1. apcfg.zip Driver
2. APHELP.TXT File Contents

APHELP.TXT Driver File Contents (apcfg.zip)

;******************************************************************************
;Help.txt - help file
;
;Update history:
;01/18/94 RRR: created.
;02/09/94 JLE: edited.
;08/30/95 JRM: Changed TCP/IP's stanza to key off of "TCPI" and say it's 
;              TCP/IP help info.  Added new stanza for SNMP Help text with
;              placeholder text until productization of release.
;12/21/95 JLE: Changed for V3.2
;01/12/96 JLE: Changes per Fina.
;Format: 
;Semicolon in column 1 indicates comment
;HELPXXXX defines beginning of help section and terminates prior section
;Text should be limited to approximately 70 characters across.
;******************************************************************************
;
;Access Point Selection
HELPAPSL
At any point in the configuration software, you can use either a mouse or a
keyboard to make selections.  If using a keyboard, press <Alt> followed 
by the highlighted letter to make a selection. Pressing the <Tab> key will 
cycle through the buttons displayed.  Pressing the <Help> key will display 
information about the parameters you are setting.

This window displays the list of the Access Points which can currently
be configured by the Configuration Tool.  When using the CFG tool over
a serial connection, you will only see the choice of a Local Access Point.
When using the CFG tool over an Ethernet connection, you will be able to
select from any known Access Point on the Ethernet segment.

The <Edit> button allows you to edit a previously created Access Point.

The <Add> button adds a new Access Point to the list.  After you have changed
default settings on a Access Point being configured through the Ethernet,
you must add the new Access Point.

The <Delete> button removes a Access Point from the list.

The <Exit> button exits you to a DOS prompt.
;
;
;Main menu
HELPMAIN
The <Configure RangeLAN2> button allows you to view and/or alter
RangeLAN2 software parameters.  After making changes to any of these
parameters, you must reset the Access Point.

The <Configure Bridge> button allows you to view and/or alter IEEE 802.1D
bridge parameters.  For detailed information on bridge parameters,  
refer to the IEEE 802.1d Spanning Tree Protocol specification.

The <Configure TCP/IP> button is used to configure the IP 
address, subnet mask, and default gateway.  After making 
changes to this parameter, you must reset the Access Point.

The <Configure Filter> button allows you to customize the type of traffic
which is forwarded from the Ethernet network to the Access Point network.

The <Configure SNMP> button allows you to change the parameters so
that you can use an SNMP manager to configure Access Points in the future.

The <Reset Access Point> button resets the Access Point so that new
RangeLAN2 software parameters and SNMP parameters can take effect.
;
;RangeLAN2 Configuration
HELPRCFG
In order for this system to work, in each subnetwork there must be
one unit that coordinates the hops.  This station is called the
Master.  It might help you to think of the Master as the conductor
of a frequency hopping orchestra.  The Master keeps time so all
units know when to hop and what frequency to hop to.

Units classified as Stations synchronize to the Master and
follow its signal to learn what frequency in the pattern the 
Master is currently using.

An acting "Master" can be configured either as a Master or
Alternate Master.  Alternate Masters act either as a Master or a
Station.  If an Alternate Master unit is unable to locate any other 
Master within range, it acts as a Master.  If a Master station is
already present, then the Alternate Master acts as a Station.
When there are multiple Alternate Masters, they coordinate
amongst themselves to determine who will become the Master.

There must be at least one station on the network designated the
Master station.  For most network operating systems, the
RangeLAN2/ISA card in the server or the RangeLAN2/Access Point
should be the Master and all clients are defined as Stations.  In a
roaming environment, all RangeLAN2/Access Points will be configured
as Masters.  The RangeLAN2/ISA and RangeLAN2/PCMCIA clients
are configured as Stations and roam from one Master to another.

Each Master can select one of 15 Channels to establish 
communications with Stations.  Each Channel number sets a 
unique frequency hopping sequence allowing for multiple subnetworks 
with higher data rate transmission capability in the same air space.  
You may think of the Channel as a pipe.  In order to communicate, 
radios must be on the same Channel and there must be one (and only one) 
Master that provides the timing for that Channel.  

There are 15 independent Channels designated 1 through 15 with 1 
being the default setting.  This means that there are 15 different 
sequences of frequency hops.  Each Channel is at a different frequency 
at a different time.  For networks with multiple Masters
(like in a roaming environment), set each Master to a different
channel for optimum performance.  All Stations 
will use the same channel as the Master they are synchronized to.

The Subchannel is a software code that is appended to each radio packet.  
It does not affect the frequency hopping sequence like a Channel does.  
Use a Subchannel if you need more than 15 Masters in the same coverage 
area and, therefore, all the Channels are used.

For example, you can use Channel 1, Subchannel 1 for Network A and 
Channel 1, Subchannel 2 for Network B.  The two networks will not 
communicate with one another.  They are, however, still sharing the 
1.6 Mbps pipe since they are both using Channel 1.

In order to establish communications, all Station Types require the
same Domain number.  Radios on different Domains
cannot communicate with each other.  The Domain is a software 
filter which does not affect the actual radio frequency or the 
frequency hop sequence.

You may want to set everyone on your network to the same Domain.
For larger wireless networks, use the Domain to establish
roaming subnetworks throughout your building.  For example,
the Engineering Department may use Domain 2 and the Sales 
Department may use Domain 5.  Then engineers can only roam
within the geographical area mapped out by Access Points with
a Domain setting of 2.

Master Name is an alphanumeric name of up to 11 characters which
simplifies the identification of each Master in your network.  You
may not have spaces in the name.

You have the option to enable or disable repeating.  When repeating
is enabled and the Access Point is configured as a Master, it will
repeat any signal coming from one Station and destined
for another Station, if the two Stations are both within
range of the Master but not within range of one another.  The advantage
of repeating is the ability to double the effective range of the
RangeLAN2 network.  However, be aware that by enabling the repeating
feature, the network performance will drop by as much as half the
speed while repeating occurs.  Note that you may only repeat signals
to and from RangeLAN2/ISA or RangeLAN2/PCMCIA Stations.

The No Traffic Warn Interval field specifies the amount of time
that must elapse with no traffic before a trap is sent to the
configured "Trap Target."

The MAC Optimize parameter can help improve throughput for small
networks.  If you have 8 or fewer wireless nodes communicating
with a RangeLAN2/Access Point at the same time, set this 
parameter to Light.  (You can have more than 8 nodes synchronized
to a RangeLAN2/Access Point but only 8 or fewer communicating
at the same time for the Light parameter setting.)  In networks with
more than 8 concurrent wireless users, set the parameter to Normal.

The Roam Config parameter allows you to determine how quickly
stations will roam from one RangeLAN2/Access Point to another.
In areas with many RangeLAN2/Access Point units that provide
heavy overlapping coverage, set this parameter to Fast to maintain
high throughput for each of the wireless nodes.

In most networks, set the Roam Config parameter to Normal.  Wireless 
node throughput will not change noticeably, and an overabundance of 
RangeLAN2/Access Point units is  not required.

If the wireless coverage area provided by RangeLAN2/Access Point 
units is sparse, set the Roam Config parameter to Slow.  Wireless 
node will not roam under they are nearly out of range of the 
RangeLAN2/Access Point.

You have the option to enable or disable the roaming of this
RangeLAN2/Access Point.  If you choose to enable roaming, this
RangeLAN2/Access Point should be configured as a Station.
Then it will be able to move between other
RangeLAN2/Access Point units configured as Masters.  All
RangeLAN2/Access Point in this scenario should be configured on the 
same Domain and Security ID.

The <Use Defaults> button sets all the parameters to default settings.

After changing any of these parameters, you must Reset the Access Point
in order for them to take effect.
;
;Help for Bridge Configuration
HELPBCFG
The RangeLAN2/Access Point meets the IEEE 802.1d Spanning Tree Protocol
specification.  This protocol was designed to handle cases in a complex
bridged network (multiple bridges) where loops are created either 
unintentionally or to provide redundancy in the network.   The protocol
will configure the bridges into a spanning tree topology removing any 
loops within the network.  If you are administering a network with
more than one bridge (RangeLAN2 or otherwise), you will probably 
need to have some understanding of this protocol so that you can 
configure your bridge for optimum performance.

One of the bridges will need to become the root of the spanning tree.
This root is determined by the bridge with the lowest spanning tree 
priority on the network.  This bridge determines when all the bridges
will broadcast their priorities, physical addresses, activity states,
etc.  This communication is sent in what are called hello packets, and
the root bridge determines the interval between these packets called
hello time.

Once a root to the tree has been established, all other bridges on
the network must become the branches.  The order of the branches is 
determined by the spanning tree priority, path cost (number of jumps
away from the root), and the port priority for each bridge and each
port on each bridge.

In the case where there are redundant bridges causing loops in the 
network, these loops are resolved by one of the bridges becoming
inactive.  This means the bridge will no longer forward packets of data
that are sent to it.  If the loops were not resolved, the same packet of
data may travel around the network ad infinitum.

The network's bridges determine who should become inactive based on
several parameters.  Unlike the RangeLAN2 parameters, these parameters 
take effect as soon as they are set on the Access Point.

You may enable or disable spanning tree support.  If you have no 
other bridges on the network, or have some other method than the
IEEE 802.1d Spanning Tree Protocol to prevent loops on the network,
you can choose to disable this feature.

The Spanning Tree Priority parameter sets the priority of 
RangeLAN2/Access Point in the spanning tree created on the network.
It is used to determine the root node and the branches of the tree as 
well as resolving conflicts to decide which bridge on a network will
become inactive when there is a loop.  In the event that two bridges
have the same priority, the unique physical address breaks the tie.
The lower value has the higher priority.  You may choose a value
of 0 to 65535.

When the RangeLAN2/Access Point is acting as the root, it will use
the Bridge Max Age parameter to determine the maximum amount of time
before discarding hello packet data for all bridges on the network.
This parameter is specified in seconds between 6 and 40.

When the Access Point is acting as the root, it will use
the Bridge Hello Timer parameter to determine the interval of time 
between hello packets.  If this parameter is set too high, the network
will not quickly resolve contention problems.  However, if the
parameter is set too low, the network will be crowded with hello
packet traffic.  This parameter is specified in seconds between 1 and 10.

The Bridge Forward Delay parameter specifies the amount of time
it takes to transition between port states after reset of the
RangeLAN2/Access Point.  The state transitions are as follows:
disabled; blocking incoming packets; listening for other
bridges; learning the addresses of other bridges; and forwarding
data.  It is specified in seconds between 4 and 30.

The Aging Time Parameter specifies the time after which the learned
physical address of the network node is discarded.  This data is
dynamically acquired by the Access Point so that it can 
forward packets properly.  This parameter is set in seconds between 10
and 1,000,000.

The RangeLAN2 Port Priority and Ethernet Port Priority 
parameters are used by the spanning tree algorithm to 
determine the place of the port in the tree as well as to resolve loop
contention problems.  These parameters range from 0 to 255. 

If either the RangeLAN2 port or the Ethernet port is disabled, the
Access Point will not forward data packets to the network
through this port.  Since there are only two ports on the
RangeLAN2/Access Point, disabling either port would make the 
entire bridge inactive.

The RangeLAN2 Port Path Cost and the Ethernet Port Path 
Cost parameters specify the cost that will be added to the 
spanning tree for this port of the Access Point.  This applies 
only when the Access Point is not the root of the tree and when the 
port that you are setting is the root port of the 2 
Access Point ports.  The parameter range is 1 to 65535.

The <Use Defaults> button sets all the parameters to default settings.

After changing any of these parameters, you must Reset the Access Point
in order for them to take effect.

;
;
;Help for New Access Point
HELPNWAP
The Access Point Name uniquely identifies the Access Point
in the Access Point List.  You may use any printable characters in
the name except for spaces.

The Internet Protocol (IP) Address uniquely addresses an
Access Point on a network.  The configuration software
must have this address set in order to access configuration parameters
on remote Access Point.

The Physical Address, when supplied, enables the configuration 
software to act as a Internet Bootstrap Protocol (BOOTP) server.  
When an Access Point on the network resets, it broadcasts its 
physical address on the network.  When configured with this 
physical address and the corresponding IP address, the configuration 
software responds to the querying Access Point, supplying it with its 
IP address.
;
;Help for TCP/IP Configuration
HELPTCPI
If you are configuring the RangeLAN2/Access Point remotely and
change the IP address, you may also need to change the CFG.CFG
file on this PC.  The IP address of the RangeLAN2/Access Point 
and that of this PC must be part of the same IP network. 

Set the IP address for the RangeLAN2/Access Point.  If you do not know
what IP address to use, check with your network administrator.  After
setting the IP address, you must reset the Access Point.

The Subnet Mask indicates the mask that will be used to determine
what network the RangeLAN2/Access Point is on.

If a packet is destined for an IP host or node that needs to cross
a router, the RangeLAN2/Access Point will look for the Default
Gateway to indicate where a router is that can send the packet
to its proper destination. 

At some point in the future, you may need to upgrade the 
RangeLAN2/Access Point software.  To do this, type in
the name of the file you would like to be downloaded to the
RangeLAN2/Access Point  in the Download File field.
Also, indicate the method you are using to communicate with the
RangeLAN2/Access Point in the BOOTP Interface field.
The Serial interface or Ethernet interface are recommended.

After filling in the Download File and BOOTP Interface fields,
you will need to reset the Access Point.  Stay in the CFG tool.  When
the RangeLAN2/Access Point  resets, the new software image
will be downloaded to the RangeLAN2/Access Point .

Note that you can download the software using the CFG tool over
a RangeLAN2 interface.  However, if you are
configuring the RangeLAN2/Access Point over 
RangeLAN2 while the RangeLAN2/Access Point is
resetting, you will not have a Master to synchronize with which may cause
unusual things to happen.  Additionally, configuring over a 
RangeLAN2 interface in general is dangerous in that if
you change wireless communication parameters, you may lose connection
to the RangeLAN2/Access Point and be unable to 
re-establish it.  For example, if you changed the Security ID on the
RangeLAN2/Access Point and reset it, you would need to
change the Security ID on the wireless client to re-establish the
session.  If you forgot the Security ID that you chose, you will have
to reset the RangeLAN2/Access Point using a Serial or
Ethernet method.   
;
;Help for SNMP Configuration
HELPSNMP
You may choose to configure the RangeLAN2/Access Point through
this program to set SNMP parameters before using an SNMP
manager.

System Description names the RangeLAN2/Access Point you are
managing and displays the version of the software it is running.

System Uptime shows the amount of time since the system was 
last initialized.

System Contact identifies the contact person for this
RangeLAN2/Access Point, together with information
on how to contact this person.  

System Name is an administratively-assigned name for this
RangeLAN2/Access Point.  

System Location indicates the physical location of this
RangeLAN2/Access Point (e.g., telephone closet, 
3rd floor). 

The Read-Only Community parameter specifies a community supported by the
RangeLAN2/Access Point.  Actions permitted by this community are 
"read-only."  Only GET and GET-NEXT operations are supported within 
the scope of this community.  SET attempts using this community 
will result in rejection of the attempt with a general error 
response and the generation of an authentication trap (if so enabled).

The Read-Write Community parameter specifies the a community supported
by the RangeLAN2/Access Point. Actions permitted by this community are
"read-write."  GET, GET-NEXT, and SET operations are supported within
the scope of this community.

The Trap Target Community parameter specifies the community that will 
be used by the RangeLAN2/Access Point when generating TRAP PDUs 
to remote managers.

The Trap Target IP Address specifies the IP address of the device 
to which generated TRAP PDUs will be sent.  A value of 0.0.0.0 
disables trap generation. 

Authentication Traps may be enabled or disabled.

SNMP Supported Traps            

     Cold Start -    Sent when the RangeLAN2/Access Point reboots
     Link up -       Sent by each interface at start-up
     Link Down -     Sent when the RangeLAN2/Access Point software
                     cannot initialize or communicate with the radio
     Authorization - Sent to the network manager when someone tries 
                     to manage a RangeLAN2/Access Point with an 
                     invalid community
     No Traffic -    Sent when set to a non-zero value and when 
                     the RangeLAN2/Access Point does not receive 
                     any traffic from other radios for the 
                     configured period of time.  The time may be
                     configured in the <Configure RangeLAN2> screen.

The <Use Defaults> button sets all the parameters to default settings.
;
;Help for Filter Configuration
HELPFILT
The filter configuration allows you to customize the type of traffic
which is forwarded from the Ethernet network to the RangeLAN2 network.
When a box is checked, this indicates that traffic that meets the
corresponding filter characteristic (e.g., Protocol Type) will be 
filtered OUT, and will NOT be forwarded.

The NON-RangeLAN2 address filter, when checked, will prevent traffic
which is destined to a non-broadcast, non-multicast, non-RangeLAN2 
address from being forwarded from Ethernet to wireless.  DO NOT use
this filter when using the node address overwrite feature on 
RangeLAN2 stations.

The NOVELL IPX BROADCAST FILTERS prevent IPX broadcasts of the
specified types from being forwarded from Ethernet to RangeLAN2.
Since RIP, SAP, and LSP broadcasts are of interest to routers and
not end stations, these filters can typically be turned on.

The PROTOCOL TYPE filters prevent traffic of a particular protocol
type from being forwarded from Ethernet to RangeLAN2.  When "Other
Types" is checked, all types other than those listed will be filtered
out.  DO NOT filter out the types of packets you know RangeLAN2
nodes will need to receive.  For example, if you use TCP/IP as a 
protocol on your network, do not filter IP/ARP traffic.  If you have
Macintosh computers on your Ethernet network that send AppleTalk
traffic only to each other, you may want to filter those packets
from RangeLAN2 stations.

The ARP FILTER enables IP ARP broadcast filtering.  When
this filter is enabled, ARP broadcasts will be forwarded from 
Ethernet to RangeLAN2 only if the destination IP address is on the
IP network defined by the IP Network Address and Subnet Mask fields.

BROADCAST BANDWIDTH ALLOCATION allows you to specify the maximum
percentage of broadcast packets that will be sent from the Ethernet
network to the wireless clients.  There may be cases when you want
to limit broadcast traffic.  For example, if you know there are more 
broadcast packets than the 1.6 Mbps speed of the RangeLAN2
interface can handle, you might want to limit the broadcasts.  As
another example, to prioritize directed packets, you might want
to free some of the buffers used for broadcast packets by setting
this limit.

The <Use Defaults> button sets all the parameters to default settings.
;
;Help for Security ID
HELPSEC
To further improve the security of a wireless subnetwork, each
unit requires the same Security ID to establish communication.
The Security ID is used on all RangeLAN2 products and all
Station Types.  This ID is encrypted and stored on the Access Point
itself, not in software.  It cannot be accessed but you may
change it.  If you do change it, however, you will need to change
the Security ID on all other radios with which this one was 
communicating.

To change the Security ID back to default settings, leave the 
Security ID field blank and choose <OK>.
;