Silex Technology 90148 Users Manual

User’s Guide

802.11b Print Server

TROY Group, Inc. Wireless and Connectivity Division • 1692 Browning • Irvine, CA 92606-4809 USA

Tel: [phone] Fax: [phone] ª E-mail: [e-mail] • www.troyxcd.com

Part Number 40148-100

Revision 0.2

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Copyright Notice

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored, in a
retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechani­cal, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written permission
of TROY Group, Inc. The information contained herein is designed only for use
with this TROY product. TROY is not responsible for any use of this information
as applied to other products.

Neither TROY nor its affiliates shall be liable to the purchaser of this product or
third parties for damages, losses, costs, or expenses incurred by purchaser or third
parties as a result of accident, misuse or abuse of this product or unauthorized
modifications, repairs, or alterations to this product, or (excluding the U.S.) failure
to strictly comply with TROY’S operating and maintenance instructions.

Warranty Notice

TROY GROUP, INC. SPECIFICALLY DISCLAIMS THE IMPLIED WAR­RANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS OF THIS PRODUCT
FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. TROY shall not be liable for any errors con­tained in this manual or for any damages resulting from loss of use, data profits, or
any incidental or consequential damages arising from the use of TROY products

or services.

Trademark Notice

EtherWind is a registered trademarks of TROY Group, Inc. Bluetooth is a trade­mark of BLUETOOTH SIG, Inc. and licensed to TROY.

General Notice: Other product names used herein are for identifications purposes
only and may be trademarks of their respective owners. TROY disclaims any and
all rights in those marks.

Copyright © 2001 by TROY Group, Inc.

Contents

Introduction

Windows System Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2

About Your User’s Guide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2

1 Installing the EtherWind Print Server Hardware

Unpacking the Print Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1-1

Before You Begin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1-1

EtherWind Connectors, Switches, and LED’S . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1-2

Connecting the Serial EtherWind to an RS-232 Serial Device . . . . . . . .1-3

Connecting to a Printer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1-4

Verifying Successful Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1-4

Verifying the Connection to the Printer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1-5

Configuring the EtherWind . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1-5

2 Configuring the EtherWind 802.11b and IP Settings . . . . .2-1

3 Management Methods

WP-Admin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3-1

XAdmin32 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3-1

WebXAdmin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3-1

EtherWind Console . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3-2

4 Windows Network Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4-1

5 AppleTalk Network Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5-1

6 Novell NetWare Network Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6-1

7 UNIX Network Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7-1

8 DEC LAT Network Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8-1

9 Banyan VINES Network Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9-1

10 PrintraNet Internet Remote Printing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10-1

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iv

11 Troubleshooting

Troubleshooting Frequently Asked Questions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11-1

Loading the Firmware . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11-2

Uninstalling the EtherWind Wireless Software . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11-4

12 Where to Get Help

Worldwide Web Support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12-1

Contacting TROY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12-1

Returning Products . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12-1

Warranty . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12-2

13 Notices

FCC Compliance Statement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13-1

Declaration of Conformity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13-2

Introduction

The EtherWind 802.11b Wireless Print Server lets you communicate with printers
from anywhere on an 802.11b wireless network. You can use the print server in
ad-hoc (peer-to-peer) or infrastructure (access point) wireless mode, as shown
below.

The print server operates at speeds of up to 11 Mbps on any IEEE 802.11b wire­less compatible network. Your printer can be simultaneously connected to your
PC or Macintosh via the USB port.

Follow the instructions in this manual to install the print server for your printer.
For more information, and software downloads, check on the TROY web site
(http://www.troyxcd.com).

1

Ad-Hoc Mode

(Peer-to-Peer)

Infrastructure Mode

(With Access Point)

Laptop computer with

802.11b capabilities

Laptop computer with

802.11b capabilities

EtherWind

EtherWind

802.11b

Access Point

Local Area Network

(or Cable/DSL connection)

Printer

Printer

System Requirements

To use the EtherWind for printing from a wireless network, you need an 802.11b
wireless network. The wireless network will consist of either of the following:

◗ An 802.11b wireless enabled PC or Macintosh printing straight to the printer

(Ad-Hoc or Peer-to-Peer Mode).

◗ An 802.11b wireless access point allowing wireless and wired Ethernet enabled

computers to print to the EtherWind.

To configure and print to the EtherWind, you need the following:
◗ The MAC address from the label of the EtherWind (for example:

004017023F96)

◗ The following information from your wireless network administrator:

• Wireless Mode (Infrastructure or Ad-Hoc)

• The SSID (service set identifier) for your wireless network

• The Radio Frequency Channel of the wireless network

• If you are using TCP/IP (recommended for Windows Networks) and are
not connected to a DHCP server (for obtaining an IP Address automati­cally), you will need a unique IP Address for the EtherWind (for example:

192.168.1.14). If the EtherWind is not on the same IP subnet as the com­puters you are printing from, you will also need a subnet mask and a
router (default gateway) address.

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Installing the

EtherWind Print

Server Hardware

Before You Begin

Before you install the EtherWind wireless print server, make sure that your printer
or other device and your computer already function properly via a parallel, serial
or USB printer cable. Refer to your printer’s documentation for instructions on
using and maintaining your printer.

In addition, make sure that you have properly installed the 802.11b wireless
equipment and software you are using to communicate to the EtherWind as
described in the documentation that came with that equipment.

Unpacking the Print Server

Your package should contain the following items:

◗ EtherWind Wireless Print Server

◗ EtherWind Wireless Print Server desktop mounting base

◗ EtherWind Wireless Print Server User’s Guide (This Book)

◗ IEEE 1284 Parallel Cable – 25 Pin Male to 36 Pin Male

◗ Power Supply

◗ Installation CD-ROM

If anything is missing from the box, please contact TROY.

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EtherWind Connectors, Switches, and LEDs

Test Switch. Press down this switch for less than 5 seconds to print a test page on
the printer. The test page will show the current wireless and network settings of
the EtherWind wireless print server. Press it down for more than 5 seconds to reset
the EtherWind to its factory default parameters. To enable console mode on the
serial port, hold in the test switch while powering on the Serial Server (see next
section for additional details).

Power Connector. Plug the power supply into this connector.

LED status indicators. The yellow light stays lit when you have made a wireless

connection to the EtherWind from a computer or access point. The green light
blinks whenever data is transmitted over the wireless link.

Parallel Port (DB25). This port is used for connecting to a parallel printer.

Serial Port (DB9). This port is used for connecting a serial printer or other serial

device. Can also be used to access the command line console of the EtherWind for
configuration and diagnostics.

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Test Switch

Serial Port (DB9)

Parallel Port (DB25)

Power Connector

LED Status
Indicators

Connecting the Serial EtherWind to an RS-232 Serial Device

The EtherWind has one standard PC-compatible 9-pin female D-connectors. The
serial port uses PC-compatible 9-pin male D-connectors. Note that the standard
off-the-shelf 9-pin female to 25-pin male PC cables will require a null modem in
order to connect to most printers or terminals. The pin-outs are as follows:

DB9 DTE DCE

pin Signal Signal pin pin

1 Not used Not used - ­2 Receive Data Transmit Data 2 3
3 Transmit Data Receive Data 3 2
4 DTR out DSR in 6 20
5 Signal Ground Signal Ground 7 7
6 DSR in DTR out 20 6
7 RTS out CTS in 5 4
8 CTS in RTS out 4 5
9 Not used Not used - -

Basically, the cable must connect input signals (e.g., Receive Data) on the TROY
EtherWind to the equivalent output signals (e.g., Transmit Data) on the device
and vice-versa.

The serial port can be set to operate in console mode to allow you to configure
and diagnose the EtherWind via a serial terminal (or PC with a terminal emula­tion program). To enable the console mode manual, unplug the power supply
from the serial server, hold down the Test switch and simultaneously plug in the
power supply. If no characters are received on the serial port during this time,
then console mode is enabled on the port (if characters are received, then the unit
goes into a special diagnostic mode).

The port will remain in console mode until the unit is power off.

You may also remotely enable console mode by connecting remotely to the
EtherWind via WebXAdmin, TELNET, NCP, or XConfig (refer to Chapter 3 for
information on how to use these utilities). With WebXAdmin, select Configure

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1-4

Port from the main menu, click on serial port S1, select Console Mode, and
click Submit. With TELNET or XCONFIG, use the following command:

SET PORT S1 CONSOLE ENABLED

You can remotely restore the port to normal serial operation by unselecting
Console Mode from WebXAdmin or by using the console command SET PORT
serialport CONSOLE DISABLED.

The serial ports are factory set at 115200bps, 8-bit data, CTS/RTS (Hardware)
flow control, and no parity. If your printer or serial device requires different set­tings, you must use WebXAdmin or a console terminal connected to port S1 as
described in the previous paragraph. With WebXAdmin, select Configure Port
from the main menu, click on S1, choose the desired settings, and click Submit.
With the console terminal, use one or more of the following commands:

SET PORT S1 SPEED

baudrate

SET PORT S1 PARITY

parity_type

SET PORT S1 FLOW

flowctrl

SET PORT S1 CHARACTER

charsize

Note that the serial port always operates at 115200bps when in console mode.

Don't forget to set the serial port settings on your printer or other device to match
the settings of the EtherWind

Connecting to a Printer

Follow these steps to connect the print server to your printer:

1. Attach the EtherWind to the desktop mounting base.

2. Connect the parallel cable to the print server and the printer.

3. Plug the power cord into a wall outlet or power strip, and into the print server.

Verifying Successful Installation

When the print server is powered on, the EtherWind will go through the follow­ing startup sequence:

◗ It runs through a set of power-up diagnostics for a few seconds. If the

EtherWind is operating properly, the green LED will blink momentarily and

then go out. If the green light blinks continuously in a regular patter, there is a
problem. Try unplugging the power and then plugging it in again. If the prob­lem persists, contact TROY.

◗ When a successful connection is made to the EtherWind from another

802.11b wireless device like an access point or PC, the yellow light will stay lit.
The green light will blink whenever there is printing activity. Since you have
not made a connection yet, both of these LEDs should be off.

Verifying the Connection to the Printer

Before attempting to print, it is very important to verify the connection between
the EtherWind and the printer. If this connection is not good, you will not be
able to print!

To verify this connection, make sure that both the EtherWind and the printer are
powered on and ready. Make sure that the cable is connected securely from the
EtherWind to the printer. Then print a test page by pushing the test switch and
letting go immediately.

If the test page does not print, first make sure all the connections are secure, and
make sure the printer is operating correctly and is not out of ink, toner, paper, etc.
Then power the EtherWind off and then on again, and try printing the self-test
page again.

If you cannot print a test page, refer to the Troubleshooting section of this manual.

Configuring the EtherWind

There are three basic steps required to configure the EtherWind:

1. Configuring the EtherWind 802.11b settings. To operate on an 802.11b net-
work, you must set the wireless mode (ad hoc or infrastructure), SSID, chan­nel, data rate and WEP encryption.

2. Configuring the IP address settings. You will need to set the IP address, subnet
mask, and router address if you are using TCP/IP, NetBIOS IP, IPP, or
PrintraNet, or if you want to use the WebXAdmin web-based management
utility.

3. Configuring the EtherWind for operation with the network operating systems. The
final step is to configure the EtherWind so that you can print to it using one

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or more network operating systems (for example, Windows NT/2000,
NetWare, AppleTalk, etc.).

These steps are described in the following chapters. Note that in most cases, the
EtherWind and the TROY WP-Admin software will automatically determine the

802.11b settings and the IP address settings.

1-6

Configuring the

EtherWind 802.11b

and IP Settings

You can configure the EtherWind 802.11b settings and the IP address settings
from a Windows or Macintosh PC that has 802.11b capabilities by using the
TROY WPAdmin utility.

Important Note:

If you are using WEP (Wired Equivalent Privacy) encryption on your wireless
network, you will need to temporarily disable WEP on your PC and switch it to
Ad-Hoc mode (Refer to your 802.11b wireless PC Card documentation for
instructions on how to do this). If you don’t have a PC on the wireless network
that can go into Ad-Hoc mode, you will need to temporarily disable WEP on the
Access Point (Refer to your 802.11b wireless Access Point documentation for
instructions on how to do this). When you are done configuring the wireless
print server, you can re-enable WEP on your wireless network.

The configuration procedure is as follows:

1. Insert the EtherWind Wireless Configuration CD-ROM into your PC or
Macintosh.

2. Click on EtherWind Wireless Utilities from the menu to install the utilities.

3. If you don’t have the Java Runtime installed on your system, you will be
prompted to install it, click Yes. Otherwise, move on to the next step.

4. At this point the WP-Admin utility will be installed and the Wireless Server
Search screen will start. The list is sorted by Ethernet address and server name.

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2

2-2

You will see a screen that looks like this:

5. Click on Search and select the EtherWind from the list to and click
Configure.

6. You will be prompted for a password, this is the configuration password
(default password is ACCESS). The Wireless Server Configuration screen
will appear:

7. The EtherWind you selected in the will configure itself to the same wireless
settings of the wireless network being used through the configuration utility, so
you should NOT need to change the Wireless Mode, RF Channel, SSID, and
Data Rate settings unless you want to change the EtherWind to a different
wireless network, or if you need to enable WEP. If you are using DHCP on
your network, the EtherWind will have acquired valid IP Address settings at
this point, and no further configuration should be required for the IP Boot
Method, IP Address, Subnet Mask, and Gateway fields. From this screen, you
can configure the IP Address settings and the Print Server name. A description
of each settings is listed below. Once these are all set, click OK or Apply.

Your Print Server should be configured correctly at this point. If you are using a
Windows System, go on to the Microsoft Network Configuration section of this
manual. If you are using a Macintosh System, go on to the AppleTalk Network
Configuration section of this manual.

GLOSSARY OF TERMS

Server Name
This is the name of the wireless print server. The default is XCD_xxxxxx (where
xxxxxx are the last six digits of the Ethernet address). You can choose any name for

this setting.

Password

This is the EtherWind Wireless Print Server configuration password. The default
is ACCESS, you can change it by entering a new one in this field.
IP Address, Subnet Mask, Gateway (or Router)
If you are using DHCP on your network, the EtherWind will have acquired valid
IP Address settings at this point, and no further configuration should be required.
A valid IP address needs to be configured in order for use with Windows and the
NetBIOS port monitor. Consult with your network administrator if you are not
sure what to use here to use.

Wireless Mode

This is the wireless mode you select for your print server. Ad-Hoc (sometimes
referred to as Peer-to-Peer, Computer-to-Computer, 802.11 Ad-Hoc, IBSS com­pliant Ad-Hoc) modes are used when your wireless enabled PC is printing straight
to the printer. Infrastructure mode is used when you have an Access point or base
station as the "hub" of your wireless network. Pseudo Ad-Hoc is only used for
testing and some older 802.11b implementations of Ad-Hoc.

RF Channel

The RF Channel is the wireless channel the print server uses to communicate. The
EtherWind will be able to automatically configure itself in most cases, but you
might need to manually set it to the same RF channel as the 802.11b wireless net­work. This value must match for all nodes on a network to communicate with
each other.

SSID

This is the Service Set Identifier (Sometimes referred to as Network Name). This
value must match for all nodes on a network to communicate with each other.

Data Rate

This is the throughput speed in Mbps of the wireless Ethernet connection (1, 2,

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5.5, or 11). In most cases with an 802.11b wireless network, it should be set to

11 Mbps. The Data Rate will automatically negotiate at the highest possible rate.

IP Method

This is the method the wireless print server uses to obtain an IP address. This can
be set to Auto, DHCP, BOOTP, RARP, or Static. Auto will try DHCP, BOOTP
and RARP, and then set to Static if it doesn’t get one automatically.

WEP Key

This is the setting to enable 64 bit (also compatible with 40 bit) or 128 bit Wired
Equivalent Privacy.

128 Bit / 64 Bit WEP Key

This is the 64 or 128 bit WEP key that must match other nodes’ encryption keys
in order to communicate: 10 characters for 64 bit, or 26 characters for 128 bit.
The EtherWind uses a Hexadecimal value for WEP. All 802.11b devices have a
way of translating their WEP or Security values to 10 (for 40-bit or 64-bit WEP)
or 26 (for 128-bit WEP) digit HEX values. Ask the manufacturer of your wireless
product how this is done for your PC and/or Access Point.

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3-1

Management

Methods

TROY offers a variety of ways to configure and monitor the EtherWind. These
methods are:

WP-Admin Utility

◗ This utility is used for initial configuration of the print server and allows you

to set the wireless settings as well as the basic network settings including
TCP/IP.

◗ See the previous section (Configuring the Wireless Print Server) for detailed

use instructions

◗ Can be downloaded from our web site (http://www.troyxcd.com)
◗ After initial installation, this utility can be run from the START menu under

START>Programs>TROY Group>EtherWind>WP-Admin

◗ Default password is ACCESS

XAdmin32

◗ This utility is used for advanced configuration of the print server and allows

you to configure for Netware, TCP/IP, AppleTalk settings and more.

◗ A 32-bit graphical utility
◗ Compatible with Windows PC’s running TCP/IP or IPX/SPX Protocols
◗ Included on CD-ROM
◗ Can be downloaded from our web site (http://www.troyxcd.com)
◗ After initial installation, this utility can be run from the START menu under

START>Programs>TROY Group>EtherWind>XAdmin32

◗ Default password is ACCESS

WebXAdmin

◗ Allows the user to configure the EtherWind with a standard web browser like

Netscape Navigator or Microsoft Internet Explorer.

◗ No additional software is needed on the system.

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