Netgear WC9500 Reference Manual

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ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

Reference Manual

January, 2015 202-11224-05

350 East Plumeria Drive San Jose, CA 95134 USA

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

Support

Thank you for selecting NETGEAR products.

After installing your device, locate the serial number on the label of your product and use it to register your product at

https://my.netgear.com. You must register your product before you can use NETGEAR telephone support. NETGEAR

recommends registering your product through the NETGEAR website.

For product updates and web support, visit http://support.netgear.com.

Phone (US & Canada only): 1-888-NETGEAR.

Phone (Other Countries): Check the list of phone numbers at http://support.netgear.com/general/contact/default.aspx.

Compliance

For regulatory compliance information, visit http://www.netgear.com/about/regulatory.

See the regulatory compliance document before connecting the power supply.

Trademarks

Revision History

Publication Part Number

202-11224-05 January 2015 Corrected the number of access points in the trial license (see Licenses) and

202-11224-04 January 2015 Added the following features:

Publish Date Comments

added a note about port 8443 (see page 45).

• Support for additional access points (see Supported NETGEAR Access Points)

• Support for antennas (see Supported NETGEAR Antennas)

• RF planning, including support for heat maps (see Chapter 3, RF Planning

and Deployment)

• Controller redundancy

Manage Stacking and Redundancy)

• Support for the “Rest of the world” transmission power feature (see

Configure the General Settings)

• Capability to change the building and floor assignments for multiple access

points simultaneously (see Assign Access Points to Buildings, Floors, and

Advanced Profile Groups).

• Band steering (see Configure Radio Frequency Management for the Basic Profile Group and Configure Radio Frequency Management for an Advanced Profile Group)

• High-density bandwidth (see Configure Wireless Settings for the Basic Profile Group and Configure Wireless Settings for an Advanced Profile Group)

• Management of LED behavior for WN370 access points (see Manage the

WN370 LED Behavior for the Basic Profile Group and Manage the WN370 LED Behavior for an Advanced Profile Group)

• Capability to print a logo and message on captive portal user information

(see Add a Logo and Message on Captive Portal User Information)

• Capability to add multiple captive portal users simultaneously (see Add Multiple Captive Portal Users Simultaneously)

, including 1:1 and N:1 redundancy (see Chapter 1

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

202-11224-04 (continued)

202-11224-03 January 2014 Added the following features:

202-11224-02 May 2013 Color correction and minor nontechnical edits. 202-11224-01 April 2013 First publication.

January 2015 (continued)

Added the following features: (continued)

• Capability to locate and monitor an active WiFi client on a deployed floor

plan (see View the Clients in the Network, View Clients on Access Points

that the Wireless Controller Manages, and Monitor Local Clients in the Network)

• Support for extended storage (see Manage External Storage)

• Support for additional access points (see Supported NETGEAR Access

Points)

• Link aggregation (see Manage the IP, VLAN, and Link Aggregation Settings)

• Multicast rate limiting, broadcast rate limiting, and

Configure W Wireless Settings for an Advanced Profile Group)

• Preferred band selection (see Manage the Preferred Bands)

• Stacking (see Chapter 11, Manage Stacking and Redundancy)

• Monitoring for a network with a stack of wireless controllers (see Monitor

the Network)

In addition, revised and refined many procedures.

ireless Settings for the Basic Profile Group and Configure

ARP suppression (see

Chapter 1 Introduction

Chapter 2 System Planning and Deployment Scenarios

Key Features and Capabilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12

Package Contents. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .14

Hardware Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

Front Panel Ports, Slots, and LEDs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .14

Back Panel Features. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .16

Bottom Panel with Product Label . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

WC9500 Wireless Controller System Components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

Supported NETGEAR Access Points . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

Supported NETGEAR Antennas. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .21

What Can You Do with the WC9500 Wireless Controller? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .21

Licenses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23

aintenance and Support. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23

Basic and Advanced Setting Concepts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .25

Profile Group Concepts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .26

Basic Profile . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

Advanced Profile . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

System Planning Concepts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .28

Preinstallation Planning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .28

Before You Configure a Wireless Controller. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

High-Level Configuration Examples . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .31

Single Controller Configuration with Basic Profile Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .31

Single Controller Configuration with Advanced Profile Groups . . . . . . . . . . .32

Stacked Controller Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

Management VLAN and Data VLAN Strategies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .34

High-Level Deployment Scenarios . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .36

Scenario Example 1: Network with Single VLAN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .36

Scenario Example 2: Advanced Network with VLANs and SSIDs . . . . . . . . . .38

Scenario Example 3: Advanced Network with Redundancy . . . . . . . . . . . . . .41

Chapter 3 RF Planning and Deployment

RF Planning Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .46

Planning Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .46

Recommended RF Planning Procedure for a Building . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .48

Manage a Building and Floors for an RF Plan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .49

Add a Building and Floors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

Add a Single Floor to a Building. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51

Scale a Floor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53

Add a WiFi Coverage or WiFi Noncoverage Zone to a Floor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54

Remove a WiFi Coverage or WiFi Noncoverage Zone from a Floor. . . . . . . . 55

Add a WiFi Building Obstacle to a Floor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56

Remove a Building Obstacle from a Floor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57

Add a WiFi Obstruction Area. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58

Remove a WiFi Obstruction Area . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59

Change the Name, Map, or Dimensions of a Floor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60

Change the Name of a Building. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61

Duplicate an Entire Building with All Floors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61

Duplicate a Single Floor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62

Remove a Single Floor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63

Remove an Entire Building with All Its Floors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64

Use the WiFi Auto Planning Advisor to Generate an RF Plan for a Floor . . . . . . 64

Manually Add and Manage Access Points on a Floor Map for an RF Plan . . . . . 69

Manually Add and Manage Antennas on a Floor Map for an RF Plan. . . . . . . . . 72

Display and Recalculate the WiFi Coverage for a Heat Map . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75

Display or Change the WiFi Inventory for an RF Plan. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77

Download a Report for an RF Plan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80

View the Heat Map for a Deployed Floor Plan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81

Chapter 4 Installation and Configuration Overview

Connect Your Computer to the Wireless Controller. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85

Roadmap for Initial Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87

Roadmap for Configuring Management of Your Wireless Network. . . . . . . . . . 88

Choose a Location for the Wireless Controller . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90

Deploy the Wireless Controller . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91

Chapter 5 Configure the System and Network Settings and

Configure the General Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93

Manage the Time Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94

Manage the IP, VLAN, and Link Aggregation Settings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95

Management VLAN Concepts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95

Untagged VLAN Concepts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96

Link Aggregation Concepts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96

Configure the IP, VLAN, and Link Aggregation Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96

Manage the DHCP Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98

Add a DHCP Server. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99

Change the Settings for a DHCP Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101

Remove a DHCP Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .102

Configure the License Server Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103

Manage Certificates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

Configure Log, Syslog, Alarm Notification, and Email Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . 108

Configure Log Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108

Configure Syslog Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110

Configure Alarm Notification Settings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112

Configure the Email Notification Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113

Chapter 6 Manage Security Profiles and Profile Groups

Wireless Security Profile Concepts. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116

Small WLAN Networks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116

Large WLAN Networks. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117

Profile Naming Conventions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117

Considerations Before You Configure Profiles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117

Basic and Advanced Security Configuration Concepts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118

Manage Security Profiles for the Basic Profile Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119

Configure a Profile in the Basic Profile Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119

Change the Settings for a Profile in the Basic Profile Group . . . . . . . . . . . . 123

Remove a Profile From the Basic Profile Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124

Manage Security Profiles for Advanced Profile Groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124

Add an Advanced Profile Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124

Remove an Advanced Profile Group. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126

Configure a Profile in an Advanced Profile Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126

Change the Settings for a Profile in an Advanced Profile Group . . . . . . . . . 131

Remove a Profile From an Advanced Profile Group. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132

Network Authentication and Data Encryption Options. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132

Manage Authentication Servers and Authentication Server Groups. . . . . . . . 136

Authentication Server Concepts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136

Configure Basic Authentication Server Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137

Configure a RADIUS Authentication Server Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 140

Remove a RADIUS Authentication Server Group. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142

Manage MAC Authentication and MAC Authentication Groups. . . . . . . . . . . . 142

Guidelines for External MAC Authentication. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143

Configure Basic Local MAC Authentication Settings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143

Remove a MAC Address from a Wireless Client List . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145

Import a MAC List from a File. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145

Configure a Local MAC Authentication Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 146

Remove a Local MAC Authentication Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148

Select an ACL for a Profile in the Basic Profile Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148

Select an ACL for a Profile in an Advanced Profile Group. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150

Chapter 7 Discover and Manage Access Points

Access Point Discovery Guidelines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153

General Discovery Guidelines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153

Layer 3 Discovery Guidelines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153

Discover Access Points with the Discovery Wizard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 154

Discover Access Points in Factory Default State and Access

Points in a Layer 2 Subnet. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 154

Discover Access Points Installed and Working in

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

Standalone Mode in Different Layer 3 Networks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158

Manage the Managed AP List . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163

View the Managed AP List. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163

Change Access Point Information on the Managed AP List . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165

Remove Access Points from the Managed AP List. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 168

Assign Access Points to Buildings, Floors, and Advanced Profile Groups . . . . 169

Chapter 8 Configure Wireless and QoS Settings

Basic and Advanced Wireless and QoS Configuration Concepts . . . . . . . . . . . 173

Configure the Radio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 173

Configure the Radio for the Basic Profile Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 173

Configure the Radio for an Advanced Profile Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175

Configure Wireless Settings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 176

Configure Wireless Settings for the Basic Profile Group. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 176

Override Channel and Transmission Power in the Basic Profile Group . . . . 180

Configure Wireless Settings for an Advanced Profile Group . . . . . . . . . . . . 182

Override Channel and Transmission Power in an Advanced

Profile Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 186

Configure Channels. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 188

Specify Radio Frequency Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 191

Radio Frequency Concepts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 191

WLAN Healing Concepts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 192

Configure Radio Frequency Management for the Basic Profile Group . . . . 192

Configure Radio Frequency Management for an Advanced

Profile Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 195

Manage the Preferred Bands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 198

Configure the Preferred Band for WNDAP620 Access

Points in the Basic Profile Group. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 198

Configure the Preferred Band for WNDAP620 Access

Points in an Advanced Profile Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 199

Manage Quality of Service for an Advanced Profile Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 200

Quality of Service Concepts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 200

Configure Quality of Service for a Profile Group. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 201

Manage Load Balancing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 204

Load Balancing Concepts. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 204

Configure Load Balancing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 205

Manage Rate Limiting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 206

Rate Limiting Concepts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 206

Configure Rate Limiting for the Basic Profile Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 207

Configure Rate Limiting for an Advanced Profile Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 208

Manage the LED Behavior of WN370 Access Points . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 209

Manage the WN370 LED Behavior for the Basic Profile Group. . . . . . . . . . 209

Manage the WN370 LED Behavior for an Advanced Profile Group . . . . . . 210

Chapter 9 Manage Rogue Access Points,

Guest Network Access, and Users

Manage Rogue Access Points . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 213

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

Rogue Access Point Concepts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 213

Configure Basic Rogue Detection Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 213

Classify Rogue Access Points . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 214

Import a List of Known Access Points from a File . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 216

Manage Guest Network Access. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 217

Portal Concepts. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 217

Configure a Portal. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 218

Manage Users, Accounts, and Passwords . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 222

User and Account Concepts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 222

Add a Management User . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 223

Add a WiFi User . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 224

Add a Captive Portal Account . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 226

Add a Logo and Message on Captive Portal User Information. . . . . . . . . . . 228

Add a Captive Portal User . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 230

Add Multiple Captive Portal Users Simultaneously . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 232

Change the Settings for a User or Account . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 235

Remove Users or Accounts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 236

Export a List of Users or Accounts. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 236

Chapter 10 Maintain the Wireless Controller and Access Points

Manage the Configuration File or Upgrade the Firmware. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 239

Back Up the Configuration File . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 239

Restore the Configuration File . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 240

Upgrade the Firmware . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 241

Reboot the Wireless Controller . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 244

Reset the Wireless Controller . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 245

Manage External Storage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 246

Manage Remote Access . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 247

Specify Session Time-Outs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 249

Manage the System Logs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 250

Query the System Logs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 250

Save the System Logs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 252

Clear the System Logs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 253

View Alerts and Events. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 253

View System Alerts. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 254

View Radio Frequency Events. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 255

View Load-Balancing Events. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 256

View Rate-Limit Events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 257

View Redundancy Events. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 259

View Stacking Events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 260

Manage Licenses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 261

View Your Licenses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 261

Retrieve Your Licenses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 263

Reboot Access Points . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 264

Configure Multicast Firmware Upgrade for Access Points . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 265

Change the Multicast Firmware Upgrade Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 266

Disable Multicast Firmware Upgrade . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 267

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

Chapter 11 Manage Stacking and Redundancy

Stacking Concepts. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 269

Configure a Stack . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 271

Remove a Wireless Controller from a Stack . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 273

Select Which Wireless Controller in a Stack to Configure. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 274

Manage Redundancy for a Single Controller . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 278

VRRP Redundancy Concepts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 278

Configure a Single Controller with Redundancy. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 280

Manage a Redundancy Group with N:1 Redundancy. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 282

VRRP N:1 Redundancy Concepts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 282

Configure a Redundancy Group with N:1 Redundancy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .285

Change a Redundant Controller . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 287

Remove a Redundancy Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 289

Chapter 12 Monitor the Wireless Network and Its Components

Monitor the Network . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 291

View the Network Summary Screen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 291

View the Wireless Controllers in the Network . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 293

View the Access Points in the Network . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .295

View the Clients in the Network. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 300

View the Profiles in the Network . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 304

Monitor the Wireless Controller . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 306

View the Wireless Controller Summary Screen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 306

View Wireless Controller Usage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 308

View Access Points that the Wireless Controller Manages. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 310

View Clients on Access Points that the Wireless Controller Manages . . . . 315

View Neighboring Clients that the Wireless Controller Detects . . . . . . . . . 319

View Neighboring Access Points that the Wireless Controller

Does Not Manage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .321

View Security Profiles That the Wireless Controller Manages. . . . . . . . . . . 322

View DHCP Leases That Are Provided by the Wireless Controller . . . . . . . 324

View Captive Portal Users on Access Points That the

Wireless Controller Manages. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 325

Monitor the SSIDs on the Wireless Controller. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 327

Monitor Local Clients in the Network. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 332

Chapter 13 Troubleshooting

Troubleshoot Basic Functioning. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 338

Power LED Is Not Lit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 338

Status LED Never Turns Off . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 338

Ethernet Port LEDs Are Not Lit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 338

Troubleshoot the Web Management Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 339

Check the Ethernet Cabling. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 339

Check the IP Address Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 339

Check the Internet Browser . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 340

Troubleshoot a TCP/IP Network Using the Ping Utility . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 340

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

Use the Reset Button to Restore Default Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 341

Resolve Problems with Date and Time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 341

Resolve Problems with Access Points. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 342

Resolve Discovery Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 342

Resolve Connection Problems. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 342

Network Performance and Rogue Access Point Detection. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 343

Use the Diagnostic Tools on the Wireless Controller . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 343

Ping an Access Point . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 343

Trace a Route to an Access Point . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 344

Appendix A Factory Default Settings, Technical Specifications,

and Passwords Requirements

Factory Default Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 347

Technical Specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 348

Password Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 349

Index

1. Introduction

This chapter includes the following sections:

• Key Features and Capabilities

• Package Contents

• Hardware Features

• WC9500 Wireless Controller System Components

• Supported NETGEAR Access Points

• Supported NETGEAR Antennas

• What Can You Do with the WC9500 Wireless Controller?

• Licenses

• Maintenance and Support

Note: For more information about the topics covered in this manual, visit the

support website at support.netgear.com.

Note: Firmware updates with new features and bug fixes are made

available from time to time on downloadcenter.netgear.com. Some products can regularly check the site and download new firmware, or you can check for and download new firmware manually. If the features or behavior of your product do not match what is described in this guide, you might need to update your firmware.

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

Key Features and Capabilities

The NETGEAR ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500 is a high-capacity, secured wireless controller intended for medium- to large-sized businesses, higher education institutions, hospitals, and hotels.

One standalone wireless controller with the appropriate licenses can support up to 300 access points. In a stacked configuration, one wireless controller with the appropriate licenses can support up to 200 access points. A stack can support three wireless controllers.

The wireless controller supports the IEEE 802.1

future deployment. The wireless controller allows you to manage your wireless network from a central point, implement security features centrally, support Layer 2 and Layer 3 fast roaming, configure a guest access captive portal, and support voice over Wi-Fi (VoWi-Fi).

The wireless controller is equipped with one RJ-45 Gigabit Ethernet port and two 10 Gigabit Ethernet (10GbE) slots with standard SFP+ form factor for optional 10GBASE or 1000BASE GBICs. These ports are available to access the wireless controller for management and for data and control communications between the wireless controller and the access points.

The wireless controller provides the following key features and capabilities:

• Scalable architecture with stacking

- Purchased licenses in increments of 10, 50, 100, or 200 access points allow for

support of up to a maximum number of 300 access points on a single wireless controller in a configuration without a stack.

- A maximum of three stacked wireless controllers allows for up to 600 access points

(200 on each wireless controller in a stacked configuration) in a single network.

- Support of 802.1 1a, 802.1

for future deployment.

- Support for an extra power supply.

• Autodiscovery of access points

- Autodiscovery of access points in the same Layer 2 domain.

- Autodiscovery of access points across a Layer 3 domain.

- Automatic download of wireless controller–based firmware to discovered access

points that are added to the managed access point list.

• Centralized management

- Single point of management for the entire wireless network.

- Automatic firmware upgrade to all managed access points.

- DHCP server for IP address provisioning.

- Configurable management VLAN.

1b, 802.1 1g, and 802.1 1n modes. Ready for 802.11ac mode

1a/b/g/n protocols and is 802.11ac ready for

Introduction

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

• Security

- Identity-based security authentication with an external RADIUS or LDAP (Active

Directory) server, or with an internal authentication server

- Support for nine access point profile groups (one basic and eight advanced) on one

wireless controller.

- Support for up to 8 profiles per access point profile group and 8 profiles per radio

(therefore, dual-band access points can support up to 16 profiles in one access point profile group).

- Support for up to 144 profiles on one wireless controller (8 profiles per access point

group and eight groups per radio). Each profile supports settings for SSID, network authentication, data encryption, client separation, VLAN, MAC

ACL, and wireless

QoS.

- Rogue access point detection and classification.

- Guest access and captive portal access with cost and expiration accounting.

- Scheduled wireless on/off times.

• Wi-Fi Multimedia Quality of Service and advanced wireless features

- Wi-Fi Multimedia (WMM) support for video, audio, and voice over Wi-Fi (VoWi-Fi).

- WMM power save option.

- Automatic WLAN healing mechanism ensures seamless coverage for wireless users.

- Layer 2 and Layer 3 seamless roaming support.

- Local Layer 2 traf

fic switching and Layer 3 traf

fic processing at access point level for

fast processing.

• Wireless and Radio Frequency (RF) management

- Automatic control of access point transmit power and channel allocation to reduce

interference.

- Automatic load balancing of clients across access points.

- Rate limiting per profile.

- Multicast and broadcast rate limiting

- ARP suppression

• Monitoring and reporting

- Monitoring of the status of the network, wireless controllers, WLANs, and clients, and

network usage statistics.

- Specific health monitoring of access points.

- Logging and emailing of system events, RF events, load-balancing events, and

rate-limiting events.

For a list of all features and capabilities of the wireless controller, see the datasheet that you can download from

http://support.netgear.com/product/WC9500.

Introduction

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

Package Contents

The ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500 product package contains the following items:

• ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500 appliance

• One

• Rubber feet (four) with adhesive backing

• One rack-mount kit

• Straight-through Category 5 Ethernet cable

• ProSAFE W

AC power cable

ireless Controller WC9500 Installation Guide

If any of the parts are incorrect, missing, or damaged, contact your NETGEAR dealer the carton, including the original packing materials, in case you need to return the product for repair.

Hardware Features

The front panel ports, slots, and LEDs, back panel components, and bottom label of the wireless controller are described in this section.

Front Panel Ports, Slots, and LEDs

The following figure shows the front panel of the wireless controller.

Figure 1. Front panel

The following figure shows a close-up of the left side of the front panel.

. Keep

USB port

Reset

Power

Status

Fan

Stack Master

USB

Digital access point counter

LED Mode: Green= Link at 10G, Blink Green=10G Active, Yellow=Link at 1G, Blink Yellow=1G Active

Reset button LEDs (top to bottom): Power, Status, Fan, Stack Master

Figure 2. Front panel close-up

Slots and LEDs

for optional

SFP GBIC modules

Introduction

LED Mode: Left LED: Green=Link at 1G E, Yellow=Link at 10/100M Right LED:Green=Link, Green Blink=Active

Ethernet port and LEDs

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

From left to right, the wireless controller’s front panel shows the following counter, LEDs, button, ports, and slots:

• Digital counter. Displays the number of connected access points that are in a healthy

state.

• From top to bottom:

- Power LED

- Status LED

- Fan LED

- Stack Master LED

These LEDs are described in Table 1 on page 15.

• Reset button. Using a sharp object, press and hold this button for about 10 seconds until

the Status LED blinks and the wireless controller returns to factory default settings. If you reset the wireless controller, all configuration settings are lost and the default password is restored.

• USB port.

• SFP slots

Allows for external storage for floor heat maps.

. T

wo SFP slots for optional 10GE SFP+ or 1G SFP gigabit interface

converters (GBICs), each slot with an LED.

• Ethernet port. One 10/100/1000 Mbps LAN Ethernet port with an RJ-45 connector, left

LED, and right LED.

The Ethernet port provides switched N-way, automatic speed

negotiating, auto MDI/MDIX technology.

• Console port. RS232 port for connecting to an optional console terminal. The port

provides a DB9 male connector

. The default baud rate is 9600 K. The configuration is 8 bits, no parity, and 1 stop bit. The console port is for debugging under guidance of NETGEAR technical support only.

The function of each LED is described in the following table.

Table 1. LED functions

LED Status Description Power LED Green The wireless controller is on.

Off The wireless controller is off.

If the power LED is not lit when the wireless controller is on, check the connections and check to see if the power outlet is controlled by a wall switch that is turned of

Status LED Yellow The wireless controller is initializing. After approximately two minutes, when

the wireless controller completes its initialization, the Status LED turns green. If the Status LED remains yellow

LED Never T

urns Off on page 338).

Power LED Is Not Lit on page 338).

f (see

, the initialization failed (see Status

Green The wireless controller completed its initialization successfully. The Status

LED is steady green during normal operation.

Introduction

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

Table 1. LED functions (continued)

LED Status Description

Status LED (continued)

Fan LED Green The fans are functioning correctly.

Stack Master LED

SFP slot LEDs Green The slot is operating at 10G.

Left Ethernet port LED

Right Ethernet port LED

Off The wireless controller is not receiving power. Blinking yellow Firmware is being upgraded.

Yellow One or more fans are not functioning correctly.

Green The wireless controller is functioning as the master controller in a stack.

Yellow The wireless controller is functioning as a slave controller in a stack.

Blinking green Data is being transmitted or received at 10G.

Yellow The slot is operating at 1G.

Blinking yellow Data is being transmitted or received at 1G. Off The port is not connected to a powered-on Ethernet device (see Ethernet

Port LEDs Are Not Lit on page 338).

Green The port detected a link with a connected Ethernet device. Blinking green Data is being transmitted or received. Off The port is not connected to a powered-on Ethernet device (see Ethernet

Port LEDs Are Not Lit on page 338).

Green The port is operating at 1000 Mbps.

Yellow The port is operating at 100 Mbps or 10 Mbps.

Back Panel Features

The wireless controller comes with a single internal power supply but supports an optional second power supply for power redundancy. The power supplies are hot-swappable.

The following figure shows the back panel of the wireless controller with a single internal power supply, the power supply connector, and two double fans.

Power supply connector

Figure 3. Back panel

Slot for an optional second power supply

Introduction

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

From left to right, the wireless controller’s back panel components are as follows:

• Power supply. 100–240V, 5A, 47–63 Hz power supply, which includes the following

external components:

- AC power socket

not provide an on/off power switch.)

- Handle

- LED. The LED is lit green when the power supply functions correctly

power is not supplied to the power supply, or a problem occurred.

• Fans

. The handle allows for easy removal and insertion.

. Two double fans, each of which can be easily exchanged.

. Attach the power cord to this socket. (The wireless controller does

. If the LED is off,

Bottom Panel with Product Label

The product label on the bottom of the wireless controller’s enclosure displays the default IP address, default user name, and default password, as well as regulatory compliance, input power, and other information.

Figure 4. Product label

WC9500 Wireless Controller System Components

A WC9500 wireless controller system consists of one or more wireless controllers and a collection of access points that are organized into groups based on location or network access.

The wireless controller system can include a single wireless controller or a group of up to three stacked wireless controllers that can function in a redundant configuration.

Introduction

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

The WC9500 wireless controller system supports the following NETGEAR ProSAFE access point models:

• WN370 ProSAFE Wall Mount Wireless N Access Point

• WNAP210v2 ProSAFE Wireless-N Access Point

• WNAP320 ProSAFE Wireless-N Access Point

• WND930 Outdoor Dual Band Wireless-N

• WNDAP350 ProSAFE Dual Band Wireless-N

Access Point

• WNDAP360 ProSAFE Dual Band Wireless-N Access Point

• WNDAP380R ProSAFE Dual Band Wireless-N Access Point with RFID support

• WNDAP620 ProSAFE Premium 3x3 Dual Band Wireless-N Access Point

• WNDAP660 ProSAFE Premium 3x3 Dual Band Concurrent Wireless-N Access Point

Supported NETGEAR Access Points

Y ou can connect access points to the wireless controller either directly with an Ethernet cable through a router or switch, or remotely through a VPN network. After you use the automatic discovery process and add access points to the managed access point list on the wireless controller, the wireless controller converts the standard access points to dependent access points by pushing firmware to the access points. From then on, you can centrally manage and monitor the access points.

The following table lists the minimum firmware versions that must run on the standalone access points before you convert them to managed access points:

Table 2. Minimum firmware versions

Access Point Model Minimum Firmware Version on

Standalone Access Point

WN370 All firmware versions are supported. WNAP210v2 All firmware versions are supported. WNAP320 2.1.1 or a newer version is supported. WND930 All firmware versions are supported. WNDAP350 2.1.7 or a newer version is supported. WNDAP360 2.1.6 or a newer version is supported. WNDAP380R All firmware versions are supported. WNAP620 2.0.4 or a newer version is supported. WNDAP660 2.0.2 or a newer version is supported.

Introduction

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

A WC9500 wireless controller system supports the following access points:

• WN370 ProSAFE Wall Mounted W

- Supports concurrently 802.11b, 802.1

ireless-N Access Point

1g, and 802.11n network devices.

- Supports speeds of up to 300 Mbps for 802.11n network devices.

- Supports Power over Ethernet (PoE) with a power consumption that complies with the

802.3af standard.

- Operates in the 2.4 GHz radio band.

For product documentation and firmware, visit http://support.netgear

• WNAP210v2 ProSAFE W

- Supports 802.11b, 802.1

ireless-N

Access Point

1g, and 802.11n network devices.

.com/product/WN370.

- Supports Power over Ethernet (PoE) with a power consumption of up to 5.8W.

For product documentation and firmware, visit

http://support.netgear

.com/product/WNAP210.

Note: The WNAP210v1 cannot function in a WC9500 wireless controller

system, but the WNAP210v2 can.

• WNAP320 ProSAFE W

- Supports 802.11b, 802.1

ireless-N

Access Point

1g, and 802.11n network devices.

- Supports Power over Ethernet (PoE) with a power consumption of up to 5.8W.

- Accepts optional antennas.

For product documentation and firmware, visit

http://support.netgear

• WND930 Outdoor Dual Band W

- Supports 802.11a, 802.1

.com/product/WNAP320.

ireless-N

1b, 802.11g, and 802.11n network devices.

- Supports speeds of up to 300 Mbps for 802.11n network devices.

- Supports Power over Ethernet (PoE) with a power consumption that complies with the

802.3af or 802.3at standards.

- Operates concurrently in the 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz radio bands.

For product documentation and firmware, visit

http://support.netgear

• WNDAP350 ProSAFE Dual Band W

- Supports 802.11a, 802.1

.com/product/WND930.

ireless-N

1b, 802.11g, and 802.11n network devices.

Access Point

- Supports Power over Ethernet (PoE) with a power consumption of up to 10.75W.

- Operates concurrently in the 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz radio bands.

- Accepts optional antennas.

For product documentation and firmware, visit

http://support.netgear

.com/product/WNDAP350.

Introduction

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

• WNDAP360 ProSAFE Dual Band Wireless-N Access Point

- Supports 802.11a, 802.1

1b, 802.11g, and 802.11n network devices.

- Supports Power over Ethernet (PoE) with a power consumption of up to 10.51W.

- Operates concurrently in the 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz radio bands.

- Accepts optional antennas.

For product documentation and firmware, visit

http://support.netgear

.com/product/WNDAP360.

• WNDAP380R ProSAFE Dual Band W

- Supports 802.11a, 802.1

1b, 802.11g, and 802.11n network devices.

ireless-N

Access Point with RFID support

- Supports Power over Ethernet (PoE) with a power consumption of up to 10.51W.

- Operates concurrently in the 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz radio bands.

- Accepts an RFID module for support of RFID devices and tags.

For product documentation and firmware, visit

http://support.netgear

• WNAP620 ProSAFE Premium 3x3 Dual Band W

- Supports concurrently 802.11a, 802.1

.com/product/WNDAP380R.

1b, 802.11g, and 802.11n network devices.

ireless-N

Access Point

- Supports 3x3 multiple input, multiple output (MIMO).

- Supports speeds of up to 450 Mbps for 802.1

1n network devices

- Supports Power over Ethernet (PoE) with a power consumption that complies with the

802.3af standard.

- Operates in either the 2.4 GHz or 5 GHz radio band.

- Accepts optional antennas.

For product documentation and firmware, visit

http://support.netgear

• WNDAP660 ProSAFE Premium 3x3 Dual Band Concurrent W

- Supports 802.11a, 802.1

.com/product/WNDAP620.

1b, 802.11g, and 802.11n network devices.

ireless-N

Access Point

- Supports 3x3 multiple input, multiple output (MIMO).

- Supports speeds of up to 450 Mbps for 802.1

1n network devices.

- Supports Power over Ethernet (PoE) with a power consumption that complies with the

802.3at standard.

Note: If your network does not include a PoE device that can provide the

WNDAP660 access point with PoE power according to the 802.3at standard, you can instead use two ports of a PoE device that complies with the 802.3af standard. (The WNDAP660 access point provides two Ethernet ports that accept PoE.)

- Operates concurrently in the 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz radio bands.

- Accepts optional antennas.

Introduction

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

For product documentation and firmware, visit

http://support.netgear.com/product/WNDAP660.

Supported NETGEAR Antennas

A WC9500 wireless controller system supports the following antennas:

• ANT2409 ProSAFE Indoor/Outdoor 9 dBi Omni-directional Antenna

- 9 dBi omni-directional antenna for indoor or outdoor use

- WiFi signal 802.1

- Frequency range 2400–2485 MHz

- Maximum range 1

- Polarization vertical

For product documentation and firmware, visit

http://support.netgear

1.5 km (7.2 miles)

.com/product/ANT2409v2.

• ANT224D10 ProSAFE 10 dBi 2x2 Indoor/Outdoor Directional

- 10 dBi directional antenna for indoor or outdoor use

- WiFi signal 802.1

- Frequency range 2400–2500 MHz

- Maximum range 8.5 km (5.28 miles)

- Polarization linear; vertical

For product documentation and firmware, visit

http://support.netgear

.com/product/ANT224.

Antenna

What Can You Do with the WC9500 Wireless Controller?

You can perform the following tasks with a WC9500 wireless controller:

• Organize the Network

- Create access point profiles. Organize access points in profiles to dif

between SSIDs, client authentication, authentication settings, and wireless QoS settings.

- Create access point profile

profile groups to differentiate between buildings, floors, businesses, business divisions, and so on. Easily assign access points to profile groups or change assignments.

groups. Organize access point profiles in access point

ferentiate

For more information, see

Chapter 6, Manage Security Profiles and Profile Groups.

Introduction

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

• Discover Access Points in the Network and Provision IP Addresses and Firmware

- Discover access points in the network. The access points can be in factory default

state or functioning in standalone mode, but after discovery by the wireless controller and addition to the managed access point list, the access points become dependent (managed) access points.

- Provision IP addresses to the access points

. Use the internal DHCP server to

provision IP addresses to all or selected managed access points in the network.

- Upgrade access point firmware. Update and synchronize new firmware versions to

all managed access points in the network.

For more information, see Chapter 7, Discover and Manage Access Points.

• Centrally Manage Security in the Network

- Manage secure access to the network and secure data transmission. Manage

client authentication, encryption, wireless client security separation, and MAC authentication in access point profiles.

- Manage authentication servers for the network. Manage all internal and external

authentication servers for the entire network or for access point profile groups.

- Manage MAC authentication. Specify trusted and untrusted MAC addresses for the

entire network.

- Manage rogue access points. Manage rogue access points and their associated

clients in the network.

- Manage guest access. Manage guest access and captive portal access to the

network.

For more information, see Chapter 9, Manage Rogue Access Points, Guest Network

Access, and Users.

• Centrally Manage the W

- Schedule the radios

point profile groups to go of

ireless Settings for the Network

. Schedule the entire network to go offline, or schedule access

fline.

- Manage wireless settings and channel allocation. Manage the wireless settings

such as wireless mode, data rate, and channel width for the entire network or for access point profile groups, and manage channel allocation for the entire network.

- Manage QoS settings. Manage QoS queue settings for data, background, video,

and voice traffic for access point profile groups.

- Configure RF management settings

. Configure WLAN healing and wireless

coverage hole detection for the entire network or for access point profile groups.

For more information, see Chapter 8, Configure Wireless and QoS Settings.

• Manage Other Wireless Controllers in the Network

- Manage stacking

. Specify the master and slave wireless controllers in a stack and

synchronize information between the wireless controller.

For more information, see Chapter 11, Manage Stacking and Redundancy.

Introduction

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

• Monitor the Network and Its Components

- Monitor the status of all wireless devices. View the status of the wireless

controllers, access points, clients, access point profiles, and the entire network, and view network usage statistics.

- Monitor network health

down or compromised.

For more information, see Chapter 12, Monitor the Wireless Network

and Its Components.

. See which access points are healthy and which ones are

Licenses

By default, the wireless controller comes with a trial license for two access points. You must purchase and register licenses for the access points in your network. Licenses are tied to the serial number of the wireless controller.

You can purchase a single 200–access point license or licenses in 10–, 50–, or 100–access point increments for support of up to 300 access points on a single wireless controller:

• 10–AP license. WC10APL

• 50–AP license. WC50APL

• 100–AP license. WC100APL

• 200–AP license. WC200APL

If you installed three wireless controllers in a stack and want to support the maximum number of 600 access points in a stacked configuration, you must purchase three WC200APL licenses (or a combination of other licenses that add up to a total of 600 access points).

For more information, see the datasheet that you can download from

http://support.netgear.com/product/WC9500.

For information about how to register and manage your licenses, see Register Your Licenses on page 103 and Manage Licenses on page 261.

Maintenance and Support

NETGEAR offers technical support seven days a week, 24 hours a day. Information about support is available on the NETGEAR ProSupport website at

http://kb.netgear.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/212.

Introduction

2. System Planning and Deployment

Scenarios

This chapter includes the following sections:

• Basic and Advanced Setting Concepts

• Profile Group Concepts

• System Planning Concepts

• High-Level Configuration Examples

• Management VLAN and Data VLAN Strategies

• High-Level Deployment Scenarios

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

Basic and Advanced Setting Concepts

Y ou can deploy the wireless controller in a small wireless network with 10 or 20 access points or in a large wireless network with up to 600 access points. Small networks require a basic configuration, but large networks can become complex and require you to configure the advanced features of the wireless controller.

Depending on your network configuration, use basic settings or advanced settings to manage your access points:

• Basic settings for a typical network. The basic settings work with most common

network configurations. For example, all access points on the WLAN are for the same organization or business and therefore adhere to the same policies and use a few service set identifiers (SSIDs, or network names).

• Advanced settings for access point profile groups. In a large wireless network, or if

separate networks share a single WLAN, use the advanced settings to set up multiple access point profile groups with multiple security profiles (SSIDs with associated security settings). For example, a shopping mall might need several access point profile groups if several businesses share a WLAN but each business maintains its own network. Larger networks could require multiple access point profile groups to allow dif building or department. The access points could support dif building and department, for example, one for guests, one for management, and one for sales.

ferent security profiles per

ferent policies per

Note: Access point profile groups are also referred to as just profile groups.

Profiles, security profiles, and SSIDs (that is, SSIDs with associated security settings) are terms that are interchangeable.

To accommodate all types of networks, almost all configuration menus of the web management interface are divided into basic and advanced submenus. The following figure shows an example of the Configuration > Security > Basic submenu on the left and the Configuration > Security > Advanced submenu on the right:

Figure 5. Basic and advanced submenus

System Planning and Deployment Scenarios

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

Before you start the configuration of your wireless controller, decide whether you can use a basic configuration (that is, follow the Basic submenus) or need to use an advanced configuration (that is, follow the Advanced submenus). Once you make your choice, configuring the wireless controller can be fairly easy if you consistently follow either the Basic submenus or the Advanced submenus.

Profile Group Concepts

Each access point can support up to eight security profiles (16 for dual-band access points), each with its own SSID, security settings, MAC ACL, rate-limiting settings, WMM, and so on.

The wireless controller follows the same architecture. A profile group on the wireless controller includes all the features that you can configure for an individual access point: up to 8 profiles (16 for dual-band access points), each of which supports its own SSID, security, MAC ACL, rate-limiting settings, WMM settings, and so on.

Basic Profile

The basic profile includes all the settings that are required to configure a fully functional access point with up to eight security profiles (16 for dual-band access points).

After you use the automatic discovery process and add access points to the managed AP list

on the wireless controller, the access points are assigned by default to the basic profile group.

If your network requires the wireless controller to manage multiple access points with different configurations, use the advanced profile.

Advanced Profile

The advanced profile lets you configure up to eight access point profile groups. Each group includes all the settings that are required to configure a fully functional access point with up to eight security profiles (16 for dual-band access points).

For example, if your company site includes four buildings, each with a different wireless network, you simply create four profile groups. Y building to one profile group, all access points in another building to a second profile group, and so on.

For each profile group, you can create an individual radio on/off schedule, RF management settings, MAC ACL authentication, and an authentication server group (2.4 GHz radio and 5 GHz radio), you can create individual wireless settings, WMM, and rate-limit settings.

ou then assign all access points in one

. For each radio in a profile

The following figure shows the advanced profile group architecture. The structure that is shown under Group-1 is implemented in all profile groups (that is, Group-2 through Group-8):

System Planning and Deployment Scenarios

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

Group-1

Group-2

Group-3

Group-4

2.4 GHz radio

5678

Security profiles

Figure 6. Advanced profile group architecture

Group-5

5 GHz radio

Group-6

Security profiles

Group-7

Group-8

The following figure shows an example of three access point profile groups, in which the first profile group (Group-1) supports five security profiles. For each profile in this profile group, the profile name, radio mode, and authentication setting are shown. (Group-1 is the default group in the advanced profile group configuration; you must create the other profiles groups.)

Figure 7. Example of profile groups with security profiles

System Planning and Deployment Scenarios

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

System Planning Concepts

This section includes the following subsections:

• Preinstallation Planning

• Before You Configure a Wireless Controller

Preinstallation Planning

Before you install any wireless controllers, determine the following:

• Number of access points required to provide seamless coverage

• Number of licenses required to cover all access points that must be managed

• Number of wireless controllers required

• 802.1

NETGEAR recommends that you perform a site survey:

1 frequency band and the channels that are optimal for WiFi usage

• To determine the current RF behavior and detect both 802.11 and non-802.11 noise, run

a spectrum analysis of the channels of the site.

• To determine the maximum throughput that is achievable on the client, run an access

point-to-client connectivity test.

• Identify potential RF obstructions and interference sources.

• Determine areas where denser coverage might be required because of heavier usage.

Before You Configure a Wireless Controller

These sections assume that you deployed at least one wireless controller in your network and are ready to configure the wireless controller. For information about how to deploy the wireless controller in your network, see the ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500 Installation Guide that you can download from http://support.netgear.com/product/WC9500.

For many configurations, you can use the default wireless settings. The IP address, VLAN, DHCP server, client authentication, and data encryption settings are specific to your environment. Following are short sections that describe these settings (except for IP address settings, which are self-explanatory). For information about how to configure these settings, see the relevant sections.

Management VLAN

The management VLAN is the dedicated VLAN for access to the wireless controller. All traf fic that is directed to the wireless controller, including HTTP, HTTPS, SNMP, and SSH traffic, is carried over the management VLAN.

If the management VLAN is also configured as a tagged VLAN (the most common configuration), the packets to and from the wireless controller carry the 802.1Q VLAN header with the assigned VLAN number. If the management VLAN is marked as untagged, the

System Planning and Deployment Scenarios

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

packets that are sent from the wireless controller do not carry the 802.1Q header, and all untagged packets that are sent to the wireless controller are treated as management VLAN traffic.

Note: Use a tagged VLAN or change the tagged VLAN ID only if the hubs

and switches on your LAN support 802.1Q. If they do not, and you did not configure a tagged VLAN with the same VLAN ID on the hubs and switches in your network, IP connectivity might be lost.

The management VLAN must provide IP connectivity between the wireless controller and the access points. If the wireless controller and the access points are on different management VLANs, external VLAN routing must allow IP connectivity between the wireless controller and the access points.

For information about how to configure management VLANs, see Manage the IP

Link Aggregation Settings on page 95.

, VLAN, and

Client VLANs

Each authenticated wireless user is placed into a VLAN that determines the user’s DHCP server, IP address, and Layer 2 connection. Although you could place all authenticated wireless users into the single VLAN that is specified in the basic security profile, the wireless controller allows you to group wireless users into separate VLANs based on the wireless SSID to differentiate access to network resources. For example, you might place authorized employee users into one VLAN, and itinerant users, such as contractors or guests, into a separate VLAN. To use different VLANs, you must create different security profiles.

For information about how to configure regular VLANs, see Manage the IP, VLAN, and Link

Aggregation Settings on page 95.

DHCP Server

The wireless controller can function as a DHCP server and assign IP addresses to both wireless and wired devices that are connected to it. You can add up to 64 DHCP server pools, each assigned to a different VLAN.

Client Authentication and Data Encryption

A user must authenticate to the WLAN to be able to access WLAN resources. The wireless controller supports several types of security methods, including those methods that require an external RADIUS or LDAP authentication server.

System Planning and Deployment Scenarios

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

The encryption option that you can select depends upon the authentication method that you selected. The following table lists the authentication methods available, with their corresponding encryption options:

Table 3. Authentication and encryption options

Authentication Method Encryption Option Authentication Server

Open System 64-bit, 128-bit, or 152-bit WEP None Shared Key 64-bit, 128-bit, or 152-bit WEP None WPA-PSK TKIP or TKIP+AES None WPA2-PSK AES or TKIP+AES None WPA-PSK and WPA2-PSK TKIP+AES None WPA TKIP or TKIP+AES One of the following authentication servers:

• External RADIUS server

• Internal authentication server

• External LDAP server

WPA2 AES or TKIP+AES One of the following authentication servers:

• External RADIUS server

• Internal authentication server

• External LDAP server

WPA and WPA2 TKIP+AES One of the following authentication servers:

• External RADIUS server

• Internal authentication server

• External LDAP server

For information about how to configure client authentication, data encryption, and authentication servers, see Chapter 6, Manage Security Profiles and Profile Groups.

System Planning and Deployment Scenarios

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

High-Level Configuration Examples

This section includes the following subsections:

• Single Controller Configuration with Basic Profile Group

• Single Controller Configuration with Advanced Profile Groups

• Stacked Controller Configuration

Single Controller Configuration with Basic Profile Group

A basic configuration consists of a single wireless controller that controls a collection of access points that are organized into the basic default group.

 To set up a single wireless controller system with a basic profile group:

Step Configuration Web Management Interface Path

1. Configure the system and network settings of the wireless

controller:

1. Configure the country code of operation.

2. Configure the time settings.

3. Configure the IP address of the wireless controller.

4. V

erify that VLAN 1 is set as the management VLAN and is

marked as untagged. By default, VLAN 1 an untagged management VLAN.

5. If no network DHCP server is accessible to the access points,

configure the wireless controller’

2. Configure up to eight profiles, and for each profile, do at least the following:

1. Configure an SSID for wireless access.

2. Configure the network authentication and data encryption.

3. Assign the VLAN.

4. If necessary for the selected network authentication option,

configure the authentication server

s DHCP server.

Configuration > System > General Configuration > System > Time Configuration > System > IP/VLAN

Configuration > System > DHCP Server

Configuration > Profile > Basic

Configuration > Security > Basic > Authentication Server

3. Run the Discovery Wizard and add the access points to the

managed access point list.

System Planning and Deployment Scenarios

Access Point > Discovery Wizard

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

Single Controller Configuration with Advanced Profile Groups

A more complex configuration consists of a single wireless controller that controls a collection

of access points that are organized in access point profile groups and might use several profiles in each access point profile group.

 To set up a single wireless controller system with advanced profile groups:

Step Configuration Web Management Interface Path

1. Configure the system and network settings of the wireless

controller:

1. Configure the country code of operation.

2. Configure the time settings.

3. Configure the IP address of the wireless controller.

4. V

erify that VLAN 1 is set as the management VLAN and is

marked as untagged. By default, VLAN 1 an untagged management VLAN.

5. If no network DHCP server is accessible to the access points,

configure the wireless controller’

2. Configure up to eight access point profile access point profile in a group, do at least the following:

1. Configure an SSID for wireless access.

2. Configure the network authentication and data encryption.

Assign the VLAN.

4. If necessary for the selected network authentication option,

configure the authentication server.

s DHCP server.

groups, and for each

Configuration > System > General Configuration > System > Time Configuration > System > IP/VLAN

Configuration > System > DHCP Server

Configuration > Profile > Advanced

Configuration > Security > Advanced > Authentication Server

3. Run the Discovery Wizard and add the access points to the

managed access point list.

4. Assign the access points to the access point profile referred to as WLAN groups).

groups (also

System Planning and Deployment Scenarios

Access Point > Discovery Wizard

Configuration > WLAN Network

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

Stacked Controller Configuration

A stacked controller configuration can consist of up to three wireless controllers and up to 600 access points.

Note: If the stack members are on different floors or in different buildings, you

could configure a separate access point profile group for each building or floor.

 To set up a stacked controller configuration:

Step Configuration Web Management Interface Path

1. On each individual wireless controller that you intend to make a

stack member, configure the system and network settings of the wireless controller:

1. Configure the country code of operation.

2. Configure the time settings.

3. Configure the IP address of the wireless controller.

4. Verify that VLAN 1 is set as the management VLAN and is

marked as untagged. By default, VLAN 1 an untagged management VLAN.

5. If no network DHCP server is accessible to the access points,

configure the wireless controller’

2. Configure the master wireless controller and deploy it in the network.

Configure up to eight access point profile groups, and for each access point profile in a group, do at least the following:

1. Configure an SSID for wireless access.

2. Configure the network authentication and data encryption.

Assign the VLAN.

s DHCP server

Configuration > System > General Configuration > System > T Configuration > System > IP/VLAN

Configuration > System > DHCP Server

Configuration > Profile > Advanced

ime

4. If necessary for the selected network authentication option,

configure the authentication server.

System Planning and Deployment Scenarios

Configuration > Security > Advanced > Authentication Server

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

Step Configuration Web Management Interface Path

3. Configure the slave wireless controllers and deploy them in the

network. For each slave wireless controller, configure up to eight access

point profile groups, and for each access point profile in a group, do at least the following:

1. Configure an SSID for wireless access.

2. Configure the network authentication and data encryption.

Assign the VLAN.

4. If necessary for the selected network authentication option,

configure the authentication server.

4. Interconnect the wireless controllers that you intend to make members of the stack. The connection must be a wired connection but does not need to be a direct connection, that is, a switch or router can be located in between the wireless controllers that are part of a stack.

5. Configure the stacking group on the wireless controller that you intend as the master controller

Synchronize all wireless controllers that are members of the stack.

Configuration > Profile > Advanced

Configuration > Security > Advanced > Authentication Server

Stacking > Stacking

Management VLAN and Data VLAN Strategies

If your network includes 10 or more access points, NETGEAR recommends that you set up at least two VLAN groups: a management VLAN group and a data VLAN group. If your network is large, NETGEAR recommends that you create a number of data VLAN groups. Setting up data VLANs for clients allows you to do the following:

• Segregate traffic by user category

• Create different policies such as access policies that are based on user category

System Planning and Deployment Scenarios

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

The following illustration shows a simplified view of how you can use VLANs to segregate traffic by user category:

Management VLAN 100 Ethernet traffic

Finance VLAN 10 Ethernet traffic

Employee VLAN 20 Ethernet traffic

Deploy the wireless controller on a trunk port if you use the internal DHCP server

Wireless controller

WC9500

Internet

Network printer

Backend L3 switch

or router

PoE switch

Access point WNDAP360

Finance computer

Employee computer

Figure 8. Example: Use VLANs to segregate traffic by user categories

The wireless controller uses the management VLAN to continually exchange packets with the access points. For large networks, if all traffic uses a single VLAN, the client traffic could potentially flood the network. If flooding occurs and the wireless controller is not able to exchange packets with the access points, the network performance can slow down, and the access points can lose their connectivity with the wireless controller.

If you use the internal DHCP server of the wireless controller, deploy the wireless controller on a trunk port on your switch.

The trunk port must provide access to all VLANs. To accommodate the traffic load of the trunk, use a high-speed port on your switch as the trunk port. If you use an external DHCP server, you do not need to deploy the wireless controller on a trunk port on your switch.

System Planning and Deployment Scenarios

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

High-Level Deployment Scenarios

This section provides three deployment scenarios to illustrate how the wireless controller can function in various network configurations:

• Scenario Example 1: Network with Single VLAN

• Scenario Example 2: Advanced Network with VLANs and SSIDs

• Scenario Example 3: Advanced Network with Redundancy

Scenario Example 1: Network with Single VLAN

The following sample scenario consists of a simple network with a wireless controller, PoE switch, Layer 3 switch or router, and access points:

Management VLAN Ethernet traffic

All client Ethernet traffic

Internet

Deploy the wireless controller on a trunk port if you use the internal DHCP server

Wireless controller

WC9500

Finance computer

PoE switch

Marketing computer

Network printer

Employee computer

Backend L3 switch

or router

Access point WNDAP360

Employee computer

Figure 9. Example: Basic network with a single VLAN

System Planning and Deployment Scenarios

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

The access points and wireless controller are connected in the same subnet and use the same IP address range that is assigned for that subnet. The configuration does not include any routers between the access points and the wireless controller. The access points are connected to a PoE switch, which, in turn, is connected to the wireless controller. The uplink of the PoE switch connects to a Layer 3 switch or router that provides Internet access.

 To provision the wireless controller:

Step Configuration Web Management Interface Path

1. Configure the system and network settings of the wireless

controller:

1. Configure the country code of operation.

2. Configure the time settings.

3. Configure the IP address of the wireless controller.

4. V

erify that VLAN 1 is set as the management VLAN and is

marked as untagged. By default, VLAN 1 an untagged management VLAN.

5. If no network DHCP server is accessible to the access points,

configure the wireless controller’

2. Configure up to eight profiles, and for each profile, do at least the following:

1. Configure an SSID for wireless access.

2. Configure the network authentication and data encryption.

3. Assign the VLAN.

4. If necessary for the selected network authentication option,

configure the authentication server

s DHCP server

Configuration > System > General Configuration > System > Time Configuration > System > IP/VLAN

Configuration > System > DHCP Server

Configuration > Profile > Basic

Configuration > Security > Basic > Authentication Server

3. Use any port of the wireless controller to connect the wireless

PoE switch.

4. Deploy the access points and connect them to the same wireless PoE switch.

System Planning and Deployment Scenarios

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

Step Configuration Web Management Interface Path

5. When the access points are operating, open the Discovery

Wizard to do the following:

1. Specify the state of the access points. The state can be either

factory default in a Layer 2 network or already installed and functioning in standalone mode.

2. Run the Discovery Wizard.

3. Select the access points that you want the wireless controller to

manage and add them to the managed list.

Note: By default, all access points are added to the basic group

and all settings from the basic group (profile definition, client authentication, authentication settings, and wireless QoS) are applied to the access points.

Access Point > Discovery Wizard

Scenario Example 2: Advanced Network with VLANs and SSIDs

The following sample scenario consists of an advanced network with a wireless controller, PoE switch, Layer 3 switch or router, access points, and several VLANs and SSIDs. The wireless controller system includes the following VLANs:

• VLAN 1, the default untagged VLAN to access the wireless controller

• VLAN 10, a tagged client VLAN

• VLAN 20, another tagged client VLAN

• VLAN 100, a tagged management VLAN

System Planning and Deployment Scenarios

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

Management VLAN 100 Ethernet traffic

Client VLAN 10 Ethernet traffic

Client VLAN 20 Ethernet traffic

SSID 1

Client VLAN 10

Wireless controller

WC9500

Backend L3 switch

or router

Internet

PoE switch

WNDAP360

SSID 2

Client VLAN 20

Figure 10. Example: Advanced network with VLANs and SSIDs

The access points and wireless controller are connected in the same subnet and same VLAN and use the same IP address range that is assigned for that subnet. The configuration does not include any routers between the access points and the wireless controller. The access points are connected to a PoE switch, which, in turn, is connected to the Layer 3 switch or router that provides Internet access.

This network configuration requires the following conditions:

• VLANs 10, 20, and 100 are tagged VLANs and are configured on the wireless controller

and the PoE switch.

• The wireless controller is connected to the PoE switch through default VLAN 1. You

manage the wireless controller from a computer over VLAN 1 through the PoE switch.

• The DHCP server on the wireless controller is configured in management VLAN 100 to

enable the access points to receive an IP address through VLAN 100.

• The PoE switch port to which the wireless controller is connected is configured as a

tagged port to allow tagged traffic from VLAN 100.

System Planning and Deployment Scenarios

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

 To provision the wireless controller:

Step Configuration Web Management Interface Path

1. Configure the basic system settings:

1. Configure the country code of operation.

2. Configure the time settings.

3. Configure the IP address of wireless controller.

4. For initial discovery and configuration of the access points,

temporarily configure management VLAN 100 as an untagged management VLAN on the wireless controller.

5. Change default VLAN 1 to a tagged VLAN.

2. For initial discovery and configuration of the access points,

temporarily configure management VLAN 100 as an untagged management on the PoE switch.

3. Configure either the network’s DHCP server or the wireless controller’

If you use the wireless controller’

1. Configure the IP address range for VLAN 100.

2. Configure the other DHCP server fields, including the

4. Configure the following profiles, and configure network

authentication and data encryption for these profiles:

1. A profile with SSID 1 and VLAN 10.

s DHCP server to use VLAN 100.

s DHCP server:

gateway and DNS servers.

Configuration > System > General Configuration > System > Time Configuration > System > IP/VLAN

Configuration > System > DHCP Server

Configuration > Profile > Basic

2. A profile with SSID 2 and VLAN 20.

3. If necessary for the selected network authentication options,

configure one or more authentication servers.

5. Connect the wireless controller to the PoE switch.

6. Before you connect the access points to the PoE switch, verify

that the switch ports to which you intend to connect the access points are configured as access ports in management VLAN 100.

7. Deploy the access points and connect them to the designated PoE switch ports.

System Planning and Deployment Scenarios

Configuration > Security > Basic > Authentication Server

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

Step Configuration Web Management Interface Path

8. When the access points are operating, open the Discovery

Wizard to do the following:

1. Specify the state of the access points, which is factory default

in a Layer 2 network.

2. Run the Discovery Wizard.

3. Select the access points that you want the wireless controller to

manage and add them to the managed list.

Note: By adding the access points to managed list, you enable

them to receive an IP address from the DHCP server over management VLAN 100.

9. For each access point on the managed list, disable the untagged VLAN and configure VLAN 100 as the management VLAN. Doing so causes the access points to lose connectivity with the wireless controller.

10. Restore connectivity between the access points and the wireless controller by changing the PoE switch ports to which the access points are connected to tagged ports.

During the discovery process, these switch ports were access ports in management VLAN 100.

Access Point > Discovery Wizard

Scenario Example 3: Advanced Network with Redundancy

The following sample scenario consists of an advanced network with one wireless controller, one redundant wireless controller, one core switch, two PoE switches in different buildings, access points, and several VLANs and SSIDs. These are the components in the wireless controller system:

• One wireless controller

• Fifty access points (managed by the wireless controller through management VLAN 1)

• One redundant wireless controller

• Four VLANs: VLAN 10, VLAN 20, VLAN 30, and VLAN 40

• Three SSIDs: SSID 1, SSID 2, and SSID 3 In this scenario, the VLANs and SSIDs are used to accommodate traffic for different user

groups in a school that is spread out over two buildings.

• Building 1:

- SSID 1 in VLAN 10 for staff traffic

- SSID 2 in VLAN 20 for middle school students

- SSID 3 in VLAN 30 for guests

• Building 2:

- SSID 1 in VLAN 10 for staff traffic

- SSID 2 in VLAN 40 for high school students

System Planning and Deployment Scenarios

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

- SSID 3 in VLAN 30 for guests

Internet

Backend L3 switch

or router

WC9500

Redundant WC9500

Staff VLAN 10 Ethernet traffic

Middle school VLAN 20 Ethernet traffic

High school VLAN 40 Ethernet traffic

Guest VLAN 30 Ethernet traffic

Core switch

Building 1

SSID 1 Staff VLAN 10 SSID 2 Middle school VLAN 20 SSID 3 Guest VLAN 30

PoE switch

WNDAP360

Building 2

SSID 1 Staff VLAN 10 SSID 2 High school VLAN 40 SSID 3 Guest VLAN 30

PoE switch

WNDAP360

Figure 11. Example: Advanced network with redundancy

The access points and wireless controllers are connected in the same subnet and the same VLAN and use the same IP address range that is assigned for that subnet. The core switch is located between the wireless controllers and the PoE switches, to which the access points are connected. The core switch provides Internet access.

This network configuration requires the following conditions:

• VLAN 1 is configured on the wireless controllers, core switch, and PoE switches. This VLAN is untagged.

• VLANs 10, 20, and 30 are configured on the wireless controllers, core switch, and the PoE switch in Building 1. These VLANs are tagged.

• VLANs 1, 10, 20, 30, and 40 are configured on the wireless controllers, core switch, and PoE switches. Except for VLAN 1, these VLANs are tagged.

System Planning and Deployment Scenarios

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

 To provision the wireless controller:

Step Configuration Web Management Interface Path

1. Configure the basic system settings:

1. Configure the country code of operation.

2. Configure the time settings.

3. Configure the IP address of wireless controller.

4. Verify that VLAN 1 is set as the management VLAN and is marked as untagged.

By default, VLAN 1 an untagged management VLAN.

2. Configure the following profiles, and configure network authentication and data encryption for these profiles:

1. A profile with SSID 1 and VLAN 10.

2. A profile with SSID 2 and VLAN 20.

3. A profile with SSID 2 and VLAN 30.

4. A profile with SSID 3 and VLAN 40.

5. If necessary for the selected network authentication options,

configure one or more authentication servers.

3. Configure the following profile groups:

1. A profile group with the name Building 1, to which you add the

following profiles:

- The profile with SSID 1 and VLAN 10

- The profile with SSID 2 and VLAN 20

- The profile with SSID 2 and VLAN 30

Configuration > System > General Configuration > System > Time Configuration > System > IP/VLAN

Configuration > Profile > Basic

Configuration > Security > Basic > Authentication Server

Configuration > Profile > Advanced

2. A profile group with the name Building 2, to which you add the

following profiles:

- The profile with SSID 1 and VLAN 10

- The profile with SSID 2 and VLAN 30

- The profile with SSID 3 and VLAN 40

4. Deploy the access points and connect them to PoE switches.

System Planning and Deployment Scenarios

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

Step Configuration Web Management Interface Path

5. When the access points are operating, open the Discovery

Wizard to do the following:

1. Specify the state of the access points, which is the factory

default state in a Layer 2 network.

2. Run the Discovery Wizard.

3. Select and add the access points that you want to be managed

by the wireless controller to the managed list.

Note: By default, all access points are added to the basic group.

6. Assign the access points to the access point profile groups (also

referred to as WLAN groups) Building 1 and Building 2.

Access Point > Discovery Wizard

Configuration > WLAN Network

System Planning and Deployment Scenarios

3. RF Planning and Deployment

This chapter includes the following sections:

• RF Planning Overview

• Manage a Building and Floors for an RF Plan

• Use the WiFi Auto Planning Advisor to Generate an RF Plan for a Floor

• Manually Add and Manage Access Points on a Floor Map for an RF Plan

• Manually Add and Manage Antennas on a Floor Map for an RF Plan

• Display and Recalculate the WiFi Coverage for a Heat Map

• Display or Change the WiFi Inventory for an RF Plan

• Download a Report for an RF Plan

• View the Heat Map for a Deployed Floor Plan

Note: Make sure that your computer can run Adobe Flash Player and that

Java is enabled in your browser.

Note: For remote access (that is, access over a WAN interface) to the

RF planning screens in the web management interface, make sure that port 8443 is open in your computer’s firewall.

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

RF Planning Overview

You can do the following with RF planning:

• Define WLAN coverage.

• Estimate the number of access points required based on signal quality and number of

clients per access point.

• Optimize the placement of access points for the best coverage.

• Monitor WLAN coverage, rogue access points, and blacklisted clients for a plan that is in

deployment.

• Identify weak signal spots and dead spots from the coverage hole and add additional

access points to mitigate the situation.

RF planning provides a view of each floor in a building, allowing you to specify how WiFi coverage must be provided. RF planning then provides coverage maps and access point placement locations.

For deployed RF plans, real-time calibration lets you visualize the indoor propagation of RF signals to identify areas with a weak signal or dead spots and add additional access points in the right location to mitigate the weak signal or dead spots.

Planning Requirements

To expedite your planning efforts, collect the information that is listed in Table 4 and Table 5 before you use RF planning.

Use a worksheet similar to the following table to collect your building information.

Table 4. Building planning table

Item Your Information

Building length Building width Building height Number of floors Distance in height between floors

Use a worksheet similar to the following table to collect your information for each floor in the building.

Table 5. Floor planning table

Item Your Information Floor dimensions if different from building dimensions

Length

RF Planning and Deployment

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

Table 5. Floor planning table (continued)

Item Your Information

Width Height

Define WiFi coverage and noncoverage areas

WiFi coverage areas WiFi noncoverage areas

WiFi building obstacles

Dry walls Wood walls Plastic walls Glass walls Brick walls Concrete walls Light doors Metal doors Heavy doors Thin windows Thick windows Other obstacles

WiFi building obstruction areas

Cubicle office areas Closed office areas Elevator shafts Warehouses with low stock Warehouses with medium stock Warehouses with high stock

WiFi client information

Total number of expected clients on floor Expected number of clients per access point WiFi radio band or bands

RF Planning and Deployment

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

Table 5. Floor planning table (continued)

Item Your Information Access point protocol for each WiFi radio band

2.4 GHz (802.11b/bg/ng)

5 GHz (802.11a/na)

Access point transmission power (from full to minimum) for each WiFi radio band

2.4 GHz

5 GHz

WiFi coverage and signal strength

WiFi coverage percentage Minimum required signal strength in dBm

Recommended RF Planning Procedure for a Building

NETGEAR recommends that you first set up your building and floors to scale and define the floor plans. For more information, see Manage a Building and Floors for an RF Plan on page 49.

Then, for each floor, perform the following tasks:

• Use the WiFi Auto Planning Advisor

See Use the WiFi Auto Planning Advisor to Generate an RF Plan for a Floor on page 64.

• (Optional) Manually add and fine-tune access points on each floor.

See

Manually Add and Manage Access Points on a Floor Map for an RF Plan on

page 69.

• (Optional) Manually add and fine-tune antennas.

See Manually Add and Manage Antennas on a Floor Map for an RF Plan on page 72.

• (Optional) Display the WiFi coverage.

See Display and Recalculate the WiFi Coverage for a Heat Map on page 75.

• (Optional) Display and fine-tune the WiFi inventory

Display or Change the WiFi Inventory for an RF Plan on page 77.

See

• (Optional) Download the report.

See Download a Report for an RF Plan on page 80.

After you install or move the physical access points and antennas according to the RF plan

for a floor

, deploy the floor plan by placing the virtual access points at the virtual locations on

the floor map to match the actual physical locations of the physical access points on the floor

RF Planning and Deployment

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

as closely as possible. Doing so enables you to generate a realistic heat map for the deployed floor plan.

For more information, see View the Heat Map for a Deployed Floor Plan on page 81.

Manage a Building and Floors for an RF Plan

This section describes how you can define a building and floors and make modifications after you define them.

Defining a floor includes the following main tasks:

• Uploading a custom floor map and setting dimensions (see Add a Building and Floors on

page 49)

• If you do not set dimensions, scaling the floor (see Scale a Floor on page 53)

• Adding WiFi coverage zones and WiFi noncoverage zones (see Add a WiFi Coverage or

WiFi Noncoverage Zone to a Floor on page 54)

• Adding WiFi building obstacles (see Add a WiFi Building Obstacle to a Floor on page 56)

• Adding WiFi obstruction areas (see Add a WiFi Obstruction Area on page 58)

Add a Building and Floors

The wireless controller includes a default building and default floor with a default floor map. You cannot remove the default building or default floor but you can replace the default floor map with a custom floor map.

 To add and define a building and floors:

1. Open a web browser. In the browser

address. By default, the IP address is 192.168.0.250.

The wireless controller’s login screen displays.

2. Enter your user name and password.

If you did not yet personalize your user name and password, enter admin for the user name and password for the password, both in lowercase letters.

3. Click the Login button.

The wireless controller’s web management interface opens and displays the Summary screen.

4. Select Plans > Planning.

’s address field, type the wireless controller’s IP

RF Planning and Deployment

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

5. To add a building, in the building tree on the left, click the Add Building icon.

The Add Building pop-screen displays.

6. Enter a name for the building and click the Confirm button.

7. In the building tree, click the + icon of the building that you added.

The Floor-1 name displays. This default floor name was added automatically when you

added the building.

8. Click Floor-1.

The default floor map displays. This default floor map was added automatically when you

added the building.

9. T

o add a custom floor map, click the Add Floor

icon.

RF Planning and Deployment

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

10. Define the floor:

a. Enter a name for the floor. b. Upload a custom floor map by clicking the Browse button, following the directions of

your browser to navigate to a floor map, and selecting the floor map. Y

ou can upload a plan in .png, .jpg, or .gif format.

c. T

o either specify the floor width or the floor length, do the following:

• T o specify the floor width, click the Width(X) button, select Meter or

menu, and enter the floor width.

• To specify the floor length, click the Length(Y) button, select Meter or Feet from

the menu, and enter the floor length.

Note: If you do not want to enter the length or width or the information is not

available, you can scale the floor later (see

Scale a Floor on page 53).

d. Click the Confirm button.

The floor map is uploaded and displays onscreen.

11. Click the Save

icon.

The changes are saved.

12. To add another floor and floor map, repeat Step 9 through Step 11.

Add a Single Floor to a Building

You can add a single floor to an existing building.

Feet

from the

 To add a single floor to a building:

1. Open a web browser. In the browser’

address.

RF Planning and Deployment

s address field, type the wireless controller’s IP

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

By default, the IP address is 192.168.0.250.

The wireless controller’s login screen displays.

2. Enter your user name and password.

If you did not yet personalize your user name and password, enter admin for the user name and password for the password, both in lowercase letters.

3. Click the Login button.

The wireless controller’s web management interface opens and displays the Summary

screen.

4. Select Plans > Planning.

The screen displays the Planning icons.

5. In the building tree on the left, click the name of the building to which you are adding a floor

6. Click the Add Floor

icon.

7. Define the floor:

a. Enter a name for the floor. b. Upload a custom floor map by clicking the Browse button, following the directions of

your browser to navigate to a floor map, and selecting the floor map.

ou can upload a plan in .png, .jpg, or .gif format.

c. T

o either specify the floor width or the floor length, do the following:

• T o specify the floor width, click the Width(X) button, select Meter or Feet from the

menu, and enter the floor width.

• To specify the floor length, click the Length(Y) button, select Meter

or Feet from

the menu, and enter the floor length.

Note: If you do not want to enter the length or width or the information is not

available, you can scale the floor later (see Scale a Floor on page 53).

RF Planning and Deployment

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

d. Click the Confirm button.

The floor map is uploaded and displays onscreen.

8. Click the Save

icon.

The changes are saved.

Scale a Floor

If you did not specify the floor width or floor length while adding a new floor (see Add a

Building and Floors on page 49 or Add a Single Floor to a Building on page 51), you can do

so by scaling the floor. You must know the distance in meters or feet between two known points on the floor.

 To scale a floor:

1. Open a web browser. In the browser’

address. By default, the IP address is 192.168.0.250.

The wireless controller’s login screen displays.

2. Enter your user name and password.

If you did not yet personalize your user name and password, enter admin for the user name and password for the password, both in lowercase letters.

3. Click the Login button.

s address field, type the wireless controller’s IP

The wireless controller’s web management interface opens and displays the Summary screen.

4. Select Plans > Planning.

The screen displays the Planning icons.

5. In the building tree on the left, click the + icon of the building that contains the floor

The floor names display.

6. Click the floor name.

The floor map displays.

7. Click the

Scale

icon.

8. Select a line between two points on the map by anchoring the line at one point and releasing

the line at the other point. The points do not need to cover the entire length or width of the floor.

The Scale Map pop-up screen displays.

9. Select Meter or Feet from the menu and enter the distance between the two points.

10. Click the Confirm button.

RF Planning and Deployment

The floor map is scaled.

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

11. Click the Save

icon.

The changes are saved.

Add a WiFi Coverage or WiFi Noncoverage Zone to a Floor

A WiFi coverage zone on a floor is an area in which access points must provide WiFi

coverage. A WiFi noncoverage zone on a floor is an area in which access points do not need to provide WiFi coverage, for example, a storage area.

Note: Before you add a WiFi coverage or WiFi noncoverage zone, first define

the floor dimensions (see Add a Single Floor to a Building on page 51) or scale the floor (see Scale a Floor on page 53).

 To add a WiFi coverage or WiFi noncoverage zone to a floor:

1. Open a web browser. In the browser’

address. By default, the IP address is 192.168.0.250.

The wireless controller’s login screen displays.

2. Enter your user name and password.

If you did not yet personalize your user name and password, enter admin for the user name and password for the password, both in lowercase letters.

s address field, type the wireless controller’s IP

3. Click the Login button.

The wireless controller’s web management interface opens and displays the Summary

screen.

4. Select Plans > Planning.

The screen displays the Planning icons.

5. In the building tree on the left, click the + icon of the building that contains the floor

The floor names display.

6. Click the floor name.

The floor map displays.

7. Click the Zone

icon.

8. Click either the Coverage Zone icon or the Non-AP Zone icon.

9. Anchor a rectangle at one point on the floor map and define the WiFi coverage zone or the

zone in which you do not need WiFi coverage.

10. T

o remove the zone, click the Undo link, and repeat Step 7 though Step 9.

11. Click the Save

icon.

RF Planning and Deployment

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

The changes are saved.

12. To add another zone, repeat Step 7 though Step 11.

Remove a WiFi Coverage or WiFi Noncoverage Zone from a Floor

After you add and save a WiFi coverage or noncoverage zone on a floor, you can remove it from the floor.

 To remove a WiFi coverage area or WiFi noncoverage zone from a floor:

1. Open a web browser. In the browser’

address. By default, the IP address is 192.168.0.250.

The wireless controller’s login screen displays.

2. Enter your user name and password.

If you did not yet personalize your user name and password, enter admin for the user name and password for the password, both in lowercase letters.

3. Click the Login button.

The wireless controller’s web management interface opens and displays the Summary screen.

4. Select Plans > Planning.

The screen displays the Planning icons.

5. In the building tree on the left, click the + icon of the building that contains the floor

The floor names display.

6. Click the floor name.

The floor map displays.

s address field, type the wireless controller’s IP

7. Click the

8. Click the zone on the map.

9. Click the Delete link.

10. Click the Save

The changes are saved.

11. To remove another zone, repeat Step 7 though Step 10.

Zone

icon.

RF Planning and Deployment

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

Add a WiFi Building Obstacle to a Floor

WiFi building obstacles can be any of the following predefined obstacles with their predefined attenuation factor (WiFi signal loss) in dB or a custom defined building obstacle:

• Dry wall (4 dB)

• Wood wall (4 dB)

• Plastic wall (4 dB)

• Glass wall (8 dB)

• Brick wall (8 dB)

• Concrete wall (12 dB)

• Light door (4 dB)

• Metal door (1

• Heavy door (15 dB)

• Thin window (2 dB)

• Thick window 4 dB)

1 dB)

These obstacles contribute to the WLAN signal degradation based on their construction materials and interferences.

Note: Before you add a building obstacle, first define the floor dimensions (see

Add a Single Floor to a Building on page 51

) or scale the floor (see Scale

a Floor on page 53).

 To add a WiFi building obstacle to a floor:

1. Open a web browser. In the browser

’s address field, type the wireless controller’s IP

address. By default, the IP address is 192.168.0.250.

The wireless controller’s login screen displays.

2. Enter your user name and password.

If you did not yet personalize your user name and password, enter admin for the user name and password for the password, both in lowercase letters.

3. Click the Login button.

The wireless controller’s web management interface opens and displays the Summary

screen.

4. Select Plans > Planning.

The screen displays the Planning icons.

5. In the building tree on the left, click the + icon of the building that contains the floor

The floor names display

6. Click the floor name.

RF Planning and Deployment

The floor map displays.

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

7. Click the Obstacle

icon.

8. Take one of the following actions:

• Select the icon for one of the predefined obstacles.

• Define a custom obstacle:

a. Click the Add Obstacle Type

Add New Obstacle Type pop-screen displays.

The

link.

b. Enter a name. c. Enter the attenuation factor in dB. d. Select a color e. Click the Confirm

f. Click the Obstacle

button.

icon.

g. Select the icon for the custom obstacle that you just added.

9. Select a line between two points on the map by anchoring the line at one point and releasing

the line at the other point.

10. T

o remove the obstacle, click the Undo link, and repeat Step 7 though

11. Click the Save

icon.

Step 9.

The changes are saved.

12. To add another obstacle repeat Step 7 though Step 11.

Remove a Building Obstacle from a Floor

After you add and save a WiFi building obstacle on a floor, you can remove it from the floor.

 To remove a WiFi building obstacle from a floor:

1. Open a web browser. In the browser’

address. By default, the IP address is 192.168.0.250.

The wireless controller’s login screen displays.

2. Enter your user name and password.

If you did not yet personalize your user name and password, enter admin for the user name and password for the password, both in lowercase letters.

3. Click the Login button.

The wireless controller’s web management interface opens and displays the Summary screen.

4. Select Plans > Planning.

s address field, type the wireless controller’s IP

The screen displays the Planning icons.

RF Planning and Deployment

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

5. In the building tree on the left, click the + icon of the building that contains the floor.

The floor names display.

6. Click the floor name.

The floor map displays.

7. Click the Obstacle

icon.

8. Click the obstacle on the map.

9. Click the Delete link.

10. Click the Save

icon.

The changes are saved.

11. To remove another obstacle, repeat Step 7 though Step 10.

Add a WiFi Obstruction Area

WiFi obstructions areas can be any of the following predefined areas:

• Cubicle office area

• Closed office area

• Elevator shaft

• W

arehouse stock with low density

• Warehouse stock with medium density

• Warehouse stock with high density

These areas contribute to the WLAN signal degradation based on openness (or lack thereof) and interferences.

Note: Before you add a WiFi obstruction area, first define the floor dimensions

(see Add a Single Floor to a Building

Scale a Floor on page 53).

 To add a WiFi obstruction area to a floor:

1. Open a web browser. In the browser’

s address field, type the wireless controller’s IP

address. By default, the IP address is 192.168.0.250.

The wireless controller’s login screen displays.

2. Enter your user name and password.

If you did not yet personalize your user name and password, enter admin for the user name and password for the password, both in lowercase letters.

3. Click the Login button.

RF Planning and Deployment

on page 51

) or scale the floor (see

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

The wireless controller’s web management interface opens and displays the Summary screen.

4. Select Plans > Planning.

The screen displays the Planning icons.

5. In the building tree on the left, click the + icon of the building that contains the floor.

The floor names display.

6. Click the floor name.

The floor map displays.

7. Click the Area

icon.

8. Anchor a rectangle at one point on the floor map and define the WiFi obstruction area.

9. T

o remove the area, click the Undo link, and repeat Step 7 and Step 8.

10. Click the Save

icon.

The changes are saved.

11. To add another area, repeat Step 7 though Step 10.

Remove a WiFi Obstruction Area

After you add and save a WiFi obstruction area on a floor, you can remove it from the floor.

 To remove a WiFi obstruction area from a floor:

1. Open a web browser. In the browser’

address. By default, the IP address is 192.168.0.250.

The wireless controller’s login screen displays.

2. Enter your user name and password.

If you did not yet personalize your user name and password, enter admin for the user name and password for the password, both in lowercase letters.

s address field, type the wireless controller’s IP

3. Click the Login button.

The wireless controller’s web management interface opens and displays the Summary screen.

4. Select Plans > Planning.

The screen displays the Planning icons.

5. In the building tree on the left, click the + icon of the building that contains the floor

The floor names display.

6. Click the floor name.

The floor map displays.

RF Planning and Deployment

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

7. Click the Area icon.

8. Click the area on the map.

9. Click the Delete link.

10. Click the Save

icon.

The changes are saved.

11. To remove another area, repeat Step 7 though Step 10.

Change the Name, Map, or Dimensions of a Floor

You can change the basic properties of a floor, including those for the default floor.

 To change the name, map, or dimensions of a floor:

1. Open a web browser. In the browser’

address. By default, the IP address is 192.168.0.250.

The wireless controller’s login screen displays.

2. Enter your user name and password.

If you did not yet personalize your user name and password, enter admin for the user name and password for the password, both in lowercase letters.

3. Click the Login button.

The wireless controller’s web management interface opens and displays the Summary

screen.

s address field, type the wireless controller’s IP

4. Select Plans > Planning.

The screen displays the Planning icons.

5. In the building tree on the left, click the + icon of the building that contains the floor

The floor names display.

6. Click the floor name.

The floor map displays.

7. Click the Edit

icon.

The floor plan information displays in a pop-up screen.

8. Change the name or dimensions of the floor, upload another floor map, or perform a

combination of these actions. For more information about the floor settings, see Add a Single Floor to a Building

page 51.

9. Click the Confirm button.

The changes are saved.

RF Planning and Deployment

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

Change the Name of a Building

You can change only the name of a building, including the name of the default building. All other building properties are defined through the floors and the floor plans.

 To change the name of a building:

1. Open a web browser. In the browser’

address. By default, the IP address is 192.168.0.250.

The wireless controller’s login screen displays.

2. Enter your user name and password.

If you did not yet personalize your user name and password, enter admin for the user name and password for the password, both in lowercase letters.

3. Click the Login button.

The wireless controller’s web management interface opens and displays the Summary screen.

4. Select Plans > Planning.

The screen displays the Planning icons.

5. In the building tree on the left, click the building name.

6. Click the Edit

A pop-up screen displays.

7. Change the name.

8. Click the Confirm button.

icon.

s address field, type the wireless controller’s IP

The changes are saved.

Duplicate an Entire Building with All Floors

You can duplicate an entire building with all floors and floor plans, including all floor definitions. For information about duplicating a single floor in a building, see Duplicate a

Single Floor on page 62.

 To duplicate an entire building with all floors:

1. Open a web browser. In the browser’

address. By default, the IP address is 192.168.0.250.

The wireless controller’s login screen displays.

2. Enter your user name and password.

RF Planning and Deployment

s address field, type the wireless controller’s IP

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

If you did not yet personalize your user name and password, enter admin for the user name and password for the password, both in lowercase letters.

3. Click the Login button.

The wireless controller’s web management interface opens and displays the Summary

screen.

4. Select Plans > Layout.

The screen displays the Planning icons.

5. In the building tree on the left, click the building name.

6. Click the Duplicate

icon.

A pop-up screen displays.

7. Enter a name for the new building.

8. Click the Confirm button.

The new building and floor or floors are added in the building tree.

Duplicate a Single Floor

You can duplicate a single floor and floor plan, including the floor definition. For information about duplicating an entire building with all floors, see Duplicate an Entire Building with All

Floors on page 61.

 To duplicate a single floor:

1. Open a web browser. In the browser’

address. By default, the IP address is 192.168.0.250.

The wireless controller’s login screen displays.

2. Enter your user name and password.

s address field, type the wireless controller’s IP

If you did not yet personalize your user name and password, enter admin for the user name and password for the password, both in lowercase letters.

3. Click the Login button.

The wireless controller’s web management interface opens and displays the Summary

screen.

4. Select Plans > Layout.

The screen displays the Planning icons.

5. In the building tree on the left, click the + icon of the building that contains the floor

The floor names display.

6. Click the floor name.

RF Planning and Deployment

The floor map displays.

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

7. Click the Duplicate

icon.

A pop-up screen displays.

8. Specify a name for the floor and select a building:

a. Enter a name for the new floor

b. From the Workspace tree, select the building to which you want to add the new floor. c. Click the

Confirm button.

The new floor is added to the building.

Remove a Single Floor

You can remove a single floor from a building. However, you cannot remove the default floor of the default building.

 To remove a single floor:

1. Open a web browser. In the browser’

address. By default, the IP address is 192.168.0.250.

The wireless controller’s login screen displays.

s address field, type the wireless controller’s IP

2. Enter your user name and password.

If you did not yet personalize your user name and password, enter admin for the user name and password for the password, both in lowercase letters.

3. Click the Login button.

The wireless controller’s web management interface opens and displays the Summary screen.

4. Select Plans > Layout.

The screen displays the Planning icons.

5. In the building tree on the left, click the + icon of the building that contains the floor

The floor names display.

6. Click the floor name.

The floor map displays.

7. Click the

rashcan icon.

8. Confirm the removal.

The floor is removed.

RF Planning and Deployment

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

Remove an Entire Building with All Its Floors

You can remove an entire building with all its floors. However, you cannot remove the default building.

 To remove an entire building:

1. Open a web browser. In the browser’

address. By default, the IP address is 192.168.0.250.

The wireless controller’s login screen displays.

2. Enter your user name and password.

If you did not yet personalize your user name and password, enter admin for the user name and password for the password, both in lowercase letters.

3. Click the Login button.

The wireless controller’s web management interface opens and displays the Summary

screen.

4. Select Plans > Layout.

The screen displays the Planning icons.

5. In the building tree on the left, click the building name.

6. Click the T

7. Confirm the removal.

The building with all its floors is removed.

rashcan

icon.

s address field, type the wireless controller’s IP

Use the WiFi Auto Planning Advisor to Generate an RF Plan for a Floor

After you define a building and floors (see Manage a Building and Floors for an RF Plan on

page 49), you can run the WiFi auto planning advisor for a floor. This tool calculates the number of access points and, optionally, antennas that you might need to provide WiFi coverage for your environment and suggests the best locations on the floor for these access points and antennas.

The WiFi auto planning advisor bases its calculations on the building and floor definitions and lets you enter the following parameters to determine the WiFi coverage for your environment:

• NETGEAR access point (see Supported NETGEAR Access Points on page 18)

• NETGEAR antenna (see Supported NETGEAR Antennas on page 21)

• For each WiFi band of a selected access point, the following parameters:

- 802.1

- Transmit power (from minimum power to full power)

1 protocol (depending on the access point, 802.11b/g/n, 802.11a/n, or both)

RF Planning and Deployment

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Note: The antenna gain and maximum number of supported clients for a

selected access point are set automatically.

• Percentage of expected WiFi coverage (from 10 percent to 100 percent)

• The minimum required signal strength (from –95 dBm to –30 dBm)

The signal strength determines the automatic channel allocation and automatic transmission power of the access points.

• The WiFi band (2.4 GHz or 5 GHz)

• The maximum number of clients that must be supported on the floor

For you to determine the expected financial investment, the WiFi auto planning advisor also lets you enter a price for the selected access point and a price for the selected antenna. Whether or not you enter a price, the WiFi auto planning advisor generates an inventory list. For more information, see Display or Change the WiFi Inventory for an RF Plan on page 77.

The WiFi auto planning advisor creates a heat map for the 2.4 GHz band, the 5 GHz band, or for both bands. T

o optimize the WLAN network coverage and throughput for your RF plan,

you can manually fine-tune the placement of access points and antennas on the floor map. For more information about adding and managing access points and antennas on a floor

map, see the following sections:

• Manually Add and Manage Access Points on a Floor Map for an RF Plan on page 69

• Manually Add and Manage Antennas on a Floor Map for an RF Plan on page 72

WARNING:

For each floor, you can save one floor map only. When you run the WiFi auto planning advisor for a floor, the advisor removes all previously placed access points and antennas from the floor map.

 To run the WiFi auto planning advisor and generate an RF plan and heat map for a

floor:

1. Open a web browser. In the browser’s address field, type the wireless controller’s IP

address. By default, the IP address is 192.168.0.250.

The wireless controller’s login screen displays.

2. Enter your user name and password.

If you did not yet personalize your user name and password, enter admin for the user name and password for the password, both in lowercase letters.

3. Click the Login button.

The wireless controller’s web management interface opens and displays the Summary screen.

RF Planning and Deployment

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

4. Select Plans > Planning.

The screen displays the Planning icons.

5. In the building tree on the left, click the + icon of the building that contains the floor.

The floor names display.

6. Click the floor name.

The floor map displays.

7. Click the Advisor

icon.

8. Specify the WLAN requirements for the floor as described in the following table.

Setting Description Select AP and External Antenna for Planning

AP Model Specify the access point that you intend to use for the floor:

1. Click the Browse button.

The access points that the wireless controller supports display in a pop-up screen.

2. Click the access point.

All calculations are performed with the selected access point.

3. Click the Confirm button.

The changes are saved and the pop-up screen closes.

Price($) As an option, enter the price of the access point.

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Setting Description

2.4G For the 2.4 GHz band, specify the transmission power in dBm for the access point. From the Transmit Power (dBm) menu, select FULL, HALF(1/2), QUARTER(1/4)

EIGHT(1/8), or MINIMUM(1/16). The default setting is HALF(1/2).

Note: When you select an access point, the AP Protocol, Antenna Gain (dBi), and

Client Support fields are populated automatically.

5G If the selected access point supports the 5 GHz band, specify the transmission power in

dBm for the access point. From the T

EIGHT(1/8), or MINIMUM(1/16). The default setting is HALF(1/2).

Note: When you select an access point, the AP Protocol, Antenna Gain (dBi), and

Client Support fields are populated automatically.

Antenna Model Specify the antenna that you intend to use for the floor:

1. Click the Browse button.

2. Click the antenna.

3. Click the Confirm button.

ransmit Power (dBm) menu, select FULL, HALF(1/2), QUARTER(1/4)

The antennas that the wireless controller supports for the selected access point display in a pop-up screen.

All calculations are performed with the selected antenna.

The changes are saved and the pop-up screen closes.

Price($) As an option, enter the price of the antenna.

Criteria of Auto-placement

Wi-Fi Coverage Percentage

Minimum Signal Strength

Band From the Band menu, select 2.4G or 5G.

Maximum Clients Supported

Move the slider to the required WiFi coverage. The minimum coverage is 10 percent; The maximum coverage is 100 percent.

Move the slider to the minimum required signal strength. The maximum signal quality is –30 percent; The minimum signal quality is –95 percent.

If the selected access point does not support the 5 GHz band, the menu selection is automatically set to 2.4G.

Enter the total number of clients that must be supported simultaneously on the floor.

9. Click the Start Calculation button.

The WiFi auto planning advisor starts its calculations, displays the progress in a pop-up screen, and generates a heat map.

RF Planning and Deployment

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Signal strength at this location

The WiFi auto planning advisor generates a heat map that suggests the required number

of access points (15 in the figure) and the locations on the floor map to achieve the optimum WiFi coverage that is based on the WLAN requirements that you specified (see

Step 8).

10. T o see the signal strength at a location on the floor map, point to the location (-44dBm at the

location in the figure).

o switch the heat map to the 2.4 GHz or 5 GHz band, on the right, click the Band

1. T

icon.

The Band icon displays 2.4G if the heat map for the 2.4 GHz band is shown. The Band

icon displays

5G if the heat map for the 5 GHz band is shown.

12. To move an access point to another location on the floor map, drag the access point to a

location on the floor map.

Note: Moving an access point turns off the heat map.

13. To move an antenna to another location on the floor map, drag the antenna to a location on

the floor map.

Note: Moving an antenna turns off the heat map.

14. T

o regenerate the heat map, on the right, click the HeatMap

icon.

The heat map is generated and displays. Use the color information on the right as

guidance for WiFi coverage.

15. To show the map with or without grid, on the right side, click the Grid

RF Planning and Deployment

icon.

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

16. To show the access points by model or without a label, on the right side, click the Label

icon and select your preference. By default, the access point name is shown. Because this section describes an RF plan

that is not yet deployed, the IP address and channel cannot be displayed on the map.

17. To save the floor map with its new configuration, click the Save

The settings are saved.

icon.

Manually Add and Manage Access Points on a Floor Map for an RF Plan

You can add individual access points to a floor map for an RF plan. These access points do not need to be of the same model. After adding access points, you can change their properties, move them to another location on the floor map, or remove them from the floor map.

Note: Before you add any access points to a floor plan, first define the floor

dimensions (see Add a Single Floor to a Building on page 51) or scale the floor (see Scale a Floor on page 53) and define the WiFi coverage zone (see Add a WiFi Coverage or WiFi Noncoverage Zone to a Floor on page 54).

 To manually add and manage individual access points on a floor map for an RF plan:

1. Open a web browser. In the browser’

address. By default, the IP address is 192.168.0.250.

The wireless controller’s login screen displays.

2. Enter your user name and password.

If you did not yet personalize your user name and password, enter admin for the user name and password for the password, both in lowercase letters.

3. Click the Login button.

The wireless controller’s web management interface opens and displays the Summary screen.

4. Select Plans > Planning.

The screen displays the Planning icons.

5. In the building tree on the left, click the + icon of the building that contains the floor

The floor names display.

RF Planning and Deployment

s address field, type the wireless controller’s IP

6. Click the floor name.

The floor map displays.

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

7. Click the AP

icon.

8. Specify the access point settings as described in the following table.

Setting Description

AP name Enter a name for the access point.

By default, the access points are numbered, for example, AP-16.

AP Model Specify the access point that you intend to use for the floor:

1. Click the Browse button.

The access points that the wireless controller supports display in a pop-up screen.

2. Click the access point.

All calculations are performed with the selected access point.

3. Click the Confirm button.

The changes are saved and the pop-up screen closes. Price($) As an option, enter the price of the access point. IP Address As an option, enter the IP address of the access point. AP Type When you select an access point, this field is populated automatically. Description As an option, enter a description for the access point.

RF Planning and Deployment

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Setting Description

2.4G Specify the settings for the 2.4 GHz band:

• Enable. By default, the On radio button is selected and the 2.4 GHz band is

enabled. T

• Channel. Leave the default selection Auto to enable the access point to select a

channel automatically

• Protocol. When you select an access point, this field is populated automatically

• Transmission Power (dBm). From the menu, select FULL, HALF(1/2)

QUARTER(1/4), EIGHT(1/8), or MINIMUM(1/16). The default setting is HALF(1/2).

• Antenna Gain (dBi). When you select an access point, this field is populated

automatically

5G If the selected access point supports the 5 GHz band, specify the settings for the 5 GHz

band:

• Enable

o disable the 5 GHz band, select the Off

• Channel. Leave the default selection Auto to enable the access point to select a

channel automatically

• Protocol. When you select an access point, this field is populated automatically

• Transmission Power (dBm). From the menu, select FULL, HALF(1/2)

QUARTER(1/4), EIGHT(1/8), or MINIMUM(1/16). The default setting is HALF(1/2).

• Antenna Gain (dBi). When you select an access point, this field is populated

automatically.

o disable the 2.4 GHz band, select the Off radio button.

, or select a specific channel from the menu.

. By default, the On radio button is selected and the 5 GHz band is enabled.

radio button.

, or select a specific channel from the menu.

9. Click the Confirm button.

The changes are saved and the pop-up screen closes. The new access point is placed at the top of the floor map.

10. Move the access point to the desired location on the floor map by dragging the access point

to a location on the floor map.

11. T

o change the properties for an access point, do the following:

a. Double-click the access point.

A pop-up menu displays.

b. From the pop-menu, select Edit Properties.

The Edit AP pop-up screen displays. This screen is identical to the Add AP pop-up screen.

c. Change the properties.

For information about the properties, see the previous table.

d. Click the Confirm button.

The changes are saved and the pop-up screen closes.

12. T

o remove an existing access point from the floor map, do the following:

a. Click the access point to select it. b. Click the

Delete link.

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13. To add another access point to the floor map, change the properties for another access

point, move another access point on the floor map, remove another access point from the floor map, or perform a combination of these tasks, repeat Step 7 through Step 12.

o turn the heat map on or off, on the right, click the HeatMap

14. T

If you turn on the heat map, the heat map is generated and displays. Use the color information on the right as guidance for WiFi coverage.

Note: Adding or removing access points changes the heat map.

15. T

o switch the heat map to the 2.4 GHz or 5 GHz band, on the right, click the Band

The Band icon displays 2.4G if the heat map for the 2.4 GHz band is shown. The Band

icon displays 5G if the heat map for the 5 GHz band is shown.

16. To show the map with or without grid, on the right side, click the Grid

17. To show the access points by model or without a label, on the right side, click the Label

icon and select your preference. By default, the access point name is shown. Because this section describes an RF plan

that is not yet deployed, the IP address and channel cannot be displayed on the map.

18. To save the floor map with its new configuration, click the Save

The settings are saved.

icon.

Manually Add and Manage Antennas on a Floor Map for an RF Plan

You can add individual antennas to a floor map for an RF plan. These antennas do not need to be of the same model. After adding antennas, you can change their properties, move them to another location on the floor map, or remove them from the floor map.

Note: Antennas are associated with access points. Therefore, before you

add antennas to a floor plan, first add access points to the floor plan. For more information about adding access points to a floor plan, see

Use the WiFi Auto Planning Advisor to Generate an RF Plan for a Floor on page 64 and Manually Add and Manage Access Points on a Floor Map for an RF Plan on page 69.

 To manually add and manage individual antennas on a floor map for an RF plan:

1. Open a web browser. In the browser’

address. By default, the IP address is 192.168.0.250.

The wireless controller’s login screen displays.

s address field, type the wireless controller’s IP

RF Planning and Deployment

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

2. Enter your user name and password.

If you did not yet personalize your user name and password, enter admin for the user name and password for the password, both in lowercase letters.

3. Click the Login button.

The wireless controller’s web management interface opens and displays the Summary screen.

4. Select Plans > Planning.

The screen displays the Planning icons.

5. In the building tree on the left, click the + icon of the building that contains the floor

The floor names display.

6. Click the floor name.

The floor map displays.

7. Click an access point to select it.

8. Click the Antenna Note: The Antenna

icon.

icon is masked if you do not select an access point.

RF Planning and Deployment

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9. Specify the antenna settings as described in the following table.

Setting Description

Name Enter a name for the antenna.

By default, the access points are numbered, for example, Antenna-1.

Model Specify the antenna that you intend to use for the floor:

1. Click the Browse button.

The antennas that the wireless controller supports display in a pop-up screen.

2. Click the antenna.

All calculations are performed with the selected antenna.

3. Click the Confirm button.

The changes are saved and the pop-up screen closes. AP Type When you select an antenna, this field is populated automatically. Angle When you add a directional antenna, by default, the antenna points to the north. You

can set the antenna direction to a desired angle. Specify the antenna angle:

1. Click the Browse button.

A degree clock displays in a pop-up screen.

2. Click the degree at which you want to direct the antenna.

The yellow needle moves to the selected degree.

3. Click the Confirm button.

The changes are saved and the pop-up screen closes. Price($) As an option, enter the price of the antenna. Description As an option, enter a description for the access point.

2.4G Specify the settings for the 2.4 GHz band:

• Enable. By default, the On radio button is selected and the 2.4 GHz band is

enabled for the antenna.

Off

radio button.

• Antenna Gain (dBi). When you select an antenna, this field is populated

automatically

• Antenna Pattern. When you select an antenna, this field is populated

automatically

To disable the 2.4 GHz band for the antenna, select the

10. Click the Confirm button.

The changes are saved and the pop-up screen closes. The new antenna is placed at the edge of the floor map and shows a connection with the

access point.

11. To move an antenna to another location on the floor map, drag the antenna to a location on

the floor map.

Note: Moving an antenna turns off the heat map.

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12. To change the properties for an antenna, do the following:

a. Double-click the antenna.

A pop-up menu displays.

b. From the pop-menu, select Edit Properties.

The Edit Antenna pop-up screen displays. This screen is identical to the Add Antenna pop-up screen.

c. Change the properties.

For information about the properties, see the previous table.

d. Click the Confirm button.

The changes are saved and the pop-up screen closes.

13. T

o remove an existing antenna from the floor map, do the following:

a. Click the antenna to select it. b. Click the Delete

14. T

o add another antenna to the floor map, change the properties for another antenna, move another antenna on the floor map, remove another antenna from the floor map, or perform a combinations of these tasks, repeat Step 7 through Step 13

link.

o turn the heat map on or off, on the right, click the HeatMap

15. T

If you turn on the heat map, the heat map is generated and displays. Use the color information on the right as guidance for WiFi coverage.

Note: Adding or removing antennas changes the heat map.

16. T

o switch the heat map to the 2.4 GHz or 5 GHz band, on the right, click the Band The Band icon displays 2.4G if the heat map for the 2.4 GHz band is shown. The Band

icon displays 5G if the heat map for the 5 GHz band is shown.

17. To show the map with or without grid, on the right side, click the Grid

18. To show the antennas by model or without a label, on the right side, click the Label

and select your preference. By default, the antenna name is shown. The IP address and channel do not apply to an

antenna.

19. To save the floor map with its new configuration, click the Save

The settings are saved.

icon.

icon

icon.

Display and Recalculate the WiFi Coverage for a Heat Map

After you set up an RF plan and generate a heat map for a floor, you can display the WiFi coverage and view how the WiFi coverage changes if you change the minimum signal strength with the same number of access points and antennas.

RF Planning and Deployment

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

However, the WiFi coverage tool is for display and information only. To change the actual minimum signal strength for an RF plan, you must run the WiFi auto planning advisor again (see Use the WiFi Auto Planning Advisor to Generate an RF Plan for a Floor on page 64).

The default minimum signal strength is –62 dBm. The WiFi coverage percentage is calculated based on this value. You can change this value and recalculate the coverage percentage.

 To display and recalculate the WiFi coverage for an existing heat map:

1. Open a web browser. In the browser’

s address field, type the wireless controller’s IP

address. By default, the IP address is 192.168.0.250.

The wireless controller’s login screen displays.

2. Enter your user name and password.

If you did not yet personalize your user name and password, enter admin for the user name and password for the password, both in lowercase letters.

3. Click the Login button.

The wireless controller’s web management interface opens and displays the Summary

screen.

4. Select Plans > Planning.

The screen displays the Planning icons.

5. In the building tree on the left, click the + icon of the building that contains the floor

The floor names display.

6. Click the floor name.

The floor map displays.

7. On the right, click the

HeatMap

icon.

The heat map for the 2.4 GHz band is generated and displays. Use the color information

on the right as guidance for WiFi coverage.

8. To generate the heat map for the 5 GHz band, on the right, click the Band

icon.

The heat map for the 5 GHz band is generated and displays. Use the color information on

the right as guidance for WiFi coverage.

9. Click the Coverage

Note: The Coverage

icon.

icon is masked if you did not generate a heat map.

RF Planning and Deployment

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The Total Number of AP and Total Number of Antenna fields are based on the RF plan and fixed. The Wi-Fi Coverage Percentage (%) field displays the WiFi coverage based on the position of the Minimum Signal Strength slider at –62dBm.

10. Move the position of the Minimum Signal Strength slider to another dBm value.

11. Click the Re-Calculate button.

The W dBm value.

12. Click the OK button.

The pop-up screen closes. If you want to change the actual minimum signal strength for an RF plan, run the WiFi

auto planning advisor again (see Use the W

Plan for a Floor on page 64).

i-Fi Coverage Percentage (%) field displays the WiFi coverage based on the new

iFi Auto Planning Advisor to Generate an RF

Display or Change the WiFi Inventory for an RF Plan

The inventory for an RF plan of a floor displays all access points and antennas that you added by running the WiFi auto planning advisor, the access points and antennas that you added manually, or a combination of both.

 To display or change the access point and antenna inventory for an RF plan:

1. Open a web browser. In the browser’

address. By default, the IP address is 192.168.0.250.

The wireless controller’s login screen displays.

s address field, type the wireless controller’s IP

2. Enter your user name and password.

If you did not yet personalize your user name and password, enter admin for the user name and password for the password, both in lowercase letters.

3. Click the Login button.

The wireless controller’s web management interface opens and displays the Summary screen.

RF Planning and Deployment

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4. Select Plans > Planning.

The screen displays the Planning icons.

5. In the building tree on the left, click the + icon of the building that contains the floor.

The floor names display.

6. Click the floor name.

The floor map displays.

7. Click the Inventory

icon.

By default, the AP List tab is selected and the access point inventory displays. The inventory is based on the access points that you added by running the WiFi auto planning advisor (see Use the WiFi Auto Planning Advisor to Generate an RF Plan for a Floor on page 64), the access points that you added manually (see Manually Add and Manage

Access Points on a Floor Map for an RF Plan on page 69), or a combination of both.

o change the properties for an access point in the inventory, do the following:

8. T

a. Select the access point in the inventory table. b. Click the Edit Properties button.

The Edit

AP pop-up screen displays.

c. Change the properties.

For more information about changing the properties, or for information about removing an access point from the inventory

, see Manually Add and Manage

Points on a Floor Map for an RF Plan on page 69.

d. Click the Confirm button.

The changes are saved and the pop-up screen closes.

9. On the Inventory pop-up screen, click the Antenna List tab.

RF Planning and Deployment

Access

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The inventory is based on the antennas that you added by running the WiFi auto planning advisor (see Use the WiFi Auto Planning Advisor to Generate an RF Plan for a Floor on page 64), the antennas that you added manually (see Manually Add and Manage

Antennas on a Floor Map for an RF Plan on page 72), or a combination of both.

10. To change the properties for an antenna in the inventory, do the following:

a. Select the antenna in the inventory table. b. Click the Edit Properties button.

The Edit

Antenna pop-up screen displays.

c. Change the properties.

For more information about changing the properties, or for information about removing an access point from the inventory

Antennas on a Floor Map for an RF Plan

, see Manually Add and Manage

on page 72.

d. Click the Confirm button.

The changes are saved and the pop-up screen closes.

11. On the Inventory pop-up screen, click the OK button.

The Inventory pop-up screen closes.

12. T

o save the inventory changes, click the Save

icon.

The settings are saved.

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Download a Report for an RF Plan

The report for an RF plan includes the following components:

• Floor summary

• Inventory summary that could serve as a purchase list

• Detailed list of access points

• Detailed list of antennas (if you added any manually)

• Floor map with suggested locations of the access points and antennas

• Heat map for the 2.4 GHz band

• Heat map for the 5 GHz band

You can download the report as a PDF or a Microsoft Word file.

 To generate and download a report for an RF plan:

1. Open a web browser. In the browser’

address. By default, the IP address is 192.168.0.250.

The wireless controller’s login screen displays.

2. Enter your user name and password.

If you did not yet personalize your user name and password, enter admin for the user name and password for the password, both in lowercase letters.

3. Click the Login button.

The wireless controller’s web management interface opens and displays the Summary

screen.

4. Select Plans > Planning.

The screen displays the Planning icons.

5. In the building tree on the left, click the + icon of the building that contains the floor

The floor names display.

6. Click the floor name.

The floor map displays.

s address field, type the wireless controller’s IP

7. Click the PDF

The report downloads.

8. Follow the directions of your browser to save the report.

icon or the Word icon.

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View the Heat Map for a Deployed Floor Plan

For an RF plan, you can assign access points and antennas to a building and floor. However, these access points and antennas are used only for the purpose of planning and are not actual access points and antennas.

Access points display on the floor map of a deployed floor plan only if you assign them to the building and floor. For information about assigning access point to a building and floor

Assign Access Points to Buildings, Floors, and Advanced Profile Groups on page 169.

A heat map lets you view in real time, by wireless frequency band, the signal strength and wireless coverage for a floor of a building. The heat map shows the actual signal strengths that each access point is detecting from neighbor access points.

IMPORTANT:

For the heat map to provide realistic information, you must move each virtual access point to the virtual location on the floor map that matches the actual physical location of the physical access point on the floor as closely as possible.

, see

The heat map displays the following information:

• Signal strength and WiFi coverage, including weak coverage areas and coverage holes,

indicated by color

• Access points that are managed by the wireless controller

• For each access point, the following real-time information:

- Status in relation to the wireless controller (for example, Connected)

- IP address

- MAC address

- For each WiFi band, the number of connected clients

- For each WiFi band, the active channel

- For each WiFi band, the transmission (output) power

• For each antenna, the following information:

 T o move the access points and antennas to the correct locations on the floor map and

generate a realistic heat map for a deployed floor plan:

1. Open a web browser. In the browser’s address field, type the wireless controller’s IP

address. By default, the IP address is 192.168.0.250.

The wireless controller’s login screen displays.

2. Enter your user name and password.

RF Planning and Deployment

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If you did not yet personalize your user name and password, enter admin for the user name and password for the password, both in lowercase letters.

3. Click the Login button.

The wireless controller’s web management interface opens and displays the Summary

screen.

4. Select Plans > Heat Map.

The screen displays the Planning icons.

5. In the building tree on the left, click the + icon of the building that contains the floor

The floor names display.

6. Click the floor name.

Access points

before placement

7. The first time that you view the heat map, move the access points manually on the floor

map to closely match their actual physical locations on the floor by dragging each access point to the correct location on the floor map.

8. On the right, click the HeatMap

icon.

The heat map for the 2.4 GHz band is generated and displays. Use the color information

on the right as guidance for WiFi coverage.

9. To generate the heat map for the 5 GHz band, on the right, click the Band

icon.

The heat map for the 5 GHz band is generated and displays. Use the color information on

the right as guidance for WiFi coverage.

10. To see the information about an individual access point or antenna, point to the location.

RF Planning and Deployment

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A pop-up field displays the information.

11. To make adjustments to the WiFi coverage in real time, drag the access points to new

locations on the floor map.

12. To regenerate the heatmap, on the right, click the HeatMap

icon.

The heat map is generated and displays. Use the color information on the right as guidance for WiFi coverage.

13. If you made changes to the WiFi coverage on the floor map in

Step 11, move each physical access point to the actual physical location on the floor that matches the virtual location of the virtual access point on the floor map as closely as possible.

In other words, reverse the process that you accomplished in Step 7 and now make sure that the actual placement on the floor matches the virtual placement on the floor map.

RF Planning and Deployment

4. Installation and Configuration

Overview

This chapter includes the following sections:

• Connect Your Computer to the Wireless Controller

• Roadmap for Initial Configuration

• Roadmap for Configuring Management of Your Wireless Network

• Choose a Location for the Wireless Controller

• Deploy the Wireless Controller

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

Connect Your Computer to the Wireless Controller

To connect to the wireless controller for initial configuration, follow the steps in this section. You can also access the ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500 Installation Guide that you can download from http://support.netgear.com/product/WC9500.

 To connect your computer to the wireless controller:

1. Configure the computer with a static IP address of 192.168.0.210 and 255.255.255.0 as

the subnet mask.

2. Connect the wireless controller to the computer through the network or directly to the

wireless controller’

3. Connect the power cord from the wireless controller to an AC power outlet.

4. Verify that the following LEDs on the front panel are lit:

LED Description

Power The green Power LED is lit. If the Power LED is not lit, check the connections and check to see

if the power outlet is controlled by a wall switch that is turned off.

s Ethernet port.

Status The Status LED is lit yellow while the wireless controller is initializing. After approximately two

minutes, when the wireless controller completes its initialization, the Status LED turns green. Fan The green Fan LED is lit, indicating that the fans are functioning correctly Ethernet The right Ethernet port LED is lit green for a 1000 Mbps connection or yellow for a 100 Mbps or

10 Mbps connection. If it is not, make sure that the Ethernet cable is securely attached at both

ends.

Log In to the Wireless Controller

Before you log in to the wireless controller, make sure that you follow the steps in Connect

Your Computer to the Wireless Controller on page 85.

To log in to the wireless controller, you must use a web browser such as Microsoft Internet Explorer 9 or 10, or the latest Mozilla Firefox version, or Google Chrome 24 or later with JavaScript, cookies, and SSL enabled.

 To log in to the wireless controller:

1. Open your browser and type http://192.168.0.250 in the browser ’s address field.

Installation and Configuration Overview

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

The wireless controller’s login screen displays:

2. When prompted, enter admin for the user name and password for the password, both in

lowercase letters.

3. Click the Login button.

The wireless controller’s web management interface opens and displays the Summary

screen (the path is Monitor > Controller > Summary), which shows the network status and related information:

For information about the network status and related information, see View the Wireless

Controller Summary Screen on page 306.

Installation and Configuration Overview

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

Roadmap for Initial Configuration

After you connect and log in to the wireless controller, perform the initial configuration. If you are not sure how you are going to deploy the wireless controller in your network, NETGEAR recommends that you read Chapter 2, System Planning and Deployment Scenarios.

This section is a roadmap for basic configuration only: It provides high-level configuration steps with references to the sections or chapters that provide detailed configuration steps.

 To perform the initial configuration of the wireless controller:

1. Open a web browser. In the browser

address. By default, the IP address is 192.168.0.250.

The wireless controller’s login screen displays.

2. Enter your user name and password.

If you did not yet personalize your user name and password, enter admin for the user name and password for the password, both in lowercase letters.

3. Click the Login button.

The wireless controller’s web management interface opens and displays the Summary screen.

4. Select Configuration > System > General.

The General Settings screen displays.

5. Enter a name for the wireless controller and select the country in which the wireless

controller is used.

6. Click the Apply button.

The changes are saved.

7. Select Configuration > System > T

’s address field, type the wireless controller’s IP

ime.

The

Time Setting screen displays.

8. Select the time zone in which the wireless controller is used. Optionally, configure the NTP

settings. For more information, see

9. Click the Apply button.

The changes are saved.

10. Select Configuration > System > IP/VLAN.

The IP Settings screen displays.

11. Enter the IP settings for your network and the VLANs that you want to assign to the wireless

controller.

Manage the Time Settings on page 94.

Installation and Configuration Overview

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

Note: A management VLAN is used for all SNMP and HTTP traffic to and

from the wireless controller and managed access points.

Note: Clear the Untagged VLAN check box only if the hubs and switches in

your network support the VLAN (802.1Q) standard. Likewise, change the untagged VLAN value only if the hubs and switches in your network support the VLAN (802.1Q) standard.

For more information, see Manage the IP, VLAN, and Link Aggregation Settings on page 95.

12. Click the Apply button.

The changes are saved.

13. If your network does not include a DHCP server

server. For more information, see Manage the DHCP Server on page 98.

14. Click the Apply button.

The changes are saved. The connection to the wireless controller is terminated because you changed its IP

address.

15. Reconfigure your computer with an IP address and subnet mask that is in the same

IP subnet as the new IP address of the wireless controller.

16. Log back in to the wireless controller using its new IP address.

Continue with the following section, Roadmap for Configuring Management of Your

Wireless Network.

, configure the wireless controller’s DHCP

Roadmap for Configuring Management of Your Wireless Network

After you perform the initial configuration and change the IP address to an address that is

specific to your network (see Roadmap for Initial Configuration on page 87), you are ready to configure the wireless controller for management of your wireless network.

This section is a roadmap only: It provides high-level configuration steps with references to the sections or chapters that provide detailed configuration steps.

 To configure the wireless controller for management of your wireless network:

1. Open a web browser. In the browser

address. By default, the IP address is 192.168.0.250.

The wireless controller’s login screen displays.

Installation and Configuration Overview

’s address field, type the wireless controller’s IP

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

2. Enter your user name and password.

If you did not yet personalize your user name and password, enter admin for the user name and password for the password, both in lowercase letters.

3. Click the Login button.

The wireless controller’s web management interface opens and displays the Summary screen.

4. Register the licenses.

For more information, see Register Your Licenses on page 103.

5. (Optional but recommended) Replace the default certificate with a custom certificate for

certificate-based authentication of the

internal authentication server.

For more information, see Manage Certificates on page 107.

6. (Optional but recommended) Configure logs, alerts, and alarms.

For more information, see Configure Log, Syslog, Alarm Notification, and Email Settings on page 108.

7. Configure security profiles:

a. Configure the security profiles for the basic profile group or for advanced profile

groups. For detailed configuration steps, see:

• Manage Security Profiles for the Basic Profile Group on page 119.

• Manage Security Profiles for Advanced Profile Groups on page 124.

b. (Optional) Configure authentication servers.

For more information, see Manage Authentication Servers and Authentication Server

Groups on page 136.

c. (Optional) Configure MAC authentication.

For more information, see Manage MAC Authentication and MAC Authentication

Groups on page 142.

d. (Optional)

Assign the authentication servers and MAC

ACLs to the security profiles.

For more information, see:

• Manage Security Profiles for the Basic Profile Group on page 119.

• Manage Security Profiles for Advanced Profile Groups on page 124.

8. Configure the managed access point list:

a. Run the Discovery Wizard and add access points to the managed list.

For more information, see Discover Access Points with the Discovery Wizard on page 154.

b. (Optional) Configure access points that are on the managed list.

For more information, see Manage the Managed AP List on page 163.

Installation and Configuration Overview

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

c. (Optional) Assign access points to advanced profile groups:

For more information, see Assign Access Points to Buildings, Floors, and Advanced

Profile Groups on page 169.

9. (Optional) Configure rogue access point detection.

For more information, see Manage Rogue Access Points on page 213.

10. (Optional) Configure a guest portal or captive portal.

For more information, see Manage Guest Network Access on page 217.

11. (Optional) Configure user accounts and portal accounts.

For more information, see Manage Users, Accounts, and Passwords on page 222.

12. (Optional) Configure wireless and QoS settings.

For more information, see Chapter 8, Configure Wireless and QoS Settings.

13. (Optional but recommended) Back up the configuration.

For more information, see Back Up the Configuration File on page 239.

Choose a Location for the Wireless Controller

The wireless controller is suitable for use in an office environment where it can be

freestanding on its runner feet or mounted into a standard 19-inch equipment rack. Alternatively , you can rack-mount the wireless controller in a wiring closet or equipment room. A mounting kit, containing two mounting brackets and screws, is provided in the wireless

controller package.

Consider the following when deciding where to position the wireless controller:

• The unit is accessible and cables can be connected easily.

• Cabling is away from sources of electrical noise. These include lift shafts, microwave

ovens, and air-conditioning units.

• Water or moisture cannot enter the case of the unit.

• Airflow around the unit and through the vents in the side of the case is not restricted.

Provide a minimum of 25 mm or 1 inch of clearance.

• The air is as free of dust as possible.

• T

emperature operating limits are not likely to be exceeded. Install the unit in a clean, air-conditioned environment. For information about the recommended operating temperatures for the wireless controller, see

Technical Specifications, and Passwords Requirements.

Appendix A, Factory Default Settings,

Installation and Configuration Overview

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

Deploy the Wireless Controller

After you follow the steps in Roadmap for Initial Configuration on page 87 and Roadmap for

Configuring Management of Your Wireless Network on page 88, you are ready to deploy the

wireless controller in your network.

 To deploy the wireless controller:

1. Disconnect the wireless controller from the computer that you used for configuration.

2. (Optional) Reconfigure the computer back to its original

3. Place the wireless controller where you intend to deploy it.

4. Connect an Ethernet cable from the wireless controller to a switch or router on your wired

network.

5. Connect the power cord to the wireless controller and plug the power cord into a power

outlet.

TCP/IP settings.

The Power

Basic Functioning on page 338.

, Status, and Ethernet LEDs light. If any of these do not light, see Troubleshoot

Installation and Configuration Overview

5. Configure the System and Network

Settings and Register the Licenses

This chapter includes the following sections:

• Configure the General Settings

• Manage the Time Settings

• Manage the IP, VLAN, and Link Aggregation Settings

• Manage the DHCP Server

• Register Your Licenses

• Manage Certificates

• Configure Log, Syslog, Alarm Notification, and Email Settings

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

Configure the General Settings

Note: You must select the correct country or region of operation. It might not

be legal to operate the access points in a country or region not shown here. If your location is not listed, check with your local government agency or check the NETGEAR website for more information about which channels to use.

The General Settings screen lets you configure the basic settings of your wireless controller.

 To configure general settings:

1. Open a web browser. In the browser’

address. By default, the IP address is 192.168.0.250.

The wireless controller’s login screen displays.

2. Enter your user name and password.

If you did not yet personalize your user name and password, enter admin for the user name and password for the password, both in lowercase letters.

3. Click the Login button.

The wireless controller’s web management interface opens and displays the Summary screen.

4. Select Configuration > System > General.

The General Settings screen displays:

s address field, type the wireless controller’s IP

Configure the System and Network Settings and Register the Licenses

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

5. Configure the settings as described in the following table.

Setting Description

Name Enter a unique value as the wireless controller name. NETGEAR recommends

changing the name as soon as possible after setting up. The name must contain only alphabetical characters, numbers, and hyphens, and must

be 31 characters or less.

Country/Region From the menu, select the region of operation for the wireless controller and the access

points that the wireless controller manages. This setting is crucial for optimal performance of the wireless controller. The wireless

controller uses the country code to determine the best wireless settings for the access points. In the United States, the country is preset and cannot be changed on the access points. If the country or region is not set up correctly be able to access the access points.

Note: To enable the wireless controller to transmit at a higher power level than the level

that might be specified for your country or region, select Rest of World from the Country/Region menu.

, the wireless controller might not

Controller Location Code

(Optional) Enter a code to identify the physical location of the wireless controller. If you use more than one wireless controller, a code is especially useful.

6. Click the Apply button.

The changes are saved.

Manage the Time Settings

This screen lets you configure the time-related settings of your wireless controller and managed access points.

 To configure time settings:

1. Open a web browser. In the browser’

address. By default, the IP address is 192.168.0.250.

The wireless controller’s login screen displays.

2. Enter your user name and password.

If you did not yet personalize your user name and password, enter admin for the user name and password for the password, both in lowercase letters.

s address field, type the wireless controller’s IP

3. Click the Login button.

The wireless controller’s web management interface opens and displays the Summary

screen.

4. Select Configuration > System > T

Configure the System and Network Settings and Register the Licenses

ime.

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

The Time Settings screen displays:

5. Configure the settings as described

6. in the following table.

Setting Description

Time Zone From the menu, select the local time zone for your country or region. Current Time This field is a nonconfigurable field that displays the current time at your

location.

NTP Client Select the Enable radio button to use a Network

synchronize the clock of the wireless controller and managed access points. Select the Disable

Use Custom NTP Server Select the Use Custom NTP Server check box if you want to use an alternate

NTP server. By default, the NETGEAR NTP server is used.

Hostname/IP Address Enter the host name or IP address of the NTP server, if you are using a custom

NTP server.

radio button if you do not want to use an NTP server

Time Protocol (NTP) server to

7. Click the Apply button.

The changes are saved.

Manage the IP, VLAN, and Link Aggregation Settings

You can manage the IP address, VLAN settings, and link aggregation (LAG) settings of the wireless controller.

Management VLAN Concepts

Management VLANs are used for all SNMP and HTTP traffic to and from the wireless controller and managed access points.

For large deployments, NETGEAR recommends that the wireless controller and access points are in separate VLANs to ensure uninterrupted connectivity between the wireless controller and the access points.

Configure the System and Network Settings and Register the Licenses

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

The wireless controller and access points share heartbeat messages to keep synchronized and share configurations and client key data to facilitate seamless roaming.

Untagged VLAN Concepts

When the Untagged VLAN check box is selected on the IP Settings screen, one VLAN can be configured as an untagged VLAN:

• When the wireless controller sends frames associated with the untagged VLAN to the

LAN (Ethernet) interface, those frames do not carry an 802.1Q VLAN header.

• When the wireless controller receives untagged traffic from the LAN (Ethernet) interface,

those frames are assigned to the untagged VLAN.

If you clear the (Ethernet) frames, and accepts only incoming frames that are tagged with known VLAN IDs.

Note: Clear the Untagged VLAN check box only if the hubs and switches

Changing either of these values results in a loss of IP connectivity if the hubs and switches on your network are not configured with the corresponding VLANs.

Untagged VLAN check box, the wireless controller tags all outgoing LAN

on your LAN support the VLAN (802.1Q) standard. Likewise, change the untagged VLAN value only if the hubs and switches on your LAN support the VLAN (802.1Q) standard.

Link Aggregation Concepts

If you connect the two 10GE connections of the wireless controller to a switch or router, the wireless controller supports dynamic link aggregation (802.3ad), which you can use either to increase bandwidth or to support link redundancy.

You can enable the wireless controller to automatically create a single link aggregation group (LAG) in which the two links share the same speed and duplex settings. The link selection for egress traf

fic is based on the transmit hash policy.

You can also configure a standby link in which only one link in the LAG is active. The standby link becomes active only if the active link fails. In such a situation, a failover occurs from the failed active link to the standby link, which becomes the new active link.

Configure the IP, VLAN, and Link Aggregation Settings

You can configure the management IP address, VLAN settings, and link aggregation (LAG) settings of the wireless controller.

 To configure IP, VLAN, and LAG settings:

1. Open a web browser. In the browser

address.

Configure the System and Network Settings and Register the Licenses

’s address field, type the wireless controller’s IP

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

By default, the IP address is 192.168.0.250. The wireless controller’s login screen displays.

2. Enter your user name and password.

If you did not yet personalize your user name and password, enter admin for the user name and password for the password, both in lowercase letters.

3. Click the Login button.

The wireless controller’s web management interface opens and displays the Summary screen.

4. Select Configuration > System > IP/VLAN.

The IP Settings screen displays:

5. Configure the settings as described in the following table.

Setting Description IP Settings section

IP Address Enter the IP address of the wireless controller.

The default IP address is 192.168.0.250. To change it, enter an available IP address from the address range used on your LAN.

IP Subnet Mask Enter the subnet mask value used on your LAN.

The default value is 255.255.255.0.

Default Gateway Enter the IP address of the gateway for your LAN.

Configure the System and Network Settings and Register the Licenses

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

Setting Description

Primary DNS Server Enter the IP address of the primary Domain Name Server (DNS) that you want to

use. Secondary DNS Server Enter the IP address of the secondary DNS that you want to use. WINS Server Enter the IP address of the Windows Internet Name Service (WINS) that you want

to use.

Management VLAN Settings section

Management VLAN Enter the management VLAN.

For more information, see Management VLAN Concepts on page 95. Untagged VLAN Select the Untagged VLAN check box if the configured VLAN is untagged.

For more information, see Untagged VLAN Concepts on page 96.

10G Port Settings section

LAG Select the LAG radio button to enable the wireless controller to automatically

create a LAG in which both links are active.

The LAG radio button and Active Standby radio button are mutually exclusive.

For more information, see Link Aggregation Concepts on page 96. Active Standby Select the Active Standby radio button to enable the wireless controller to

automatically create a LAG in which only one link is active and the other link

functions as a standby link.

The Active Standby radio button and LAG radio button are mutually exclusive.

For more information, see Link Aggregation Concepts on page 96

6. Click the Apply button.

The changes are saved.

Manage the DHCP Server

Note: Make sure that a DHCP server is available; otherwise, the Discovery

Wizard does not function correctly. If your network already includes a DHCP server, do not enable the DHCP server on the wireless controller.

The wireless controller can function as a DHCP server. You can add multiple DHCP server pools for different VLANs. By default, no DHCP server pool is configured on the wireless controller but you can add one or more DHCP server pools.

Configure the System and Network Settings and Register the Licenses

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

Add a DHCP Server

The DHCP Server List screen lets you add a DHCP server pool.

 To add a DHCP server and configure its settings:

1. Open a web browser. In the browser’

s address field, type the wireless controller’s IP

address. By default, the IP address is 192.168.0.250.

The wireless controller’s login screen displays.

2. Enter your user name and password.

If you did not yet personalize your user name and password, enter admin for the user name and password for the password, both in lowercase letters.

3. Click the Login button.

The wireless controller’s web management interface opens and displays the Summary screen.

4. Select Configuration > System > DHCP Server.

The DHCP Server List screen displays. The following figure shows part of the DHCP Server List screen. Because this screen is wide, it is shown in the following two figures:

Configure the System and Network Settings and Register the Licenses

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

The DHCP Server List shows the DHCP servers that are already configured on the

wireless controller.

5. Click the Add button.

The Add DHCP Server pop-up screen displays:

6. Configure the settings as described in the following table.

Setting Description

Enabled Select the Enabled check box to enable the DHCP server.

When the check box is cleared, the DHCP server is disabled.

Use VLAN Interface Select the Use VLAN Interface

with multiple VLANs.

VLAN Enter the DHCP server VLAN ID.

The range is between 1 and 4094. The DHCP server services this VLAN.

IP Network Enter the IP address for the wireless controller in the VLAN that you specified in

the VLAN field.

Note: If you do not select the Use VLAN Interface check box, the IP address

of the wireless controller’s management VLAN is used.

Subnet Mask Enter the subnet mask that is assigned to the wireless clients by the DHCP

server

Default Gateway Enter the IP address of the default network gateway for all traffic beyond the

local network. Start IP Enter the start IP address of the range that the DHCP server can assign. End IP Enter the end IP address of the range that the DHCP server can assign.

check box to allow the DHCP server to function

Configure the System and Network Settings and Register the Licenses

100

Netgear WC9500 Reference Manual

Specifications and Main Features

Frequently Asked Questions

User Manual

ProSAFE Wireless Controller WC9500

Contents

1. Introduction

Key Features and Capabilities

Package Contents

Hardware Features

Front Panel Ports, Slots, and LEDs

Back Panel Features

Bottom Panel with Product Label

WC9500 Wireless Controller System Components

Supported NETGEAR Access Points

Supported NETGEAR Antennas

What Can You Do with the WC9500 Wireless Controller?

Licenses

Maintenance and Support

Basic and Advanced Setting Concepts

Profile Group Concepts

Basic Profile

Advanced Profile

System Planning Concepts

Preinstallation Planning

Before You Configure a Wireless Controller

High-Level Configuration Examples

Single Controller Configuration with Basic Profile Group

Single Controller Configuration with Advanced Profile Groups

Stacked Controller Configuration

Management VLAN and Data VLAN Strategies

High-Level Deployment Scenarios

Scenario Example 1: Network with Single VLAN

Scenario Example 2: Advanced Network with VLANs and SSIDs

Scenario Example 3: Advanced Network with Redundancy

3. RF Planning and Deployment

RF Planning Overview

Planning Requirements

Recommended RF Planning Procedure for a Building

Manage a Building and Floors for an RF Plan

Add a Building and Floors

Add a Single Floor to a Building

Scale a Floor

Add a WiFi Coverage or WiFi Noncoverage Zone to a Floor

Remove a WiFi Coverage or WiFi Noncoverage Zone from a Floor

Add a WiFi Building Obstacle to a Floor

Remove a Building Obstacle from a Floor

Add a WiFi Obstruction Area

Remove a WiFi Obstruction Area

Change the Name, Map, or Dimensions of a Floor

Change the Name of a Building

Duplicate an Entire Building with All Floors

Duplicate a Single Floor

Remove a Single Floor

Remove an Entire Building with All Its Floors

Use the WiFi Auto Planning Advisor to Generate an RF Plan for a Floor

Manually Add and Manage Access Points on a Floor Map for an RF Plan

Manually Add and Manage Antennas on a Floor Map for an RF Plan

Display and Recalculate the WiFi Coverage for a Heat Map

Display or Change the WiFi Inventory for an RF Plan

Download a Report for an RF Plan

View the Heat Map for a Deployed Floor Plan

Connect Your Computer to the Wireless Controller

Log In to the Wireless Controller

Roadmap for Initial Configuration

Roadmap for Configuring Management of Your Wireless Network

Choose a Location for the Wireless Controller

Deploy the Wireless Controller

Configure the General Settings

Manage the Time Settings

Manage the IP, VLAN, and Link Aggregation Settings

Management VLAN Concepts

Untagged VLAN Concepts

Link Aggregation Concepts

Configure the IP, VLAN, and Link Aggregation Settings

Manage the DHCP Server

Add a DHCP Server