Airespace VAP1200 802.11 Dual Band Access Point User Manual Airespace AP IG 030305
Airespace 802.11 Dual Band Access Point Airespace AP IG 030305
Users Manual Revised
Copyright © 2003 Airespace, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 1
Airspace Access Point (AP)
Installation Guide
Airespace System 1.0: March 5, 2003
Airespace, Inc.
110 Nortech Parkway
San Jose, CA 95134
1-408-635-2000
www.airespace.com
Copyright © 2003 Airespace, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
2
Legal Information
Disclaimer
The descriptions and specifications included in this document are subject to change without
notice. All statements in this document were believed to be accurate when the document was
created, but no warranty, expressed or implied, is given with this document. Users are required to
take full responsibility for their actions in using this document and the products it describes.
Notwithstanding any other warranty included in this document, the files, software, and printouts
of this document are provided "AS IS" including any and all faults.
Trademarks and Service Marks
Airespace™, Airespace AP™ and Secure Airespace™ are trademarks of Airespace, Inc. All
other trademarks, service marks, and product names used in this document are the property of
their respective owners.
U.S.A. Government Restricted Rights
(tbd)
Applicable Laws
(tbd)
Copyright © 2003 Airespace, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 3
FCC Statements
This equipment has been tested and found to comply with the limits for a Class A digital device,
pursuant to Part 15 of the FCC Rules. These limits are designed to provide reasonable protection
against harmful interference when the equipment is operated in a commercial environment. This
equipment generates, uses, and can radiate radio frequency energy and, if not installed and used
in accordance with the instruction manual, may cause harmful interference to radio
communications. Operation of this equipment in a residential area is likely to cause harmful
interference in which case the user will be required to correct the interference at his own
expense.
RF Radiation Hazard Warning
To ensure compliance with FCC RF exposure requirements, this device must be installed in a
location such that the antenna of the device will be greater than 20 cm (8 in.) from all persons.
Using higher gain antennas and types of antennas not covered under the FCC certification of this
product is not allowed.
Note: No external antennas are currently certified or available in this release.
Installers of the radio and end users of the system must adhere to the installation instructions
provided in this manual.
Non-Modification Statement
Use only the supplied internal antenna, or external antennas supplied by the manufacturer.
Unauthorized antennas, modifications, or attachments could damage the badge and could violate
FCC regulations and void the user’s authority to operate the equipment.
Note: No external antennas are currently certified or available in this release.
Deployment Statement
This product is certified for indoor deployment only. Do not install or use this product outdoors.
Copyright © 2003 Airspace, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
4
Table of Contents
Airspace Access Point (AP) Installation Guide 1
Legal Information 2
Disclaimer 2
Trademarks and Service Marks 2
U.S.A. Government Restricted Rights 2
Applicable Laws 2
FCC Statements 3
RF Radiation Hazard Warning 3
Non-Modification Statement 3
Deployment Statement 3
Table of Contents 4
About this Guide 5
About the Airespace Access Point 6
About Airespace AP Models 9
About Internal and External Airespace AP Antennas 10
About Airespace AP LEDs 11
About Airespace AP Connectors 12
About Airespace AP Physical Security 13
About Power Over Ethernet 14
Installing Airespace APs 15
Planning Airespace AP Locations 16
Mounting Airespace APs 17
Copyright © 2003 Airespace, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 5
About this Guide
The Airespace Access Point (AP) Installation Guide allows installation planners, network
administrators, and installers to work together to install Airespace APs in a target environment.
Refer to the following sections for more information about the Airespace AP.
Copyright © 2003 Airespace, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
6
About the Airespace Access Point
The Airespace AP is a part of the innovative Airespace System, which provides unmatched
scalability and security solutions for enterprises and Wireless ISPs. When associated with an
Airespace 4000 Switch as shown in the following figure, the Airespace AP provides advanced
802.11a and/or 802.11b Access Point functions in a single sleek enclosure. In the Airespace
System, most of the processing power is removed from a traditional AP to the Airespace Switch.
Airespace Switch and APs
Copyright © 2003 Airspace, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 7
The following figure shows an Airespace AP with the optional ceiling mount base.
Airespace AP with Ceiling Mount Base
Refer to the following for more information on Airespace APs:
• Airespace AP Models
• Internal and External Airespace AP Antennas
• About Ethernet Cabling
• Airespace AP LEDs
• Airespace AP Connectors
• Airespace AP Power Requirements
• Airespace AP External Power Converter
• About Power Over Ethernet (PoE)
Copyright © 2003 Airspace, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
8
• Airespace AP Physical Security
• Airespace AP Automatic Software Upgrades
• Airespace AP Specifications
• Installing Airespace APs
Copyright © 2003 Airespace, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 9
About Airespace AP Models
The Airespace AP includes one 802.11a radio (1200A), one 802.11b radio (1200B), or one
802.11a and one 802.11b radio (1200AB). The Airespace AP comes in the following
configurations:
• Model 1200A - Airespace AP with one 802.11a radio and two high-gain internal
antennas
• Model 1200B - Airespace AP with one 802.11b radio and two high-gain internal antennas
• Model 1200AB - Airespace AP with one 802.11a and one 802.11b radio and four high-
gain internal antennas
The Airespace AP is shipped with a color-coordinated ceiling mount base, and projection and
flush wall mount brackets. These brackets and base allow quick mounting to ceiling or wall:
• Ceiling Mounting Kit - Allows you to mount the Airespace AP on any horizontal surface
• Flush Wall Mount Kit - Allows you to mount the Airespace AP on a wall with one
internal antenna disabled; handy for installations requiring a directional transmission
pattern or an external antenna
Note: No external antennas are currently certified or available in this release.
• Projection Wall Mount Kit - Allows you to mount the Airespace AP on a wall with both
(or all four) internal antennas enabled; handy for installations requiring an
omnidirectional transmission pattern
Copyright © 2003 Airespace, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
10
About Internal and External Airespace AP Antennas
The 1200A Airespace AP enclosure contains one 802.11a radio which drives two fully-enclosed
high-gain antennas which provide a large 360-degree coverage area. When equipped with a
factory-supplied external antenna, the 802.11a radio supports receive and transmit diversity
between the internal antennas and the external antenna.
Note: No external antennas are currently certified or available in this release.
The diversity function provided by Airespace radios can result in lower multipath fading, fewer
packet retransmits, and higher throughput to and from clients.
Note: The Airespace APs must use the factory-supplied internal or external antennas to
avoid violating FCC regulations and voiding the user’s authority to operate the
equipment.
The 1200AB Airespace AP enclosure contains one 802.11a and one 802.11b radio and four
fully-enclosed high-gain antennas which provide large 360-degree 802.11a and 802.11b
coverage areas. Note that the 802.11b radio supports receive and transmit diversity between the
internal antennas, while the 802.11a radio supports diversity between the internal antennas and a
factory-supplied external antenna.
Note: No external antennas are currently certified or available in this release.
The 1200B Airespace AP enclosure contains one 802.11b radio and two high-gain antennas,
which provides a large 360-degree 802.11b coverage area. The 802.11b radio supports receive
and transmit diversity between the internal antennas.
Note: No external antennas are currently certified or available in this release.
The Airespace APs have reverse-polarity TNC jacks for installations requiring factory-supplied
external directional or high-gain antennas. The Airespace AP has one 802.11a external antenna
jack and two 802.11b external antenna jacks, which allow the Airespace AP radios to provide
transmit and receive diversity using external antennas. This option can create more flexibility in
Airespace AP and antenna placement.
Note: No external antennas are currently certified or available in this release.
Copyright © 2003 Airespace, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 11
About Airespace AP LEDs
Each Airespace AP is equipped with four LEDs across the top of the case. They can be viewed
from nearly any angle. The LEDs indicate power and fault status, radio slot 1 link activity, and
radio slot 2 link activity.
This LED display thus gives a quick overview of the Airespace AP status. For more detailed
troubleshooting instructions, refer to the Troubleshooting the Airespace AP section (to be
determined).
Copyright © 2003 Airespace, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
12
About Airespace AP Connectors
The Airespace AP has the following external connectors:
• One RJ-45 jack, used for connecting the Airespace AP to the Airespace Switch.
• One 48 VDC power input jack, used to plug an optional factory-supplied external power
adapter into the Airespace AP.
• Three reverse-polarity TNC antenna jacks, used to plug optional external antennas into
the Airespace AP--two for an 802.11b radio, and one for an 802.11a radio.
Note: No external antennas are currently certified or available in this release.
The Airespace AP communicates with an Airespace Switch using standard CAT5 (Category 5)
or higher 10/100 Mbps unshielded twisted pair cable with RJ-45 connectors. Plug the CAT5
cable into the RJ-45 jack on the side of the Airespace AP.
Note that the Airespace AP can receive power over the CAT5 cable from the Airespace Switch
or other equipment. Refer to About Power Over Ethernet for more information about this
option.
The Airespace AP can be powered from an optional factory-supplied external AC-to-48 VDC
power adapter. If you are powering the Airespace AP using an external adapter, plug the adapter
into the 48 VDC power jack on the side of the Airespace AP.
The Airespace AP includes two 802.11a and two 802.11b high-gain internal antennas, which
provide omnidirectional coverage. However, the Airespace AP can also use optional factory-
supplied external high-gain and/or directional antennas; one for an 802.11a radio and two for an
802.11b radio. When used with external antennas, each Airespace AP radio supports diversity, if
enabled. When you are using external antennas, plug them into the reverse-polarity TNC jacks
on the side of the Airespace AP.
Note: No external antennas are currently certified or available in this release.
Note: The Airespace APs must use the factory-supplied internal or external antennas to
avoid violating FCC regulations and voiding the user’s authority to operate the
equipment.
Copyright © 2003 Airespace, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 13
About Airespace AP Physical Security
The side of the Airespace AP housing includes a slot for a Kensington MicroSaver Security
Cable. You can use any MicroSaver Security Cable to ensure that your Airespace AP stays
where you mounted it!
Copyright © 2003 Airespace, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
14
About Power Over Ethernet
Airespace equipment supports 802.3af-compliant Power over Ethernet (PoE), which can reduce
the cost of discrete power supplies, additional wiring, conduits, outlets, and installer time. PoE
also frees installers from having to mount the Airespace APs near AC outlets, which allows more
flexibility in positioning Airespace APs for maximum coverage.
When you are using PoE, the installer runs a single CAT5 cable from each Airespace AP to the
PoE-equipped Airespace Switch or other network element, or to a PoE power hub. When the
PoE equipment determines that the Airespace AP is a powered device, it sends 48 VDC over
unused pairs in the Ethernet cable to the Airespace AP.
Airespace APs can receive power from the Airespace Switch, or any other network device
conforming to the IEEE 802.3af standard.
When a Airespace Switch is operated in Appliance Mode, it can be ordered without PoE, as the
switching element it is connected through can be equipped with internal PoE or an external PoE
hub. When a Airespace Switch is operated in Direct Connect Mode, it can be ordered with
internal PoE or an external PoE hub. Contact Airespace for recommended external PoE hubs.
Copyright © 2003 Airespace, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 15
Installing Airespace APs
Installing Airespace APs is a two-part process. First, you must plan where the Airespace APs are
to be located to provide the desired coverage, and then you install the Airespace APs in the
desired locations. Continue with the following:
• Planning Airespace AP Locations
• Mounting Airespace APs
Copyright © 2003 Airespace, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
16
Planning Airespace AP Locations
This planning section provides information necessary for the installer to quickly and easily plan,
install, and test Airespace AP Radio Frequency coverage in an end-user environment.
Before you start the Airespace AP Planning process, please read the Planning Notes. Once you
have read the Planning Notes, continue with the following steps:
1 Collecting Tools and Materials
2 Preparing Optional Trial Assemblies
3 Surveying the Site
4 Determining Airespace AP Coverage and Locations
5 Positioning Airespace APs
6 Verifying Airespace AP Coverage
7 Where to Go From Here
Copyright © 2003 Airespace, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 17
Mounting Airespace APs
After completing the steps in the Planning Airespace AP Locations section, mount Airespace
APs as follows. Refer to the following figure for installation details.
Note: When mounting Airespace APs, make sure to maintain a 20 cm (8 in.) separation
between the Airespace APs and any persons to comply with FCC RF exposure regulations.
Refer to the FCC Statements section for more FCC information.
1 Collect the following supplies:
Screwdrivers, drills, and ladder.
An assortment of sheet metal and drywall screws and toggle bolts.
Airespace AP Vertical Mount Kits, one per Airespace AP as required.
Airespace AP Wall Mount Kits, one per Airespace AP as required.
CAT5 cables between the Airespace AP locations and the planned Airespace Switch
location.
2 Using the mounting kits supplied with each Airespace AP, mount the Airespace AP in its
final location. The following figure shows the an Airespace AP and the ceiling mount.
(Mounting details to be determined.)
3 Mark the final mounting locations on the maps or floorplans, including the "Front"
direction, if the Airespace AP is to be used with diversity disabled.
4 Copy the MAC Address(es) from the bottom of each Airespace AP onto the maps or
floorplans.
5 If the CAT5 cabling that will connect the Airespace APs to the Airespace Switch is
available, plug it into the Airespace AP now.
Copyright © 2003 Airspace, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
18
Airespace AP and Ceiling Mount Assembly