Filter
Top Products
Wireless Configuration 5-17
Power Level
Select a power level from the Power Level drop-down menu that will be used for radio
communications between the Access Port and the MUs.
Set a higher power level to ensure RF coverage in WLAN environments that have more
electromagnetic interference or greater distances between the Access Port and mobile units (MUs).
Decrease the power level according to the proximity of other Access Ports. Overlapping RF coverage
may cause lost packets and difficulty for roaming MUs trying to engage an Access Port.
Antenna Diversity
Use the drop-down menu to configure the Antenna Diversity settings for Access Ports that use
external antennas.
Full Diversity: Utilizes both antennas to provide antenna diversity
Primary Only: Enables only the primary antenna
Secondary Only: Enables only the secondary antenna
Antenna Diversity should only be enabled if the Access Port has two
matching external antennas.
RTS Threshold
Set the Request to Send Threshold (RTS Threshold) by specifying a number.
RTS is a transmitting station’s signal that requests a Clear To Send (CTS) response from a receiving
station. This RTS/CTS procedure clears the air when many mobile units (MUs) are contending for
transmission time. Modifying this value allows the administrator to control the number of data
collisions and thereby enhance communication with nodes that are hard to find because of other
active nodes in the transmission path.
In this field, the administrator can specify a Request To Send (RTS) threshold (in bytes) for use by the
WLAN’s adopted Access Ports.
This setting initiates an RTS/CTS exchange for data frames that are larger than the threshold, and
sends (without RTS/CTS) any data frames that are smaller than the threshold.
Consider the tradeoffs when setting an appropriate RTS threshold for the WLAN’s Access Ports. A
lower RTS threshold causes more frequent RTS/CTS exchanges. This consumes more bandwidth
because of the additional latency (RTS/CTS exchanges) before transmissions can commence. A
disadvantage is the reduction in data-frame throughput. An advantage is quicker system recovery
from electromagnetic interference and data collisions. Environments with more wireless traffic and
contention for transmission make the best use of a lower RTS threshold.
A higher RTS threshold minimizes RTS/CTS exchanges, consuming less bandwidth for data
transmissions. A disadvantage is less help to nodes that encounter interference and collisions. An
advantage is faster data-frame throughput. Environments with less wireless traffic and contention for
transmission make the best use of a higher RTS threshold.