP) server to synchronize its system clock with a central time source.
Manually Setting the Clock on a Controller
You can use either the WebUI or CLI to manually set the time on the controller’s clock.
1. Navigate to the Configuration > Management > Clock page.
2. Under Controller Date/Time, set the date and time for the clock.
3. Under Time Zone, enter the name of the time zone and the offset from Greenwich Mean Time (GMT).
4. To adjust the clock for daylight savings time, click Enabled under Summer Time. Additional fields appear
that allow you to set the offset from UTC, and the start and end recurrences.
5. Click Apply.
Enabling Support for Channel Utilization and Statistics
In order to enable support for channel utilization statistics, you must have the following:
Dell PowerConnect W-AirWave 7.2 or later
ArubaOS 6.0.1 or later
NOTE: AOS 6.0.1 can report RF utilization metrics, while AOS 6.1 is necessary to also obtain classified interferer information.
Access points - Dell PowerConnect W-AP105, W-AP92, W-AP93, W-AP125, W-AP124, and W-AP134
Controllers - Dell PowerConnect W-Series 6xx, 3xxx, or 6000
Dell PowerConnect W-AirWave 7.4 | Best Practices Guide Configuring AirWave for Global Dell PowerConnect W-Series Infrastructure | 11
AirWave Setup
Follow these steps in AMP:
1. Navigate to AMP Setup > General.
2. In the Additional AMP Services section, set Enable AMON Data Collection to Yes, as shown in Figure 4:
Figure 4 AMON Data Collection setting in AMP Setup > General
3. Select Save.
Controller Setup (Master and Local)
CAUTION: Enabling these commands on AOS versions prior to 6.0.1.0 can result in performance issues on the controller. If you
are running previous firmware versions such as AOS 6.0.0.0, you should upgrade to AOS 6.0.1 (to obtain RF utilization metrics) or
6.1 (to obtain RF utilization and classified interferer information) before you enter this command.
SSH into the controller, enter “enable” mode, and issue the following commands:
(Controller-Name) # configure terminal
Enter Configuration commands, one per line. End with CNTL/Z
(Controller-Name) (config) # mgmt-server type amp primary-server <AMP IP>
(Controller-Name) (config) # write mem
12 | Configuring AirWave for Global Dell PowerConnect W-Series Infrastructure Dell PowerConnect W-AirWave 7.4 | Best Practices Guide
Chapter 3
Configuring a Dell PowerConnect W Group in AMP
It is prudent to establish a Dell PowerConnect W Group within AMP. During the discovery process you will
move new discovered controllers into this group.
This chapter contains the following topics:
“Basic Monitoring Configuration” on page13
“Advanced Configuration” on page14
Basic Monitoring Configuration
1. Navigate to Groups > List.
2. Select Add.
3. Enter a Name that represents the Dell PowerConnect W-Series infrastructure from a security, geographical,
or departmental perspective and select Add.
4. You will be redirected to the Groups > Basic page for the Group you just created. On this page you will need
to tweak a few Dell PowerConnect W-specific settings.
5. Find the SNMP Polling Periods section of the page, as illustrated in Figure 5.
6. Change Override Polling Period for Other Services to Yes.
7. Ensure User Data Polling Period is set to 10 minutes. Do not configure this interval lower than 5 minutes.
NOTE: Enabling the SNMP Rate Limiting for Monitored Devices option in the previous chapter adds a small delay between each
SNMP Get request, thus the actual polling interval is 12 minutes for 10 minute polling interval.
8. Change Device-to-Device Link Polling Period to 30 minutes.
9. Change Rogue AP and Device Location Data Polling Period to 30 minutes.
Figure 5 SNMP Polling Periods section of Groups > Basic
10. Locate the Aruba/Dell PowerConnect W section of this page, as illustrated in Figure 6.
11. Configure the proper SNMP Version for monitoring the Dell PowerConnect W-Series infrastructure.
Dell PowerConnect W-AirWave 7.4 | Best Practices Guide Configuring a Dell PowerConnect W Group in AMP | 13
Figure 6 Group SNMP Version for Monitoring
12. Select Save and Apply.
Advanced Configuration
Refer to the Dell PowerConnect W-AirWave Configuration Guide at support.dell.com/manuals for detailed
instructions.
14 | Configuring a Dell PowerConnect W Group in AMP Dell PowerConnect W-AirWave 7.4 | Best Practices Guide
Chapter 4
Discovering Dell PowerConnect W-Series Infrastructure
This chapter guides you through the process of discovering and managing your Dell PowerConnect W-Series
infrastructure.
AMP utilizes Dell PowerConnect W-Series topology to efficiently discover downstream infrastructure.
Refer to the following earlier chapters in this book before attempting discovery:
Chapter 2, “Configuring AirWave for Global Dell PowerConnect W-Series Infrastructure” on page9
Chapter 3, “Configuring a Dell PowerConnect W Group in AMP” on page13
The following topics in this chapter walk through the basic procedure for discovering and managing Dell
PowerConnect W-Series infrastructure:
“Discovering Master Controllers” on page15
“Local Controller Discovery” on page17
“Thin AP Discovery” on page17
NOTE: Always add one Controller and its affiliated Thin APs into management or monitoring mode in a serial fashion, one at a time.
Adding new devices is a very CPU intensive process for AMP and can quickly overwhelm all of the processing power of the server
if hundreds of Thin APs are added (migrated from New to Managed or Monitoring) simultaneously.
Discovering Master Controllers
Scan networks containing Dell PowerConnect W-Series Master controllers from Device Setup > Discover.
- or -
Manually enter the Master controller by following these steps in the Device Setup > Add page:
1. Select the Dell PowerConnect W-series controller type and select Add. The page illustrated on Figure 7
appears.
2. Enter the Name and the IP Address for the controller.
3. Enter SNMP Community String, which is required field for device discovery.
NOTE: Be sure to note the community string, because it must match the SNMP Trap community string which is configured later in
this document.
Dell PowerConnect W-AirWave 7.4 | Best Practices Guide Discovering Dell PowerConnect W-Series Infrastructure | 15
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