About Ip Addresses And Subnets; Bootp And Dhcp - Compaq WL110 User Manual

About IP Addresses and Subnets

In larger organizations that make use of IP addressing for communications, the
network architecture may include different network segments (subnets),
typically separated by a router or gateway.
When installing the 11Mbps Wireless LAN infrastructure into this type of
network architecture, please note that all Access Points and wireless stations
must be installed on the same subnet, i.e. on the same side of the router or
gateway.
The roaming functionality does not work over routers. When Access Points are
connected to different subnets, a mobile station may lose its network connection
when it physically enters an area where the Access Points are connected to a
different subnet.
The configuration and management of your Access Points is managed via the
TCP/IP protocol stack. This means that each Access Point and computer that
you wish to use to configure the Access Points must have a unique IP address.
You are advised to assign "static" IP addresses to the Access Points as described
earlier in this chapter. This ensures that the Access Points at specific locations
will always have the same IP address. For the LAN administrator stations you
may either use a "static" IP address or a dynamic IP address that is assigned by
a BOOTP or DHCP server.
When assigning IP addresses to LAN administrator stations and Access Points,
make sure that:
Each device has a unique IP address.
All devices use the same subnet mask.
Note: The wireless networking system does not need IP addressing to connect
normal wireless stations to the network. The infrastructure is just the
"physical" medium to connect a computer to an Access Point, like you
could use wire to connect it to an ethernet infrastructure.
However in environments where the network operating system uses the
TCP/IP protocol, stations may need to have an IP address as well to use
specific networking services, like for example access to the internet.

BOOTP and DHCP

When powered-up for the very first time, the Access Point will broadcast a
request for an IP address. If your network includes a BOOTP or DHCP server,
this server will automatically assign an available IP address to the Access Point.
Subject to the settings of your BOOTP or DHCP services, you may need to
introduce the Access Point MAC address to the BOOTP or DHCP server.
Consult the documentation of your BOOTP/DHCP software for more
information.
An IP address that is assigned by a DHCP server will be stored in the volatile
memory of the Access Point: i.e. if the Access Point is reset, the DHCP server
may assign another IP address. To obtain consistency in the IP address, it is
Advanced Network Configurations
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