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User Guide for the CiscoWorks Wireless LAN Solution Engine, 2.7
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Index
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Preface
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Getting Started
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Fault Monitoring
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Managing Devices
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Using IOS Configuration Templates
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Using Non-IOS Configuration Templates
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Managing Device Configuration
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Updating Device Firmware
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Using Reports
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Managing the WLAN Radio Environment
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Viewing Your WLAN Radio Environment with Location Manager
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Managing the WLSE System
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Managing the WLSE System via the CLI
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Naming Guidelines
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Using the Command Line Interface (CLI)
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Glossary
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Table Of Contents
Managing Your WLAN Radio Environment
Getting Started with Radio Manager
Understanding the Radio Manager
Understanding Client Walkabouts
Understanding Radio Monitoring
Understanding Rogue AP Detection
Understanding Switch Port Location and Suppression
Understanding Interference Detection
Understanding Radio Parameter Generation
Understanding Auto Re-Site Survey
Understanding Scanning-Only AP Mode
Viewing Radio Management Reports
What is WDS and Why Do I Need To Use It?
Understanding Radio Performance—Coverage and Capacity
Collecting Radio Location Data
Using AP Radio Scans to Collect RM Data
Creating a New AP Radio Scan Job
Using Client Walkabouts to Collect RM Data
Managing Client Walkabout Sessions
Creating a New Client Walkabout
Guidelines for Running a Client Walkabout
Using Radio Monitoring to Collect RM Data
Using RM Assisted Configuration
Viewing Assisted Configuration Tasks
Managing Assisted Configuration Tasks
Creating a New Assisted Configuration Task
Using the Radio Manager Features
Detecting Switch Port Location and Suppressing Ports
Managing Your WLAN Radio Environment
The Radio Manager simplifies the deployment, expansion, and day-to-day management of your WLAN radio environment. The Radio Manager:
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Automatically configures network-wide radio parameters during initial deployment and network expansion.
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All the device information shown under the Radio Manager tab is polled from the managed devices in your network. The WLSE polls and receives Radio Manager aggregated data from access points running WDS and provides intelligent processing of this data. The WLSE can manage multiple subnets, so it can receive Radio Manager data from many APs running WDS.
Caution
After the access points have been configured for radio management, you can use the selections under the Radio Manager tab to collect radio data and manage your WLAN radio environment. The following topics discuss these options:
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Related Topics
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Getting Started with Radio Manager
Before you can use the radio management features provided by WLSE, you must make certain that your network is configured correctly. If your network is not properly configured, none of the Radio Manager functions will work.
Procedure
Step 1
Step 2
For more information about configuring WDS APs, see the Installation and Configuration Guide for the CiscoWorks Wireless LAN Solution Engine.
For more information about WDS and why the Radio Manager requires it, see What is WDS and Why Do I Need To Use It?.
Step 3
Note
Note
For more information about enabling LEAP authentication, see the Installation and Configuration Guide for the CiscoWorks Wireless LAN Solution Engine.
Step 4
Step 5
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
f.
You can also verify this setting by running the "show wlccp wnm status" CLI command on the primary WDS in enable mode. A typical output would look like this:
NMS-AP1200-1#show wlccp wnm statusWNM IP Address : 172.16.0.0 Status : SECURITY KEYS SETUPwhere:
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Step 6
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
You can also verify this setting by running the "show wlccp wds ap" CLI command on the primary WDS in enable mode.
Step 7
For information about configuring the ACS server to support roaming and simultaneous logins, see the ACS server documentation on Cisco.com.
For other information about configuring the ACS server, see the Installation and Configuration Guide for the CiscoWorks Wireless LAN Solution Engine.
Step 8
For information about configuring the AAA server to multiple logins, see the AAA server documentation on Cisco.com.
For other information about configuring the AAA server, see the Installation and Configuration Guide for the CiscoWorks Wireless LAN Solution Engine.
After these requirements have been satisfied, you are ready to use the Radio Manager to gather the data and manage your WLAN radio environment. Table 9-1 provides a high-level overview of the sequence in which the Radio Manager tab selections (procedures and features) must be used.
Table 9-1 Using the Radio Manager
Step 1
Configure your network to use the Radio Manager.
See this topic and the Installation and Configuration Guide for the CiscoWorks Wireless LAN Solution Engine.
Step 2
Collect radio location data
The Radio Manager uses these measurements to characterize the radio environment and determine the channels and power limits for each BSS.
Collecting Radio Location Data
Step 3
Generate radio parameters
The Radio Manager can generate optimal values for the radio parameters of a given group of APs.
Step 4
Monitor the WLAN environment:
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Managing Network-Wide Settings
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Understanding the Radio Manager
The Radio Manager consists of:
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Figure 9-1 Radio Manager Overview
The following topics describe these procedures and features.
Radio Manager Data Collection Procedures
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The Assisted Site Survey Wizard, part of Location Manager, walks you through these three data collection processes (see Using the Assisted Site Survey Wizard).
Radio Manager Features
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Related Topics
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Understanding AP Radio Scans
Each AP broadcasts beacons and simultaneously listens for neighboring beacons. The AP Radio Scan option uses the resulting AP-to-AP measurements to establish the path loss model for the WLAN.
Note
How It Works
During the scanning process, an AP radio scan performs the following tasks:
1.
During a scan, AP frequencies, data rates, and power levels are temporarily changed but no data rates are modified. For each AP, the channel is fixed and the procedure steps through the power levels up to the specified maximum transmit power level.
Note
2.
3.
4.
5.
Data Produced
The result of AP Radio Scan is a snapshot of the radio frequency interference at each AP and a set of signal strength measurements indicating the level at which each AP receives each neighbor AP. When the neighbor AP is controlled by WLSE, the Radio Manager uses that AP's current transmit level to compute the path loss between the two APs, which it saves to characterize the radio frequency environment. When the neighbor AP is not under WLSE control, the Radio Manager saves the received signal strength.
This data is used to:
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These results are used in RM Assisted Configuration, Location Manager, Radio Manager Reports, and Faults.
Understanding Client Walkabouts
After running AP Radio Scan and initial radio configuration, you can run one or more optional client walkabouts. During a client walkabout, the client (typically a laptop) is walked around the desired coverage area and reports all detected APs. A client walkabout is an optional step that provides optimal coverage for the radio parameter generator (see Generating Radio Parameters).
Note
How It Works
You can use up to five client stations, each identified by its 802.11 MAC address, during the Client Walkabout procedure. Use these client stations to walk around the area of WLAN or a portion of the WLAN where you want proper coverage. During the walkabout:
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As you walk the coverage area, the serving AP changes as the client moves from one BSS to another. As long as the client remains inside the coverage area, the serving AP continually commands it to measure and report the signal strength and background radio frequency energy it receives from neighboring APs. All measurements are passed to the Radio Manager, which incorporates them into its RF environment base. This base provides the information to compute the next radio configuration.
Data Produced
Although these measurements are not accompanied by location information, sets of measurements correspond to specific locations in the WLAN coverage area. The Radio Manager uses these measurements to create measurement objects, each containing path losses to the strongest controlled APs and received signal strength from uncontrolled sources at a specific location.
These results are used in RM Assisted Configuration, Location Manager, and Radio Manager Reports.
Understanding Radio Monitoring
Radio Monitoring runs on the specified Cisco IOS APs and its associated CCXV2-compliant clients to continuously monitor the WLAN radio environment and discover any new APs that are transmitting beacons. It generates alerts when new APs appear or interference occurs.
Note
How It Works
During normal operation, the Radio Manager requests measurements from Cisco APs and clients to monitor the WLAN radio frequency environment. These measurements occur less frequently than during a walkabout, typically one or more minutes apart. Radio Monitoring allows you to select which channels are monitored; both APs and clients can measure serving and non-serving channels. You make this choice when you enable Radio Monitoring.
An AP can be added to the Radio Monitoring list and also be included on an AP Radio Scan or Client Walkabout; the measurement requests for these two features supersede the monitoring measurement requests. When the other, shorter term procedures end, the APs return to the normal radio monitoring mode.
Data Produced
The channel measurements are used for radio configuration, rogue AP discovery, and interference detection. These results are used in Location Manager and Faults.
Understanding Rogue AP Detection
The Radio Monitoring feature uses the radio measurement capabilities on Cisco IOS APs and Cisco client adaptors to discover any new 802.11 APs that are transmitting beacons. Both clients and APs periodically scan for other 802.11 beacon frames on all channels. Reports of detected beacons are returned to the Radio Manager, which validates these beacons against a list of APs known to be authorized to provide wireless access.
Note
A newly discovered AP that cannot be identified as a known authorized AP generates an administrator alert. You can categorize this new AP as one of the following AP types:
How It Works
Rogue AP detection is based on the detection of an unknown radio interface broadcasting over the air. When Radio Monitoring detects a rogue AP, a new fault is generated. When you select the link in the Description or Timestamp fields in the Fault Summary Table for an unknown access point, the Rogue Access Point Details window displays information about the rogue AP (see Unknown AP Details).
Understanding Switch Port Location and Suppression
To find the switch port to which the rogue AP is connected, check the Switch Port Location information displayed in the Unknown AP Detail screen (see Unknown AP Details). The Switch Port Location feature tries to determine the rogue AP's Ethernet MAC address from its BSSID (or radio MAC address) that it hears over the air. The algorithm used to find the Ethernet MAC address assumes that the Ethernet MAC address is in the range of plus or minus 1 of the BSSID.
How It Works
The switch port location feature uses the AP that first detected the rogue AP as the seed device. From the seed device, WLSE tries to find any of the three MAC addresses on any port. If it finds any of the MAC addresses on any port, WLSE reports the port as a port to which the rogue AP is connected. You can chose to suppress the switch port and you can enable automatic suppression of switch ports so that each time a rogue AP is detected and WLSE finds the switch port to which the rogue AP is connected, it automatically disables the switch port (see Assigning Rogue AP Detection Network Settings).
Caution
If the Switch Port Location feature is unable to locate the switch port to which the rogue AP is connected, you click Re-Trace on the Rogue Access Point Details window to locate the switch port again (see Unknown AP Details).
Data Produced
When a Rogue AP fault is generated, the Rogue Access Point Details window displays information about the switch port to which the rogue AP is connected. (see Unknown AP Details).
Understanding Interference Detection
When you activate Radio Monitoring, you can start interference detection and choose what level of signal strength and duration of signal is required to detect interference. Only APs in the radio monitoring list and clients associated with these APs can participate in interference detection.
How It Works
The Radio Monitoring feature uses the radio measurement capabilities to discover any new interference.
Data Produced
When Radio Monitoring detects interference, a new fault is generated. To view details about the interference, click the link in the Description or Timestamp fields in the Fault Summary Table for an device to view the Fault Details window (se Viewing Fault Details).
Understanding Radio Parameter Generation
Radio Manager can generate optimal values for the radio parameters of a given group of APs. Each set of radio parameters can modify:
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RM Assisted Configuration helps you generate radio parameters by internally utilizing measurement data collected from a client walkabout and AP radio scanning. RM Assisted Configuration recommends optimal radio transmit power, channel selection, and beacon interval (optional), and then applies these configuration settings to the APs, if desired.
How It Works
RM Assisted Configuration uses data collected from client walkabouts and AP radio scans to calculate the optimal settings for the APs. You select the AP or group of APs that you want to include in the configuration task.
Data Produced
RM Assisted Configuration recommends optimal radio transmit power, channel selection, and beacon interval (optional) for the APs.
You can also use the Assisted Site Survey Wizard, which is part of Location Manager, to generate radio parameters (see Using the Assisted Site Survey Wizard).
Understanding Auto Re-Site Survey
Auto Re-site Survey extends the Radio Manager Assisted Site Survey Wizard functionality. It periodically evaluates the current AP radio performance on a per-floor basis against baselined performance data and alerts the user when the performance falls below a preset threshold.
How It Works
The Auto Re-Site Survey option uses data collected from previous RM Assisted Configuration jobs. The Auto Re-Site Survey option compares the current performance of the selected APs against the performance data collected the last time radio parameter generation was generated for the specified APs and applied to the specific floor. If the APs' radio performance has decreased by 20% (user-configurable), a fault is generated and you are asked if you want to generate new radio parameters. The new radio parameters are compared against the existing data, and if the newly generated radio parameter yield better results, you can apply the new radio parameters to the selected APs.
Data Produced
Auto Re-Site Survey generates a fault if the radio performance of the specified floor decreases by the percentage you specify. In addition, Auto Re-Site Survey allows you to generate new radio parameters and apply those parameters to the APs of the specified floor. (See Auto Re-Site Survey Details.)
Understanding Self Healing
Self Healing automatically adjusts the transmit power of APs to compensate for any loss of coverage in the event of a network failure. If the Radio Manager determines that an AP is down, Radio Management automatically adjusts neighboring AP interfaces to cover the potential areas of lost coverage.
How It Works
Self Healing performs two actions:
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Self Healing uses path loss data collected from AP Radio Scan and Radio Monitoring to determine a set of radio links for monitoring purpses. If all monitored links to a given AP are missing for more than three measurement report intervals and the AP was not administratively shut down, a self healing event is triggered.
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Using the information previously gathered from AP Radio Scans and Radio Monitoring, Radio Manager adjusts the transmit power levels of neighboring APs, which might or might not be on the same floor as the failed AP, to eliminate or compensate for any loss of coverage due to the failed AP. Self Healing modifies the power setting only, not the channel frequency or beacon interval, of the neighboring APs.
Note
Self healing is not triggered under the following conditions:
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Specifying Backup WDSs For Self Healing
The WDS provides WLSE with the data it needs to determine if a radio is up. If all the WDSs configured for the APs on a floor are down (non-operational), self healing might try to heal those APs due to the missing data.Therefore, all the APs on a floor configured with self healing should be registered with WDSs that have at least one backup. If a WDS goes down and there are no backups, self healing might try to heal every AP that was registered with that WDS.
Note
Data Produced
When the Self Healing function detects a network failure, a new fault is generated. (See Self Healing Monitoring Details.)
Understanding Scanning-Only AP Mode
Scanning-Only AP mode puts a radio interface in a dedicated mode monitoring the air space surrounding it without carrying any regular WLAN user traffic. Scanning APs:
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Note
How It Works
Scanning-Only AP mode can be enabled on a per-radio interface. If an AP contains two or more radio interfaces, each interface can be configured into Scanning-Only AP mode or any other mode independent of other radio interfaces.
A fault is generated when WLSE detects any unregistered clients. The fault report shows all detected unregistered clients that have not been acknowledged and cleared by the administrator.
Note
Scanning-Only AP mode can be used for rogue AP detection; the fault that is generated is the same as when a regular AP or client detects a rogue AP. Because the Scanning-Only AP dedicates itself in the radio monitoring mode, however, it can detect rogue devices more reliably and faster than a regular AP or client.
Viewing Radio Manager Faults
The fault monitoring feature queries managed devices for specific data, compares this data against thresholds, and declares faults when the thresholds have been crossed. When the Radio Manager detects interference or an unknown AP, a fault is generated. or more information about managing radio management faults, see Displaying Faults.
Viewing Radio Management Reports
The following Radio Manager reports contain useful information about your WLAN radio environment:
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To view, export, and email these reports, select Reports > Radio Manager. For more information about displaying Radio Manager reports, see Displaying Radio Manager Reports.
The following reports contain useful information about the type of client that is associating with an access point, how much bandwidth the client is using, and a history of with which access points the client has been associated:
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To view, export, and email these reports, select Reports > Wireless Clients.
What is WDS and Why Do I Need To Use It?
The critical software component in the network is a set of IOS features called the Wireless Domain Services (WDS). The WDS provides control path technologies that must be active on an AP in each AP subnet; a backup WDS can also be defined in each AP subnet. The WDS provides:
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Caution
When you set up WLSE to manage the APs (the basic network management configuration), your network looks something like this:
Using this approach, the WLSE can communicate with the APs using only these two methods:
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After you configure the network for Radio Management tasks (see Getting Started with Radio Manager), the same network would look like this:
Now the WLSE communicates all Radio Management activities with one or more WDS APs instead of all APs in the network. The WDS APs collect data from other wireless clients in the network and send this aggregated data to the WLSE.
Understanding Radio Performance—Coverage and Capacity
The Radio Manager:
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Each region is defined by the rough degree of contention and packet collisions experienced by clients in the region due to traffic outside of the BSS.
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The inter-BSS contention and collision translates into performance degradation, which the Radio Manager estimates for all potential clients within the region.
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The types and sizes of performance regions determine the expected maximum, minimum, and average performance of a particular domain.
AP/Client Relationships
The Radio Manager acquires knowledge of the WLAN radio environment from measurements obtained from Cisco APs and Cisco clients. Figure 9-2 illustrates the relationships between three APs and their clients.
Figure 9-2 AP/Client Relationships
In this example, the measuring client and one other client are associated with AP A, but neither client detects the other AP's signal. AP B is close enough to be detected by the measuring client, and AP C is out of range, but the measuring client does detect some of AP C's associated clients. Table 9-3 describes these relationships in more detail.
Table 9-3 AP/Client Relationships
The measuring client identifies access point B as a source of 802.11 contention.
The measuring client detects contention from a client in another BSS and identifies access point C as the BSS access point.
The measuring client reports significant contention due to clients in another BSS. Access point C is identified as the BSS access point.
The measuring client indicates intermittent non-802.11 interference and describes the statistics of its received strength.
The measuring client identifies another client in its BSS that appears to be hidden from it.
Radio Performance Regions
Radio performance regions within a BSS depend on the placement and transmit power of other co-channel APs. The transmit power of a BSS defines a set of RF reception rings around its AP (see Figure 9-3).
Figure 9-3 RF Reception Rings
Two rings correspond to the downlink:
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Two similar rings correspond with areas of reception and the RF influence emanating from a client positioned at the edge of the BSS coverage ring. The significant ring, the uplink RF influence ring (4), corresponds to the signal that originates from a client sending packets up to its AP.
Uplink Contention Regions
In Figure 9-4, AP1 and AP2 share the same channel. AP2 is examined as the BSS of interest, while AP1 is the cochannel neighbor. The highlighted performance region corresponds with an area in which BSS2 clients must contend with traffic from BSS1. The source of contention is shown as a set of clients in BSS1 near the edge of their planned coverage ring. This is known as uplink contention because it delays uplink traffic from clients to their AP.
Figure 9-4 Sample Performance Region
BSS2 performance region: AP2 clients that experience contention from AP1's clients
Source of contention: AP1 clients that cause the contention.
If AP2 has neighbors sharing the same channel on all sides, then similar uplink contention regions are defined in the direction of each neighboring AP. If any of these neighbors is closer than the one shown in Figure 9-4 or uses a higher power limit, then the uplink contention region is larger than shown in the figure. If clients of the neighboring BSSs are close enough to be detected by AP2, then AP2 experiences downlink contention due to the clients' traffic.
The BSS may also contain regions in which a client receives traffic that has collided with packets from another station. This occurs when the intended source and interfering source do not detect each other, which happens when:
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This situation can be remedied by blocking out time for an access point using RTS/CTS (request-to-send, clear-to-send) commands.
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This situation is an inter-BSS interference problem that could exist in any dense WLAN and cannot be remedied with RTS/CTS. One goal of the Radio Manager is to minimize its occurrence with a good radio configurations.
Types of Radio Measurements
The following topics describe the radio measurements and the benefits they provide to the Radio Manager:
Beacon Measurements
Beacon measurements are used to discover and monitor the presence of neighboring APs, regardless of whether they are controlled by the Radio Manager. This helps the Radio Manager characterize the overlap of co-channel BSSs and the redundancy of other-channel BSSs on the downlink.
The transmitting station address identifies the neighbor AP to the Radio Manager. The signal strength helps the Radio Manager assess the overlap of cochannel BSSs and the coverage redundancy of other-channel BSSs.
Contents
Received strength, identity, and body of neighbor AP beacon or probable response.
Benefits to AP Scan & Client Walkabout
Measure radio connectivity of APs and characterize potential BSS downlink coverage.
Benefits to Normal Operations
Identify specific sources of 802.11 contention, monitor known APs, detect new APs, roughly locate clients, determine path loss, and detect rogue APs.
CCA Measurements
CCA (Clear Channel Assessment) measurements, which can be collected on a serving or non-serving channel, characterize the degree of 802.11 contention at the location of the reporting STA. They are used to determine how heavily a channel is loaded.
CCA measurements include the CCA Busy Fraction, which measures the accumulated duration of all packets divided by the measurement interval length. This value includes successful packets and erroneous packets. The value range is 0 to 255, where 0 represents no traffic and 255 represents traffic occurring 100% of the time.
Contents
Fraction of time that STA observes channel busy with 802.11 traffic.
Benefits to AP Scan & Client Walkabout
Find channels already busy with 802.11 traffic to avoid in radio configuration.
Benefits to Normal Operations
Characterize degree of 802.11 contention at the location of the reporting STA.
RPI Histogram Measurements
Received Power Indicator (RPI) Histogram measurements can be collected on a serving or non-serving channel. The RPI Histogram data provides a measure of RF energy due to a combination of background noise and background signals, including non-802.11 devices and 802.11 devices whose signals cannot be properly decoded. The histogram helps the Radio Manager assess the non-802.11-decodable RF energy contending with the WLAN at different locations. This information helps the Radio Manager decide the best channel for each BSS in the vicinity of the measuring STA.
Contents
Received strength and statistics of non-802.11 radio frequency energy.
Benefits to AP Scan & Client Walkabout
Find channels with non-802.11 radio frequency energy to avoid in radio configuration, if possible.
Benefits to Normal Operations
Monitor for new non-802.11 radio frequency energy and alarm, if necessary.
Collecting Radio Location Data
Radio location measurements characterize the radio environment and provide the information other Radio Manager features require to determine the channels and power limits for each BSS. To gather these measurements, the Radio Manager provides these procedures:
Table 9-4 Radio Manager Data Collection Procedures
AP Radio Scan
APs transmit beacons on the same channel and detect all neighboring APs
Client Walkabout (optional, but recommended)
Client walks desired coverage area and reports all detected APs
Understanding Client Walkabouts
Radio Monitoring
Periodically gather RF statistics and identify specific signal sources
Understanding Radio Monitoring
Note
Related Topics
Using AP Radio Scans to Collect RM Data
The AP Radio Scan feature produces path loss data used for rogue location estimations, radio parameter generation data, and coverage display data. You should run an AP radio scan during initial setup, then periodically during brief maintenance periods when the WLAN is not in use (for example, 2:00AM) to capture any changes made to the APs (for example, when APs are added, deleted, or moved).
Note
AP Radio Scan allows you create, view, and manage AP radio scan jobs. Use this procedure to:
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These topics describe the procedures for managing AP Radio Scan jobs:
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Related Topics
Viewing AP Radio Scan Jobs
Note
Before You Begin
Before you can collect data using AP Radio Scan, you must have already:
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Procedure
Step 1
Step 2
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The screen refreshes to show you details about the specified jobs. The information displayed depends on the selected job state:
Step 3
Step 4
Related Topics
Managing AP Radio Scan Jobs
The buttons below the table of AP radio scan jobs (see Viewing AP Radio Scan Jobs) allow you to manage these jobs.
Note
Before You Begin
Before you can collect data using AP Radio Scan, you must have already:
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Procedure
Step 1
Step 2
Step 3
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The Filter button displays a limited set of AP radio scan jobs, making it easier to search for a particular job by name. The filter remains in effect until the page is refreshed.
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Use the Edit button to edit jobs from the displayed list of jobs.
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Use the Stop button to stop a running AP Radio Scan job.
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Use the Delete button to delete jobs from the displayed list of jobs. Jobs that are scheduled, unscheduled, completed, or did not start can be deleted. Jobs that are running cannot be deleted.
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Use the Copy button to create a new job using the data (maximum transmit power and selected APs) from a previously-created job.
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Use the Job Run Log button to view the run log for a selected job. The Job Runs table appears in a separate browser window.This table contains the following information for each run:
The job run log appears below this table. To view the details for a different job run, select another run and click Job Run Log.
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To make sure you are looking at the latest information after you have made changes to one or more AP radio scan jobs, click the Refresh button to refresh the job list.
Related Topics
Creating a New AP Radio Scan Job
Note
Before You Begin
Before you can run an AP Radio scan job, you must have already:
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Procedure
Step 1
Step 2
The window refreshes with the Job Creation menu in the left pane and the Job Name dialog box in the right pane.
Caution
Step 3
Note
1. Job Name—See Name the Job and Select the Maximum Transmit Power.
2. Select AP—See Select the APs.
3. Filter By PHY—See Select Radio Types.
4. Schedule Job—See Schedule the Job.
5. Finish—See Finish the Job.
Related Topics
Name the Job and Select the Maximum Transmit Power
Procedure
Step 1
Step 2
Job Name
Enter a unique name for the job. For guidelines on naming jobs, see "Naming Guidelines."
Description
Enter a description of the job. For guidelines on entering descriptions, see "Naming Guidelines."
Maximum Transmit Power
You can choose to enter a lower power setting when, for example, the default power level might affect a neighboring network.
Step 3
Related Topics
Select the APs
Procedure
Step 1
Step 2
Step 3
Related Topics
Select Radio Types
Procedure
Step 1
Step 2
Note
Step 3
Related Topics
Schedule the Job
When scheduling an AP radio scan job, you can:
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Note
Procedure
Step 1
Step 2
Run Now
Click to run the job. The job will run immediately after you click Save (see Finish the Job).
Note
Start Date
From the lists, select the month, day, and year you want your job to run.
Start Time
From the list, select the hour and minutes of the day you want your job to run.
Repeat
Enable
Check to run the job repeatedly.
Every
Indicate how often you want the job to repeat by entering a numerical value, then selecting an interval of time: Hours, Days, Weeks, or Months.
Note
Step 3
Related Topics
Finish the Job
Before selecting this option, you must name the job, select the maximum transmit power, and select the devices. You do not have to complete the scheduling information—you can save a job without scheduling it, then edit the job later to add the schedule.
Procedure
Step 1
Step 2
Note
The screen refreshes and the AP Radio Scan Job Save Summary window shows the following information:
The job stops automatically after all the required APs respond with the appropriate radio measurements.
Step 3
Step 4
Step 5
a.
b.
Related Topics
Using Client Walkabouts to Collect RM Data
Client Walkabout measurements can help determine AP coverage, and are used to provide optimal coverage for the radio parameter generator.
Tip
Caution
Client Walkabout allows you create, view, and manage client walkabout jobs. Use this procedure to:
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These topics describe the procedures for managing Client Walkabout jobs:
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Related Topics
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Viewing Client Walkabouts
Use the default Client Walkabout screen to view client walkabout jobs.
Note
Before You Begin
Before you can collect data using Client Walkabout, you must have already:
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Procedure
Step 1
Step 2
Step 3
Step 4
Related Topics
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Managing Client Walkabout Sessions
The buttons below the table of client walkabout sessions (see Viewing Client Walkabouts) allow you to manage these sessions.
Note
Before You Begin
Before you can collect data using Client Walkabout, you must have already:
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Procedure
Step 1
Step 2
Step 3
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The Client Walkabout Details window shows the following information:
Name
Name of the walkabout.
Description
Walkabout description, if any.
Power Mode
AP power setting selected for the walkabout.
Max. Power
The value of the AP power setting. This field is populated only if you entered a value in Use No More Than __ mW (see Enter Walkabout Options).
Selected APs
Names of the AP devices selected for the walkabout.
Client MAC Address
The list of client MAC addresses to be used during the walkabout.
Status
The status of the walkabout.
Last Run Started
The time the last run of this client walkabout was started.
Last Run Stopped
The time the last run of this client walkabout was stopped.
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Note
The Client Walkabout Details window shows the following information:
AP Name
The name of the access point
IP Address
The IP address for that access point.
Number of Location Data
The number of location data points collected for that access point.
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Related Topics
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Creating a New Client Walkabout
Note
Before You Begin
Before you can collect data using Client Walkabout, you must have already:
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Procedure
Step 1
Step 2
The window refreshes with the Client Walkabout menu in the left pane and the Client Walkabout Name dialog box in the right pane.
Caution
Step 3
Note
1. Name—See Name the Walkabout.
2. Select AP—See Select the APs.
3. Filter By PHY—Select Radio Types
4. Enter Client MAC—See Enter Client MAC Addresses.
5. Options—See Enter Walkabout Options.
6. Finish—See Finish Creating the Walkabout.
Step 4
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Name the Walkabout
Procedure
Step 1
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Job Name
Enter a unique name for the walkabout.
To make each session easy to identify, consider including the floor number or a similar identifier in the job name.
For additional naming convention guidelines, see "Naming Guidelines."
Description
Enter a description of the walkabout. For guidelines on entering descriptions, see "Naming Guidelines."
Step 3
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Select the APs
Procedure
Step 1
Step 2
Note
Step 3
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Select Radio Types
Procedure
Step 1
Step 2
Note
Step 3
Related Topics
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Enter Client MAC Addresses
Procedure
Step 1
Step 2
Note
Step 3
Related Topics
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Enter Walkabout Options
During a walkabout, the transmit power in the APs is increased so that the power required to cover the edges of the WLAN can be determined. Use this option to reset the maximum transmit power level used by the APs.
Procedure
Step 1
Step 2
You can choose to enter a lower power setting when, for example, the default power level might affect a neighboring network.
Step 3
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Finish Creating the Walkabout
Before selecting this option, you must name the walkabout, select the devices, enter the client MAC addresses, and choose the AP power setting option.
Procedure
Step 1
Step 2
Note
The screen refreshes and the Client Walkabout Summary window shows the following information:
Name
Name of the walkabout.
Description
Walkabout description, if any.
Power Mode
AP power setting selected for the walkabout.
Maximum Power
The value of the AP power setting. This field is populated only if you entered a value in Use No More Than __ mW (see Enter Walkabout Options).
Devices
Names of the AP devices selected for the walkabout.
Client MAC Address
The list of client MAC addresses to be used during the walkabout.
Step 3
Related Topics
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Guidelines for Running a Client Walkabout
Although there is no limit to the number of APs that may participate in a walkabout and no performance impact when you include a large number of APs, the total number of data points collected during a walkabout session does affect the processing time of RM Assisted Configuration—the more data points, the longer it takes to calculate the parameters.
To set the coverage area, walk the client (the laptop) around the area. Use these guidelines as you walk:
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To minimize the time it takes to calculate the radio parameters, try to use these guidelines when performing the walkabout:
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A longer walkabout will generate more location data. Although collecting more location samples can improve the parameter generation results, it will also increase the number of computations. For a floor consisting of the 10 APs described above, a WLSE1105 will take 10 to 12 minutes or less to complete the parameter generation process—without other jobs, such as inventory, configuration, discovery, or another Radio Manager task running simultaneously.
Note
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Related Topics
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Running the Walkabout
When you start a client walkabout, the walkabout session starts immediately and continues until you stop the procedure. Only one client walkabout session can be active at any time.
Note
Before You Begin
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Procedure
Step 1
Step 2
Step 3
Step 4
Step 5
Step 6
Note
Step 7
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Step 8
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Using Radio Monitoring to Collect RM Data
To detect interference and rogue APs, Radio Monitoring must be running.
Tip
You can use Radio Monitoring to:
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Note
Before You Begin
Before you can select devices to be included in radio monitoring, you must have already:
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Procedure
Step 1
Step 2
Step 3
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Step 4
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Note
Step 5
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Note
Step 6
Step 7
Step 8
Note
Now that you have selected your radio monitoring options, you need to save your settings.
Step 9
Step 10
Radio Monitor will now begin monitoring the devices you selected. Radio Monitoring takes measurements every 90 seconds.
Related Topics
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Deleting RM Measurements
Use the Manage RM Measurements tab to delete previously-collected radio location measurements, including links and path loss data. You might need to delete radio location data, for example:
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Procedure
Step 1
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Step 4
Step 5
Step 6
Step 7
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Generating Radio Parameters
There are two ways you can generate radio parameters and configure your APs:
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Use this option when you have collected data from a AP radio scanning and a client walkabout.
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Use this option when you want to use the wizard interface to step through AP radio scan, client walkabout, and radio parameter generation.
Using RM Assisted Configuration
Use RM Assisted Configuration to configure your APs. This feature uses the measurement data collected from a client walkabout and AP radio scanning.
Tip
The following topics describe how to run RM Assisted Configuration:
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Viewing Assisted Configuration Tasks
Note
Procedure
Step 1
Step 2
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The screen refreshes to show you details about the specified configuration tasks. You can sort the configuration tasks by name, status, next schedule, or owner by clicking on the corresponding column heading.
Step 3
Managing Assisted Configuration Tasks
The buttons below the list of existing assisted configuration tasks (see Viewing Assisted Configuration Tasks) allow you to manage these tasks.
Note
Procedure
Step 1
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Step 3
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Creating a New Assisted Configuration Task
To configure the power level, channel settings, and beacon interval of an AP or a group of APs, you can use RM Assisted Configuration to configure these parameters. Using AP Scan and Client Walkabout data, RM Assisted Configuration generates optimal values for the radio parameters of a given group of APs.
Tip
Note
Note
Before You Begin
Before you can create a new RM assisted configuration task, you must have already:
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Procedure
Step 1
Caution
Step 2
Step 3
1. Name—See Naming the Configuration Task.
2. Select Devices—See Filtering by PHY.
3. Filter by PHY—Filtering by PHY.
3. Constraints/Goals—See Assigning Constraints and Goals.
4. Calculate Parameters—See Calculating Parameters.
5. Results— See Viewing the Calculated Results.
6. Schedule—See Scheduling the Assisted Configuration.
7. Finish— See Finishing the Task.
Naming the Configuration Task
Procedure
Step 1
The screen refreshes so you can enter information about the new task. You'll see the name you entered in the Task Name field.
Step 2
Task Name
Enter a unique name for the job. For guidelines on naming jobs, see "Naming Guidelines."
Description
Enter a description of the job. For guidelines on entering descriptions, see "Naming Guidelines."
Step 3
Selecting Devices
Procedure
Step 1
Step 2
Step 3
Filtering by PHY
Procedure
Step 1
Step 2
Note
Step 3
Assigning Constraints and Goals
After selecting the devices for the assisted configuration task, you need to specify the constraints and goals of the task.
Procedure
Step 1
Step 2
Step 3
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Note
Table 9-8 Regulatory Domains and Their Approved Channel Sets
Step 4
Step 5
Step 6
Related Topics
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Calculating Parameters
After you assign the constraints and goals, the next step is for Radio Manager to calculate the parameters. In this step, you will see a progress bar that indicates the progress Radio Manager is making in its calculations.
Note
To stop the parameter calculation, click on the Stop button.
When the parameter calculation is complete, the results are displayed. For more information about the parameter results, see Viewing the Calculated Results.
Viewing the Calculated Results
After Radio Manager calculates the parameters for the assisted configuration job, it displays the calculation results. The calculation results specify the following information:
Name
Name of the AP
Transmit Power
Recommended transmit power for this AP. If the radio type is 11g, the CCK power and OFDM power are also displayed.
Channel
Recommended channel for the AP
Beacon Interval
Recommended beacon interval for the AP. If you did not select the Enable Black Hole Mitigation option, this column displays the value the AP is currently configured to. (See Assigning Constraints and Goals for more information.)
Estimated Maximum Throughput
The estimated maximum megabytes per second that the AP can process
Scheduling the Assisted Configuration
After you have viewed the calculation results of the assisted configuration task (see Viewing the Calculated Results for more information) and want to apply these changes, you need to determine when to apply configuration changes.
Procedure
Step 1
Step 2
Step 3
Finishing the Task
Before selecting this option, you must name the assisted configuration task, select the devices, enter constraints and goals, and schedule the assisted configuration task.
Procedure
Step 1
Note
The Done form appears indicating that the job has completed or it has been scheduled (if you scheduled it to run later).
Using the Radio Manager Features
After the radio data has been collected and the radio parameters have been generated, you can use the following features to help you manage your WLAN radio environment:
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Detecting Rogue APs
Radio Monitoring continuously monitors your WLAN radio environment to discover the presence of any new APs that are transmitting beacons. Any newly discovered AP that cannot be identified as a known authorized AP generates a new fault. You can view faults under Faults > Display Faults.
From the Fault Summary Table for an unknown AP, you can click on the link in the Address, Description, or Timestamp fields to see the Rogue Access Point Details which displays the following information:
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See Unknown AP Details for additional information about displaying information about detected rogue APs.
You also need to set network-wide policies for the detection of rogue APs. See Assigning Rogue AP Detection Network Settings.
In addition to the information gathered in the Fault Summary Screen, you can also view the estimated location of the rogue AP using Location Manager. See Changing Display Options for Unknown Radios).
Related Topic
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Detecting Switch Port Location and Suppressing Ports
When a Rogue AP fault is generated, the Rogue Access Point Details window displays information about the switch port to which the rogue AP is connected. See Unknown AP Details for additional information about switch port tracing information.
You can also set network-wide policies to enable the suppression of the port to which a rogue AP is connected (see Assigning Rogue AP Detection Network Settings).
Caution
Related Topic
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Detecting Interference
Radio Monitoring continuously monitors your WLAN radio environment to discover the presence of any interference. You need to set the threshold condition for interference detection. See Assigning Interference Detection Network Settings. When interference is detected, a fault is generated. You can view faults under Faults > Display Faults.
Note
Using Auto Re-Site Survey
Use Auto Re-Site Survey to have Radio Manager automatically evaluate the AP's current radio performance against collected AP radio performance data. If Radio Manager finds a degradation in performance, a fault is generated.
Note
Before You Begin
Before using the Auto Re-Site Survey option, you must have:
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Procedure
Step 1
Step 2
Step 3
Step 4
Step 5
If you specify an individual floor from the Selected Floors pulldown menu, click the Enable Auto Re Site Survey check box next to the radio type to enable Auto Re-Site Survey for the radio types on the floor you specified.
Step 6
Step 7
Step 8
Step 9
Every hour, the collected baseline data is compared against the current performance, and if there is a 20% (default value) degradation in performance, a fault is generated. From the Faults Details Conditions table for an Auto Re-Site Survey fault, you can select the icon (the document with the eyeglasses) to view details about the fault (see Auto Re-Site Survey Details).
Related Topic
Understanding Auto Re-Site Survey
Using Self Healing
Use Self Healing to have Radio Manager automatically adjust the radio parameters of APs to eliminate any loss of coverage in the event that there is a network failure.
Note
Note
Before You Begin
Before using the Self Healing option, you must have:
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Note
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Procedure
Step 1
Step 2
Step 3
Step 4
Step 5
When Radio Manager monitoring does not detect a given radio interface on the selected floor for more that three measurement report intervals, it will automatically adjust the power levels of the neighboring AP interfaces to cover the potential areas of lost coverage and generate a fault.
Step 6
Step 7
Step 8
Related Topic
Using Scanning-Only APs
When an AP is in scanning-only mode, it monitors the radio environment by looking for rogue APs and unassociated clients. An AP in scanning-only mode does not accept client associations.
Note
Before You Begin
Before you can enable scanning mode on an AP, you must have already:
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Note
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Procedure
Step 1
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Note
Step 2
This setting will be applied to APs that are configured as scanning-only APs. It will not be applied to APs that are configured as regular APs.
Step 3
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Step 4
scheduler interval <100-xxx>scheduler allocate <3000-xxx> <1000-xxx>Many newer Cisco platforms use the command scheduler allocate instead of scheduler interval. The scheduler allocate command takes two parameters: a period in microseconds for the system to run with interrupts enabled, and a period in microseconds for the system to run with interrupts masked. Please refer to the IOS documentation for more information about these commands.
Related Topic
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1 Not all radios support all approved channel sets listed.
