cnPilot Enterprise AP
User Guide
CAMBIUM
NETWORKS
35
Wireless Mesh
Overview
With System release 2.0, cnPilot access points as well as the ePMP1000 Hotpot support mesh
connections between radios. A single mesh hop is supported in release 2.0 with experimental support
for multiple mesh hops. Mesh links can form between radios of the same band of operation (2.4GHz or
5GHz), but the two peers of the mesh link don’t have to be of the same AP-type: a link between an
ePMP1000 Hotspot and cnPilot E400 is supported. Given the larger set of available channels and
typically cleaner RF environment we recommend using the 5GHz radio for mesh backhaul if the AP is
5GHz-capable, such as the E400.
A mesh link can be created between two radios by configuring one of them as a BASE and the other as
a CLIENT on the first WLAN of the AP. Typically the access point which has wired connectivity would
be configured as a mesh base. The radio setup for mesh base will select a channel and start
transmitting beacons as soon as the AP comes up. The radio setup for mesh client will scan all
available channels, looking for a mesh base radio to connect with. The SSID in the mesh WLAN is how
the client and base radios of a mesh link identify each other, the same SSID should be configured on
the mesh BASE WLAN as well as the mesh CLIENT WLAN.
In addition to a simple topology between a base and a client, a “star” or “hub-and-spoke” mesh
topology is also supported: a mesh radio can service upto 5 mesh clients connected to it. When a
radio is configured with a mesh WLAN, on that WLAN other clients are not allowed to connect,
however the radio can service clients on other WLANs mapped to it. Note that a client radio will start
rescanning all available channels as soon as it loses connectivity to the base. During this scan period
other WLANs mapped to it will not be operational.
The mesh link can be also be secured with WPA2-Preshared-Keys. The same passphrase should be
configured on both the mesh BASE as well as the mesh CLIENT. Standard 802.11 security handshakes
and AES-CCM encryption are then used on the mesh link.”
Deployment
The following diagram illustrates the working scenario of wireless mesh network:
