Wireless
WDS Bridge
Cisco Small Business WAP371 Wireless Access Point Administration Guide
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WDS Bridge
The Wireless Distribution System (WDS) allows you to connect multiple WAP371 devices.
With WDS, access points communicate with one another without wires. This capability is
critical in providing a seamless experience for roaming clients and for managing multiple
wireless networks. It can also simplify the network infrastructure by reducing the amount of
cabling required. You can configure the WAP device in point-to-point or point-to-multipoint
bridge mode based on the number of links to connect.
In the point-to-point mode, the WAP device accepts client associations and communicates
with wireless clients and other repeaters. The WAP device forwards all traffic meant for the
other network over the tunnel that is established between the access points. The bridge does
not add to the hop count. It functions as a simple OSI Layer 2 network device.
In the point-to-multipoint bridge mode, one WAP device acts as the common link between
multiple access points. In this mode, the central WAP device accepts client associations and
communicates with the clients and other repeaters. All other access points associate only with
the central WAP device that forwards the packets to the appropriate wireless bridge for routing
purposes.
The AP can also act as a repeater. In this mode, the AP serves as a connection between two
APs that might be too far apart to be within cell range. When acting as a repeater, the AP does
not have a wired connection to the LAN and repeats signals by using the wireless connection.
No special configuration is required for the AP to function as a repeater, and there are no
repeater mode settings. Wireless clients can still connect to an WAP device that is operating as
a repeater.
Before you configure WDS on the WAP device, note these guidelines
•
For pure bridging mode that does not allow client associations, we recommend using
obscure WPA key for VAP0 and/or disabling the SSID broadcast.
•
All Cisco WAP devices participating in a WDS link must have the following identical
settings:
-
Radio
-
IEEE 802.11 Mode
-
Channel Bandwidth
-
Channel (Auto is not recommended)
