## Wireless Access Point (WLAP) Operation

The Intel® PRO/Wireless 2011B LAN Access Point supports up to four Wireless Access Point (WLAP) interfaces. For high traffic networks, use one WLAP as an interface. For low traffic networks use no more than two WLAPs. With multiple WLAPs, excessive channel contention causes the WLAP to miss beacons from the root access point, as shown in the example.

Refer to the LED Indicators section for a description of the access point status LEDs. If more than two WLAPs operate in a repeater configuration, The WLAPs with the lowest WLAP IDs should be placed on the wired network.

To avoid forming a loop, as described in the IEEE 802.1d Spanning Tree Protocol, the wireless WLAP associates with only one wired WLAP.

1. Set the default interface for access point A to Ethernet.
2. Set the default interface for access point B to Ethernet.
3. Set the default interface for access point C to WLAP.
   This allows the clients to roam and transmit data between access point B and C.

If an access point functions as a bridge between wired LANs, place all the lower WLAP IDs on one LAN.

## Configure Wireless LAN Access Point Operation (WLAP) Mode

### Web Interface

1. Under Configuration on the left side of the screen, click Wireless AP.
2. Configure the access point system settings as required.
3. After changing the settings, click Save Settings at the bottom of the screen.

### Management Console

1. Select Set RF Configuration from the Main Menu.
2. Configure the settings as required.
3. Verify that the values set reflect the network environment. Change them as needed.
4. Select OK or Save to register the settings.
5. Select Save ALL APs-[F2] to save the RF Configuration information to all access points with the same SSID. This option saves the configuration changes for the current access point and sends two messages to all other access points on the Known APs table to update their configuration and reset after the configuration has been modified. You can perform this option only among the same hardware platforms and same firmware versions.

### Parameter Descriptions

The descriptions in this table cover the settings highlighted on the right-side of the RF Configuration screen in the Management Console.

Wireless LAN Access Point (WLAP) Mode | Specifies the access point's wireless access point operation status. Enabled: Automatically sets the access point for wireless operation. The access point can operate in any of these configurations: Wireless, Repeater, or Ethernet Bridge . Disabled: Does not allow wireless operation. This is the default setting. Link Required At power up: If the WLAP is the root access point, an Ethernet connection is required. If the WLAP is a designated WLAP, association to the root access point is required. During normal operation: If the Ethernet connection is lost, the root access point resets. If the WLAP association is lost, the designated WLAP resets.
Wireless LAN Access Point (WLAP) Priority | Sets the root and the designated WLAP in wireless operation. Concatenates the priority value as the most significant portion of the MAC address. An access point with a lower numerical value for priority is more likely to become the root access point. The default is 8000 hex from the 0 to 0xFFFF range.
WLAP Manual BSS_ID | Specifies the BSSID of a particular WLAP and forces the current access point to associate only with that WLAP. If setting the WLAP Manual BSS_ID to the current BSSID, the current access point jumps into Functional State immediately and waits for an Association Request from the other WLAP. This feature speeds up the association process and minimizes confusion when more than two WLAPs try to associate with each other.
WLAP Hello Time | Sets the time lapse, in seconds, between Config BPDU packets sent to the root access point by a designated WLAP. The default is 20 seconds. If the root access point fails to hear from the designated WLAP within the WLAP Max Age time, it removes the designated WLAP from its interface table. The WLAP Hello Time of the root access point overwrites the WLAP Hello Time of designated WLAPs. The WLAP Hello Time does not refer to the time lapse between beacons sent by the root access point. If a designated WLAP fails to receive a beacon, it knows that its root access point has lost the root status.
Wireless LAN Access Point (WLAP) Max Age | Sets the number of seconds before aged configuration messages are discarded. This causes a disconnection between the two WLAPs. The value should be a multiple of the WLAP Hello Time. The default is 100 seconds. The WLAP Max Age of the root access point overwrites the WLAP Max Age of designated WLAPs.
WLAP Forward Delay | Specifies the number of seconds of delay to prevent an access point from forwarding data packets during initialization. The WLAPs involved and the wireless operation state affect the WLAP Forward Delay time. This delay ensures that all WLAP nodes are heard. The default is 5 seconds per wireless operation state. The WLAP Forward Delay of the root access point overwrites the WLAP Forward Delay of designated WLAPs.
WLAP MU Table Aging Time | If the client computer is not heard from after the specified time (defined in minutes), then the client's MAC address is removed from the table. When the client communicates with the access point, the client's MAC address will be added to the table once again.

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