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Public/guest network access
Key concepts
Key concepts
The Public/Guest Network Access feature enables the service controller to provide controlled
network access for a variety of deployments. Some common applications of this feature are:
Providing Internet access to wireless customers in airports, restaurants, train stations,
conference halls, etc.
Providing wireless and wired access to staff and guests in hospitals, corporations,
government buildings.
Providing wireless and wired access to students, staff, and teachers in schools and
universities.
Providing outdoor wireless access for an entire town, enabling city workers, police, fire,
public security, and the general public to connect.
This chapter provides details on the public/guest network access feature and how it can be
used. See also, Chapter 9: Working with public access attributes on page 9-1.
About the public and protected networks
In this type of deployment, the service controller acts as the gatekeeper between two distinct
network segments: the public network and the protected network.
Typically, access to the public network and its resources is available to all users once
they successfully associate with the wireless network.
Access to the private network is restricted by the service controller, and typically
requires that users be authenticated by the service controller. In most cases, user login
occurs with a Web browser via the public access interface Login page. The service
controller can validate user login credentials using locally defined user accounts or by
using the services of a third-party authentication server (RADIUS or Active Directory).
The following diagram shows the public and private networks for a simple public access
deployment.
Protected network
LAN port
Public network
Internet port
AP
Service controller
Public
access
interface
User logs in
Access to network is granted
Internet
8-3