Main Help Topics

This page contains settings for the access point's SSID, data rates, transmit power, antennas, radio channel, and operating thresholds for the access point's internal and module radio ports. The internal radio and the radio module both have an AP Radio Hardware page.

The AP/Root Radio Hardware page also contains a link to the AP/Root Radio Data Encryption page, which you use to enter Wired Equivalent Privacy (WEP) settings.

Settings

Service Set ID (SSID)

An SSID is a unique identifier that client devices use to associate with the access point or a VLAN supported by the access point. The SSID helps client devices distinguish between multiple wireless networks and VLANs in the same vicinity and provides access to VLANs by wireless client devices. Several access points on a network or subnetwork can share an SSID. You can configure up to 16 SSIDs per radio on an access point. An SSID can be any alphanumeric, case-sensitive entry from 2 to 32 characters long.

Click more to go to the AP Radio Service Sets page where you can create additional SSIDs. From this page you can also edit an existing SSID or remove one from the system.

Allow "Broadcast" SSID to Associate?

Use this setting to choose whether devices that do not specify an SSID (devices that are “broadcasting” in search of an access point to associate with) are allowed to associate to this radio.

• Yes -- This is the default setting; it allows devices using the primary SSID that do not specify an SSID (devices that are “broadcasting” in search of an access point or bridge to associate with) to associate with the radio using the primary SSID.
• No -- Devices that do not specify an SSID (devices that are "broadcasting" in search of an access point or bridge to associate with) are not allowed to associate with the access point or bridge. With No selected, the SSID used by the client must exactly match one of the radio's SSID.

Enable "World Mode" Multi-Domain Operation

When you select yes from the world-mode pull-down menu, the access point adds channel carrier set information to its beacon. Client devices with world-mode enabled receive the carrier set information and adjust their settings automatically.

Data Rates

Use the data rate settings to choose the data rates the radio uses for data transmission. The rates are expressed in megabits per second.

The access point always attempts to transmit at the highest data rate set to Basic. If there are obstacles or interference, the access point steps down to the highest rate that allows data transmission. For each data rate, a drop-down menu lists three options:

• Basic (default) -- Allows transmission at this rate for all packets, both unicast and multicast. At least one data rate must be set to Basic.
• Yes -- The access point transmits only unicast packets at this rate; multicast packets are sent at one of the data rates set to Basic.
• No -- The access point does not transmit data at this rate.

You can use the Data Rate settings to set up an access point to serve client devices operating at specific data rates. For example, to set up the access point for 11 megabits per second (Mbps) service only, select Basic for 11 and select Yes for the other data rates. To set up the access point to serve only client devices operating at 1 and 2 Mbps, select Basic for 1 and 2 and set the rest of the data rates to Yes.

Note The Optimize Radio Network For setting on the Express Setup page selects the data rate settings automatically. When you select Optimize Radio Network For Throughput on the Express Setup page, all data rates are set to basic. When you select Optimize Radio Network For Range on the Express Setup page, the lowest data rate (1.0 on the internal radio and 6.0 on the radio module) is set to basic, and the other data rates are set to Yes.

If you leave the setting at Default for the internal radio, the 1.0 and 5.5 data rates are set to basic and the 2.0 and 11.0 data rates are set to yes (on the radio module, 6.0, 12.0, and 24.0 are set to basic and 9.0, 18.0, 36.0, 48.0, and 54.0 are set to yes).

Transmit Power

This setting determines the power level of radio transmission. The default power setting is the highest transmit power allowed in your regulatory domain.

Note Government regulations define the highest allowable power level for radio devices. This setting must conform to established standards for the country in which you use the access point.

To reduce interference or to conserve power, select a lower power setting. The settings in the drop-down menu for the internal radio include 1, 5, 20, 50, and 100 milliwatts. The settings in the drop-down menu for the radio module include 5, 8, 11, and 14 milliwatts.

Note The power settings available on your access point depend on the regulatory domain for which the access point is configured. Your power settings might be different from the settings listed here.

Frag. Threshold

This setting determines the size at which packets are fragmented (sent as several pieces instead of as one block). Enter a setting within the range of 256 to 2338 bytes. Use a low setting in areas with poor communication or with a great deal of radio interference.

RTS Threshold

This setting determines the packet size at which the device issues a request to send (RTS) before sending the packet. A low RTS threshold setting can be useful in areas where many client devices are associating with the access point or bridge, or in areas where the clients are far apart and can detect only the access point or bridge and not each other. Enter a setting within the range of 0 to 2339 bytes.

Max. RTS Retries

The maximum number of times the device issues an RTS before stopping the attempt to send the packet through the radio. Enter a value from 1 to 128.

Max. Data Retries

The maximum number of attempts the device makes to send a packet before dropping the packet.

Beacon Period

The amount of time between beacons in Kilomicroseconds. One Km¼sec equals 1,024 microseconds.

Data Beacon Rate

This setting is always a multiple of the beacon period and determines how often the beacon contains a delivery traffic indication message (DTIM). The DTIM tells power-save client devices that a packet is waiting for them.

If the beacon period is set to 100, the default setting, and the data beacon rate is set at 1, the default setting, then the device sends a beacon containing a DTIM every 200 Km¼secs. One Km¼sec equals 1,024 microseconds.

Note  If client devices using power-save mode wake up too often when associated to the access point, increase the data beacon rate setting.

Default Radio Channel

The default channel settings on the radios are the lowest channel numbers for your regulatory domain. In North America, the default setting for the internal radio is channel 1 transmitting at 2412 MHz, and the default setting for the radio module is channel 36 transmitting at 5180 MHz. To overcome interference problems, other channel settings are available from the radio channel pull-down menus.

The internal radio operates on 11 channels from 2412 to 2462 MHz. Each channel covers 22 MHz. The bandwidth for channels 1, 6, and 11 does not overlap, so you can set up multiple access points in the same vicinity without causing interference.

The radio module operates on eight channels from 5180 to 5320 MHz. Each channel on the radio module covers 20 MHz, and the bandwidth for the channels overlaps slightly. For best performance, use channels that are not adjacent (44 and 46, for example) for radios that are close to each other.

Note Too many devices in the same vicinity creates radio congestion that can reduce throughput. A careful site survey can determine the best placement of devices for maximum radio coverage and throughput.

Search for Less-Congested Radio Channel

When you select yes, the access point scans for the radio channel that is least busy and selects that channel for use. The device scans at power-up and when the radio settings are changed.

If access points must be assigned a specific channel to prevent them from interfering with other devices, this setting should be no.

Restricted Search Channels

Click the Restrict Searched Channels link to limit the channels the access point scans when Search for less-congested radio channel is enabled. The AP Radio Restrict Searched Channels page appears when you click Restrict Searched Channels.

The page lists all the channels in the bridge’s regulatory domain. Check the Search check boxes beside the channels to include or exclude channels in the scan for less-congested channels. All the channels are included in the scan by default.

Receive Antenna and Transmit Antenna

Pull-down menus for the receive and transmit antennas offer three options:

• Diversity -- (Default) Tells the device to use the antenna that receives the best signal. If your device has two fixed (non-removable) antennas, use this setting for both receive and transmit.
• Right -- If your device has removable antennas and you install a high-gain antenna on the right connector, use this setting for both receive and transmit. When you look at the back panel, the right antenna is on the right.
• Left -- If your device has removable antennas and you install a high-gain antenna on the left connector, use this setting for both receive and transmit. When you look at the back panel, the left antenna is on the left.

Note The device only receives and transmits using one antenna at a time; you cannot increase range by installing high-gain antennas on both connectors and pointing one north and one south. When the access point uses the north-pointing antenna, client devices to the south are ignored.

Action Buttons

Command	Description
Apply	Activates the new setting. The browser remains on this page.
OK	Applies the new settings and moves the browser back to the main Setup page.
Cancel	Cancels all changes to the setting, returns the settings to the previously stored values, and redirects the user back the main Setup page.
Restore Defaults	Changes all settings back to the factory default.