WILI-MESH Skin User Guide

From wiliGear wiki

1 Introduction
2 Setup WILI MESH Network
- 2.1 MESH Node Configuration
- 2.2 Discover WILI MESH Nodes with WILI Scout

Introduction

Thank you for choosing the WILI MESH software.

WILI MESH is a secure, QoS capable, portable Linux based OSI layer 2 wireless mesh networking software platform which targets enterprise, campus, WISP networks covering significant areas with 802.11 wireless access. WILI MESH is capable to function on numerous embedded hardware platforms with single or multiple Atheros chipset based radio modules.

WILI MESH Network

WILI MESH network control protocol is based on extensions to IEEE 802.11 protocol for signaling, mesh path selection and topology change detection. WILIBOX Mesh transport layer based on OSI layer 2 bridging is transparent for all IP and non IP protocols and brings no overhead to wireless data stream. Traffic between client and Mesh Node and between Nodes can be secured by 802.11i (WPA2) supporting pre-shared and dynamic key modes and 802.1x authentication. 802.1Q and 802.1P tags are preserved in intra-mesh transport. IEEE 802.11e standard implementation assures QoS between network elements.

Mesh networks are self-configuring (a Mesh Node will scan for other Mesh Node periodically and choose the best path to the Mesh Gateway) and self-healing (the network will reconfigure data paths if an AP or link fails or becomes inactive).

The WILI MESH network consists of two elements:

Mesh Node (provides data transport, monitoring and AP functionality for connecting regular 802.11 wireless clients to the network),
Mesh Gateway (the Mesh Node connected to wired backbone; beside Node functionality Mesh Gateway can act as bridge, router, firewall and access controller).

The Mesh Node software is logically subdivided into components:

Mesh Set - two dedicated physical or logical wireless interfaces: Uplink and Downlink. The Mesh Set selects optimal path to the Mesh Gateway and provides mesh backhaul connectivity.
Service Set - physical or logical wireless interface that is dedicated to service provisioning for 802.11 clients (notebook computers, PDAs, Wi-Fi phone sets, etc.). It covers the functionality of comprehensive high grade 802.11 access point including MBSSID (Virtual APs) with individual security settings.

The following list describes the connection sequence when the Mesh Node and Mesh Gateway start up:

All traffic travels through the Mesh Gateway which has wired connection.
When the Mesh Gateway comes up, the Mesh Nodes automatically connect to it.
Once the remote Mesh Node connects to the Mesh Gateway, it can pass data traffic.
When Mesh Node loses connection to the higher level Mesh Node, it stops its own Downlink, searches for other available best Mesh Node on higher level, and then starts its own Downlink.

Mesh Node Structure

The Mesh Nodes are configured to find and associate with their best available neighbors when they boot up. The WILI MESH application scans for all Access Points on Uplink interface on the Mesh Node startup. Then it tries to find best available Downlink to connect to. After the Node connects to the best available Downlink AP, it starts its own Downlink for other Mesh Nodes to connect. Thus Mesh Node associate with other Mesh Node and any Mesh Gateway that they find.

The Mesh Node must have three physical or logical wireless interfaces acting as three WILI MESH components: Uplink, Downlink and Service Set:

Uplink should work in client (managed) mode. Its task is to connect to other Mesh Node.
Downlink should work in AP (master) mode. It accepts other Mesh Nodes (Uplink from one node connects to Downlink of other node).
Service Set should work in AP (master) mode. The Service Set provides services to ordinary clients. The AutoLockWlan function should be configured on the Service Set to control wireless clients in case when Mesh Node goes down.

	Refer to the document WILI-S User’s Guide for detailed information on all WILI-S features configuration, including AutoLockWlan function.

The figure above displays examples of the WILI MESH Nodes with different amount of physical radios.

Single Radio: In the single-radio example at left of the figure, the same radio of the Mesh Node is used for clients’ access (Service Set) and Mesh Set (Uplink and Downlink). Single radio wireless Mesh is low capacity and will not effectively scale to implement a complete large network. Single radio Mesh is best used in small Mesh clusters at the edge of a network.

Dual Radio: In the dual-radio example in the middle of the figure, one radio is dedicated to the Mesh Set (Uplink and DowLink) and second radio for the client access - Service Set. In such case radios operate in different frequency bands, so they can run in parallel with no interference but with lower backhaul performance. A typical configuration is 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi for wireless client access (Service Set) and 5 GHz for Mesh Set (Uplink and DowLink).

The second way to setup dual-radio Mesh Node is to dedicate different radios to Mesh Set (Uplink and Downlink) for the best backhaul performance. In such case the Downlink and Service Set will share one radio, while Uplink will use the second radio.

Triple Radio: On the right side of the of figure, a three-radio Mesh Node splits all the functions of a Mesh Node onto separate radios, thus the Uplink, Downlink and the Service Set functions each operate at dedicated frequencies (usually 802.11a for Uplink and Downlink, and the 802.11b/g for the client access Service Set). The effect of this architecture is to eliminate interference within the Mesh itself by increasing the throughput across Mesh structure.

Best Path Selection Algorithm

The WILI MESH continuously calculates the path efficiency for all possible routes while checking for changes in the topology and environment. Changes in the network will immediately be taken into account, and a new route will be created if necessary.

	The Mesh Node Uplink connection will not be restructured until any data traffic is present.

The Best Path algorithm formula is as follows:

BestPath = MAX (AP1,...APn)

APx = a*MR - b*PL - c*ML (where a, b, c are configurable coefficients 0-255; default values of the coefficients are: a = 1, b = 20, c = 1).

PL – normalized path length (= 100/hop number);

MR – normalized minimal rate over whole path (= MinRate/54 * 100);

ML – normalized radio load over whole path (= 100 - radio load [%] from max available bandwidth using current rate at current node);

	For instructions on Best Patch algorithm configuration refer to the respective section MESH Node Configuration.

There is one more factor: threshold which will arbitrate if the node's uplink should connect to alternative Best Path. The default threshold value 30% means that new Best Path value should be bigger by 30% in order to switch from the current one.

Single Radio WILI MESH

	Every Mesh Node wireless Mesh Set (Uplink and Downlink) and Service Set can coexist on the same radio interface, but in order to achieve better throughputs, multiple radio modules are preferred.

The following figure describes the Mesh network created with WILI MESH devices equipped with only one physical radio. The additional two virtual wireless interfaces (VSSID) should be configured per WILI MESH Node to create all three WILI MESH components on the physical radio: Uplink, Downlink and Service Set.

The single radio on the Mesh Node supports both Service Set ant Mesh Set (Uplink and Downlink interfaces). Such network (which typically uses 2.4-GHz 802.11b/g radios) is the least expensive system to deploy, but offers limited performance.

Dual Radio WILI MESH

The following figure describes the Mesh network created with WILI MESH devices equipped with two physical radio modules. The additional virtual wireless interface (VSSID) should be configured per Node to create all three WILI MESH components on the two physical radios: Uplink (VSSID), Downlink on first radio and Service Set on second one.

On the dual radio device one 802.11a physical radio is dedicated to Mesh Set (Uplink and Downlink) while the other 802.11b/g physical radio interface should be dedicated to wireless client access (Service Set). The dual radio architecture separates the Mesh Set traffic from the edge access traffic, increasing capacity compared to single radio mesh architectures.

Triple Radio WILI MESH

The following figure describes the Mesh network created with WILI MESH devices equipped with three physical radio interfaces. For the best performance each physical radio interface should be dedicated to separate WILI MESH components: Uplink, Downlink and Service Set.

Such Mesh structure provides separate Mesh Set and access service functionality on separate radio modules. Dynamically managed channels provides non interference for all the radio. Triple radio nodes provide the best performance while two radio modules are configured to act as Uplink and Downlink (backhaul), and the third one provides service to wireless clients.

WILI MESH Access

The WILI Mesh device requests an IP address via DHCP by default. If no response is received from the DHCP server then the access point uses the default address 192.168.2.66. If your network has a DHCP server, the IP address will be automatically assigned to the WILI device from DHCP server IP address range. Use WILIBOX Java utility (integrated in the WILI Scout utility) WILI Discovery to locate the device on the network and view its IP address. After the IP address of the WILI device was determinated enter that IP address into a web browser on a computer on the same subnet to login into the WILI Mesh device web management:

	Default administrator logon settings are: User Name: admin Password: admin01

After successful administrator login you will see the main page of the WILI MESH device Web management interface. The WILI MESH device now is ready for configuration. For instructions on changing the administrator’s password refer to the corresponding section Account.

General Skin Operation

There are three general actions to manage configuration file using the skin: Refresh status, Apply configuration changes, Save&Reboot to save new device configuration and reboot the device.

Refresh

Pages that displays statistical information or other pages that may change frequently and do not have any configurable items may have a Refresh button. Use this button when need to refresh page information.

For example the information on Wireless Statistics page changes frequently, so refreshing the page often may be beneficial.

Apply

Configuration pages contain a page-wide Apply button at the top of the screen that applies all changes made on a single page to a temporary configuration cache. In previous skin versions, it may have been necessary to click a Change button in multiple sections on the page. This is no longer necessary.

	The Apply button does not save the configuration permanently, only temporary. Once the Apply button is clicked, the SAVE&REBOOT should be used to save the configuration to the device.

Multiple consecutive pages can be edited by using the Apply button before clicking the SAVE&REBOOT button.

Save & Reboot

After the Apply button is used on any page, the new button SAVE&REBOOT appears near the LOGOUT button on the main menu area. The SAVE&REBOOT button saves all temporary changes made by clicking Apply button to the actual device configuration file and reboots the device.

WILI MESH Skin Structure

The main Web management menu is displayed after successfully login into the system (see the figure below). From this menu all essential configuration pages are accessed.

By default the Statistics | System Information menu is activated and the main WILI MESH system information is displayed. The active menu is displayed in a different color.

The WILI device web management menu has the following structure:

Statistics

System Information – displays general information of the WILI MESH device.

Interfaces – displays main network statistics of the WILI MESH device.

Wireless – displays statistics of the wireless interfaces of the WILI MESH device.

ARP Table – displays ARP table of the WILI device.

Configuration

Network – basic WILI MESH device network settings.

Service Set – main wireless settings for the wireless client access.

Mesh – main wireless settings (SSID, country code, IEEE mode, throughput enhancements, security) for the Mesh Set.

Services – SSH, Syslog, HTTPS services management.

Expert – direct editing and management of the configuration file.

System

Account – change administrator’s password.

License – license file upload on the WILI device.

Skins – activate and upload new skins on the WILI device.

Management – WILI device management settings: SNMP, RCMS and WILI Scout client.

Maintenance – upgrade with a new firmware, reboot or reset WILI device to factory defaults, download the troubleshooting file of the WILI Mesh device.

Tools

Site Survey – perform a site evaluation to show overview information for other wireless networks in the local geography.

Antenna Alignment – measures signal quality between wireless devices.

Traffic Generator – measures the traffic throughput from client to server.

Traffic Monitor – display the connection tracking data.

In the following sections short references to all menu items are provided.

Status

Use the Status menu to check the WILI MESH device current status (this is the default page when accessing the device web management interface). There are five sections of the status information:

System Information

System Information menu displays general devices status (device name, firmware version, hardware revision, uptime, system memory, average load), license status and short information about current skin.

Uptime – displays the time, expressed in days, hours and minutes since the system was last rebooted.

Hardware version – displays the device hardware version.

Device name – displays the device type.

Friendly name – displays the device friendly name used by RCMS and SNMP.

Firmware version – displays current version of the firmware [<PRODUCT>.<HW>.<VERSION>.<CPU>.<RADIO>.<SKIN>.<BUILD-NO>.<BUILD-TIME>]

Average system load – displays the average load of the device processor in the period of the last 1minute, 5 minutes and 15 minutes (a larger value means a larger average load on the processor).

<1.0 – System is idle
=1.0 – Normal load
>1.0 – Processor is busy.

System memory – displays total and free system memory [kB].

License status – displays a status of the current license and its validity period.

Active skin – displays the name and the version of current skin

Refresh – click to renew system information page.

Interfaces

The Network Statistics page displays the main network configuration and receive/transmit statistics of all interfaces.

Network statistics – displays detailed receive and transmit statistics of each interface of the WILI MESH device.

Network configuration – displays the main parameters of each IP level interface (MAC address, IP address, Netmask).

Refresh – click to renew network statistics information.

Wireless

The Wireless Statistics page displays the main statistics of wireless interfaces.

Wireless Statistics – displays detailed statistics of each wireless interface.

Stations/Access-Points – displays information on stations connected to the particular wireless interface of the Mesh device (Master mode) or information on the device whereto the particular wireless interface is connected (Managed mode).

For example the figure above shows information on the Mesh Gateway. All three interfaces are in the master mode. The ath1 operates as Downlink and it has the wireless station (the Mesh Node) with MAC 06:0B:6B:56:28:E3 connected to it. The other two wireless interfaces, ath0 and ath3, operate as Service sets and serve wireless clients. And there is no interface operating as Uplink since this device is a Mesh Gateway.

Mesh Information – displays the main information of the each WILI MESH device radio interface.

User statistics – displays information of the associated wireless stations to the particular wireless interface of the WILI Mesh device

Refresh – click to renew wireless statistics information.

ARP Table

The ARP Table page displays the table of ARP (Address Resolution Protocol) entries.

Refresh – click to renew information in ARP table.

Configuration

The Configuration menu allows you to manage general parameters of the WILI MESH device. Configuration page contains following sub menus:

Network – setup basic WILI MESH device network settings.
Service Set – setup main wireless settings for the wireless client access.
Mesh – setup main wireless settings (SSID, country code, IEEE mode, throughput enhancements, security) for the Mesh Set.
Services – configure SSH, Syslog, HTTPS services management.
Expert – direct editing and management of the configuration file.

Network Settings

The IP configuration is required for device management purposes. The network settings can be either entered manually (static IP address, subnet mask, and gateway IP address) or obtained automatically (dynamic).The DNS Client functionality can also be configured, so that host names used for configuring the access point can be resolved to their IP addresses. Use the Configuration | Network menu to setup network settings of the WILI MESH device:

Configuration – specify the IP configuration mode [Static IP/DHCP]. If the DHCP configuration mode is selected the WILI device will run as a Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) client; the device will obtain IP settings from a network DHCP server automatically during boot-up. If you do not have a DHCP server or if you want to manually configure the WILI device IP settings, set this parameter to Static.

	If you enable the DHCP configuration mode, the browser will loose the connection after rebooting, because the IP address assigned by the DHCP server is not predictable.

IP address – specify the IP address of the WILI MESH device [digit and dots]. When shipped from the factory or reset to factory settings, the device defaults to a static IP address of 192.168.2.66.

Subnet mask – specify the access point’s subnet mask [digit and dots]. When shipped from the factory or reset to factory settings, the device defaults to a subnet mask of 255.255.255.0.

Default gateway – specify the IP address of the device gateway [digit and dots]. When shipped from the factory or reset to factory settings, the AP defaults to a gateway IP address of 192.168.2.1.

DNS server 1 – specify the IP address of the primary DNS server [digit and dots]. The DNS (Domain Name Service) service translates Internet host names into their IP addresses.

DNS server 2 – specify the IP address of the secondary DNS server [digit and dots].

Service Set Settings

The Service Set is physical or logical wireless interface that is dedicated to service provisioning for 802.11 clients (notebook computers, PDAs, Wi-Fi phone sets, etc.). The Mesh skin selects and assigns radio interface for the Service Set automatically (if the device has less than three physical radio interfaces, the skin creates additional logical wireless interfaces (VSSID’s) to have all three Mesh components). Use the Service Set menu to configure the basic wireless settings such as country code, IEEE mode, and channel for the Service Set:

Enable Service Set – select to enable Service Set of the WILI MESH device.

	Before changing radio settings manually verify that your settings will comply with local government regulations. At all times, it is the responsibility of the end-user to ensure that the installation complies with local radio regulations. Refer to the Regulatory Domain/Channels for information about regulatory domains.

IEEE mode – specify the wireless network mode of the Service Set for the wireless clients [auto, A, A Static Turbo, B, B/G Mixed, G]. The list of IEEE modes will conform to the wireless network modes supported by the WILI device radio.

	The usage of the same radio for Service Set and Mesh Set (Uplink and Downlink) makes it impossible to choose IEEE mode and the channel for Service Set.

Throughput enhancements – enable the Atheros super features [Fast Frame, Packet Bursting, Dynamic Turbo]. Atheros Super AG® enhanced technologies offers the highest actual throughput - 1.5 to 2 times faster than standard 802.11g or 802.11a/g products in the wireless LAN.

Fast Frames – packet aggregation and timing modifications. The fast frames is only available on A, G and auto IEEE modes.
Packet Bursting – more data frames per given time period. The packet bursting is only available on A, G and auto IEEE modes.
Dynamic Turbo – maximizes throughput using multiple channels. Dynamic Turbo is only available on A and G IEEE modes.

SSID – specify the unique name for the wireless network [string]. Default SSID is "ServiceSet" but you should change this to a personal wireless network name.

Broadcast SSID – when selected the WILI device SSID is visible during network scans on a wireless station. When unselected, the SSID of the WILI device is not visible and not broadcasted to wireless stations.

Current channel – displays the channel at which the device is operating currently.

Channel – select the channel, or function ‘auto’ from the drop-down list. Multiple frequency channels are available to avoid interference between nearby access points. If you wish to operate more than one access point in overlapping coverage areas, we recommend a distance of at least four channels between the chosen channels. For example, for three Access Points in close proximity choose channels 1, 6 and 11. The auto channel function is used to find the best channel for wireless device communication (either an unused channel or if all are in use that with the lowest measured signal strength).

	The available channel’s list varies depending on the selected country code and IEEE mode of the WILI MESH device.

The default channel bandwidth for 802.11 radio is 40MHz in 11a mode and 44MHz in 11g mode (for the turbo modes these are the double ones). It is possible to narrow down the bandwidth twice or four times by choosing Half/Quarter rates. Although this will drop down the data transfer rates, the power density will be increased and it may help to achieve greater operation distances (see figure below).

	The Half/Quarter rates are only available on A and G IEEE mode, the Dynamic Turbo option should be disabled.

Quality of service (WMM) – enable to support quality of service for prioritizing traffic from the Ethernet to the access point.

Country code – choose from drop-down list the country in which you will use the WILI device. According to the country chosen the regulatory domain settings change. You are not allowed to select radio channels and RF output power values other the permitted values for your country and regulatory domain.

Service Set Security

Enable WPA or WPA2 security methods for secure wireless client connection on the Service Set. The WPA provides a higher level of protection for wireless LAN client stations as it includes methods for mutual authentication, strong encryption, and data integrity. WPA takes the original master key only as a starting point and derives its encryption keys dynamically from this master key. WPA regularly changes and rotates the encryption keys so that the same encryption key is never used twice. Key exchange is done automatically transparent to the user. The WPA2 is the second generation of WPA security; providing enterprise and consumer Wi-Fi users with a high level of assurance that only authorized users can access their wireless networks. WPA2 is based on the final IEEE 802.11i amendment to the 802.11 standard.

Use the Service Set Security section under the Configuration | Service Set menu to configure the security on the Service Set:

Authentication method – choose the security method and the key selection method for the client access from the drop-down list.

Open system – do not choose any of wireless security on the particular WILI device radio interface.
WPA-PSK-TKIP – choose the WPA security with passphrase, encrypted by the TKIP (Temporal Key Integrity Protocol) algorithm.
WPA-PSK-CCMP – choose the WPA security with passphrase, encrypted by the AES in Counter mode with CBC-MAC (Temporal Key Integrity Protocol) algorithm.
WPA2-PSK-TKIP – choose the WPA2 security with passphrase, encrypted by the TKIP (Temporal Key Integrity Protocol) algorithm.
WPA2-PSK-CCMP – choose the WPA security with passphrase, encrypted by the AES in Counter mode with CBC-MAC (Temporal Key Integrity Protocol) algorithm.

Passphrase – specify the WPA or WPA2 passphrase [8-63 characters]. The passphrase will be converted to pre-shared key format, selected above.

Mesh Settings

The Mesh skin selects and assigns radio interfaces to each Mesh component (Uplink, Downlink and Service Set) automatically. If the device has less than three physical radio interfaces, the skin creates additional logical wireless interfaces (VSSID’s) to have all three Mesh components.

	Before changing radio settings manually verify that your settings will comply with local government regulations. At all times, it is the responsibility of the end-user to ensure that the installation complies with local radio regulations. Refer to the Regulatory Domain/Channels for information about regulatory domains.

The Skin itself creates the principal parameters, whereas a user has only to define IEEE mode, SSID and other settings of the Mesh backhaul (Uplink and Downlink).

Use the Configuration | Mesh menu to setup these settings of the Mesh backhaul:

Mesh role – specify the role of the WILI MESH device:

Mesh Node has no wired connection to the LAN, uses only wireless connection to communicate with other Mesh nodes. Provides data transport, monitoring and AP functionality for connecting regular 802.11 wireless clients to the network;
Mesh Gateway has a wired connection to the LAN. Beside Mesh Node functionality Mesh Gateway can act as bridge, router, firewall and access controller.

IEEE mode – specify the wireless network mode of the Mesh Set [auto, A, A Static Turbo, B, B/G Mixed, G]. The list of IEEE modes will conform to the wireless network modes supported by the WILI device radio. In case the Mesh Node is configured in auto mode, it scans the devices with the same SSID and sets on the identified IEEE mode.

	It will take longer to connect to the Mesh network when the Mesh Node is configured using auto IEEE mode.

Fast Frames – packet aggregation and timing modifications. The fast frames is only available on A, G and auto IEEE modes.
Packet Bursting – more data frames per given time period. The packet bursting is only available on A, G and auto IEEE modes.
Dynamic Turbo – maximizes throughput using multiple channels. Dynamic Turbo is only available on A and G IEEE modes.

SSID – specify the unique Mesh network name [1-32 string]. Default SSID is "WILI-Mesh" but you should change this to a personal Mesh network name.

Broadcast SSID – when selected the WILI device SSID of the Mesh Set is visible during network scans on a wireless station. When unselected, the SSID is not visible and not broadcasted to wireless stations.

Quality of service (WMM) – enable to support quality of service for prioritizing traffic from the Ethernet to the access point.

Autolock Service Set – when enabled, the Mesh device will check for Uplink connection; when the Uplink disconnects, the system will down the Service Set and all connected wireless clients will be kicked out. When the Uplink restores connection, the Service Set will be restored.

Mesh Security

To establish a secure connection between Mesh devices, the same security method should be configured on Mesh backhaul on each WILI device.

Use the Mesh Security under the Configuration | Mesh menu to enable the security on the Mesh Set:

Authentication method – choose the security method and the key selection method for the Mesh backhaul WILI device from the drop-down list.

Open system – do not choose any of wireless security on the Mesh Set.
WPA-PSK-TKIP – choose the WPA security with passphrase, encrypted by the TKIP (Temporal Key Integrity Protocol) algorithm.
WPA-PSK-CCMP – choose the WPA security with passphrase, encrypted by the AES in Counter mode with CBC-MAC (Temporal Key Integrity Protocol) algorithm.
WPA2-PSK-TKIP – choose the WPA2 security with passphrase, encrypted by the TKIP (Temporal Key Integrity Protocol) algorithm.
WPA2-PSK-CCMP – choose the WPA security with passphrase, encrypted by the AES in Counter mode with CBC-MAC (Temporal Key Integrity Protocol) algorithm.

Passphrase – specify the WPA or WPA2 passphrase [8-63 characters]. The passphrase will be converted to pre-shared key format, selected above.

Services

Use Services menu for SSH, Syslog and HTTPS services management.

SSH

The SSH (Secure Shell) provides strong authentication and encryption of session data. Use the Configuration | Services menu to setup the SSH service for access of the WILI MESH device. By default the SSH server is enabled on the 22 port:

Enable SSH – specify the SSH service status.

Port – specify the port for incoming SSH connections [0-65535]. Default: 22.

	With this service disabled, you would not be able to connect to the WILI device using the SSH service (e.g. to access the CLI interface).

Syslog

Use the Configuration | Services menu to configure device to save log messages to the local or remote file using standard syslog facility:

Message level – specify the message level you need to trace. The level determines the importance of the message and the volume of messages generated by the WILI device. The levels are in order of increasing importance [emergency/alert/critical/error/warning/notice/information/debug]. Default: info.

The WILI MESH device can be configured to send system log messages to a remote server:

Forward enabled – choose to disable/enable remote log.

Host IP address – specify the remote host IP address where system messages will be sent [IP address].

Host port – specify the port to which system messages will be forwarded [0-65535]. Default: 514.

Forward message level – specify the message level that will be send to the remote syslog server. The level determines the importance of the message and the volume of messages generated by the WILI device. The levels are in order of increasing importance [emergency/alert/critical/error/warning/notice/information/debug]. Default: info.

Forward backup enabled – choose to disable/enable remote log backup.

Forward host IP address – specify the backup host IP address where syslog messages will be send to [IP address].

Forward host port – specify the port to which syslog messages will be forwarded [0-65535]. Default: 514.

HTTP Management

Using the Configuration | Services menu the management of the WILI device through the HTTP service can be forbidden:

Enable management through HTTP – specify the status of the WILI MESH device management through HTTP.

Expert Settings

	The Expert Settings are for the advanced users only as after the modification of the configuration file the WILI device may get inaccessible or stop operating.

The modification of the configuration file should be used only in one of the configuration modes either in Skin or in Expert. By default the Skin configuration is enabled:

Configuration editing mode – choose the configuration file editing mode:

Skin mode – the configuration changes are made using Skin GUI. The possibility to modify configuration file manually and upload custom or backup configuration file is disabled.

Expert mode – the configuration file changes are made manually or custom/backup file can be uploaded. The possibility to modify configuration file using the Skin GUI is disabled.

	The configuration file modification in Expert mode has no relation with the Skin configuration. In this case, if you want to configure device using the Skin, after the configuration file was modified in Expert mode, the Skin will not recognize the configuration file and will rewrite some sections that Skin has influence on. Therefore after the configuration in Expert mode, when administrator logs in web management, the Skin rewrites configuration file with Skin configuration sections and offers to Apply changes which overwrite configuration file modified in Expert mode.

Use Configuration | Expert menu for configuration file download/upload and for edit the device configuration file manually. Editing the configuration file directly can be useful if you need configuration options that are too advanced to be included into the web configuration, or for fine tuning after the web configuration has been used to apply general settings.

Upload new configuration file – use Browse… to specify the system configuration file you want to upload and click the Upload button. The system configuration will be uploaded on the system, but do not take affect until the device is rebooted.

Download running configuration file – click to download current device configuration file to your local PC. When needed, that device configuration file could be uploaded to device to have identical configuration that had on configuration download date.

The Edit Configuration section is for editing the configuration file manually. The configuration file entry field is active and ready for editing.

	Refer to the respective document WILI-S Configuration Reference Manual for detailed information about the syntax of the configuration file.

Save – click to save a modified configuration file to the device flash memory. Modified WILI device system configuration will become active after device reboot. The system information massage appears with direction to reboot the device. Use the Save&Reboot button to apply device configuration changes and reboot the device.

	Incorrect configuration file modifications (keys and values) may cause the device to stop working. In this case try to upload a known good configuration file or perform a reset to factory defaults (please refer to the respective section Maintenance).

Reset – use this button to cancel recent changes of the configuration file text. This button is functional before using Save button.

Read active – load the last saved configuration file from device flash memory.

Read backup – load the next-to-last saved configuration file from device flash memory.

Adjust edit area height – select a desired height of the edit area.

System

Use the System menu to define access settings to the device, or to use the following system services:

Account – change administrator’s password.
License – license file upload on the WILI device.
Skins – activate and upload new skins on the WILI device.
Management – WILI MESH management settings: SNMP, RCMS client, Clock/NTP.
Maintenance – upgrade with a new firmware, reboot or reset WILI device to factory defaults, download the troubleshooting file of the Mesh device.

Administrative Account

	We recommend to change the default administrator password as soon as possible.

The Administrative Account menu is for changing the existing administrators’ password.

Username – displays the username of the current connected administrator. This parameter is not changeable.

Old password – enter the old administrator password.

New password – enter the new administrator password for user authentication.

Verify password – re-enter the new password to verify its accuracy.

	The only way to gain access to the web management if you forget the administrator password is to reset the WILI-AP to factory default settings.

	Default administrator login settings are: User Name: admin Password: admin01

License

When the device is installed and ready for use, the valid license file should be uploaded on the device to activate a full set of the device features. The license status is displayed on the device System Information page:

License status – displays the license validity status:

valid – this license status means that devise has full functionality of the purchased WILI-S firmware release. With a valid license, you can get all service releases of the purchased FW version for free.
not valid – this license status provides only a very limited functionality.

	The license will be still valid after resetting the device to defaults.

If the device has an invalid license uploaded, only very limited set of the device functionality is enabled:

It runs only with a default configuration. Only a single BSSID is allowed; DHCP client runs on WAN interface, DHCP servers run on LAN and Wireless interfaces.

It is impossible to change the configuration. All features are locked down until a valid license is presented. Any changes made in configuration will be stored in the flash memory of the device. Thus only a default setting will be used after the reboot.

To manage the license file, use the System | License menu:

License status – displays the validity status of current license.

Download current license file – click to download current device license file to your local PC.

License File Upload – click for the license file upload on the device.

To upload a new valid license file on the device use the Upload button under the Upload New License section:

Browse… – click to specify the license file you want to upload on the device.

Upload – click to upload the chosen license file on the device.

	Be sure for certain you are uploading a valid license file.

After the new license file is uploaded, the device must be rebooted for changes to take effect. For instructions how to reboot the device, refer to the section Reboot on the Maintenance page.

	In case the fault license file has been uploaded, the device becomes inactive after reboot and the default configuration will be uploaded with the dynamic IP address given by the local DHCP server.

Skins

The are two types of skins: build-in and custom. The build-in skins comes with a WILI device firmware and are undeletable so even after the device reset to factory defaults the build-in skins will remain. The custom skins are fully manageable - they can be uploaded and deleted from the system by the administrator.

Use the System | Skin page for skin upload, download or activation.

Skin name – displays the name of the particular skin.

Active – marks which skin is activated on the system.

Type – specifies the type of particular skin:

build-in – skins that are built in device firmware and cannot be removed. The built-in skins will remain even after device reset to factory defaults.

custom – skins developed under customers' needs and uploaded to the device manually.

Activate – load and activate selected skin on the system. After the selected skin will be activated, the new web interface appearance will be displayed.

	Take a note that after activation of a new skin, the configuration file and parameter values will be reverted to the default values of the activated skin (including the IP address of the device and administrator's credentials).

	It is recommended to refresh your browser (Ctrl+F5) after the successful activation of a skin.

Delete – remove the selected skins from the system. The build-in skins are not removable, only custom skins can be deleted.

Download – download the selected skin to your local PC.

Use the Upload New Skin section to upload custom skins on the WILI device system:

Browse… – click the button to select the new skin archive from a folder on the PC.

Upload – upload the new skin on the system. Successfully uploaded skin archive will appear on the Skin table under Device Skins section.

Management

Use Management menu for SNMP, RCMS and WILI Scout client and Clock/NTP setup

RCMS and WILI Scout Settings

Remote Configuration Management System (RCMS) is a centralized monitoring and management system for wireless network equipment based on the WILI operating system. The communication between managed devices and the RCMS server is always initiated by an RCMS client running on every WILI device. The RCMS server has integrated WILI Scout - Java application for graphical representation of the network topology and status of the WILI Mesh Nodes. The WILI Scout also can run as a standalone application.

Use the section RCMS/WILI Scout Settings under the System | Management menu to configure the RCMS or WILI Scout client on the WILI MESH device:

Enable service – select to enable RCMS or standalone WILI Scout settings.

Server URL – specify the URL of the RCMS server or a standalone WILI Scout that heartbeat notifications will be sent to.

	If the standalone Java application WILI Scout is to be used instead of RCMS server as the whole, the IP address with port 8282 of the server with the continuously running WILI Scout must be specified (e.q. `rcms.heartbeat.url=http://192.168.2.2:8282/heartbeat.php`)

Heartbeat interval – specify the interval, in seconds, between subsequent heartbeat notifications [number]. Default: 30.

Heartbeat timeout – specify the maximum number of seconds to wait for a response from the RCMS server or WILI Scout before considering the connection as having timed out [number]. Default: 60.

Statistics update interval – specify the number of seconds in which the statistics will be send to the RCMS server or WILI Scout [number]. Default: 300.

Change – click to save the changes. After the changes are saved the WILI device must be rebooted for a new device configuration to take effect.

Friendly Name

Use the Friendly Name section on System | Management menu to give a friendly name for the WILI MESH device. The Friendly Name is used by SNMP, RCMS and WILI Scout.

Name – specify the name of the WILI MESH device [string].

Change – click to save the changes.

SNMP Settings

SNMP is the standard protocol that is widely used for network management over the Internet. With the SNMP service enabled, the WILI device can act as SNMP agent. To communicate with SNMP manager you must configure SNMP communities and identifiers on both ends (manager and agent).

Use the System | Management | SNMP menu to enable/disable the SNMP service or change the current SNMP configuration on the WILI device.

Enable SNMP – specify the SNMP service status on the WILI device.

Name – displays an assigned friendly name for the WILI device [string]. This parameter is configurable under Friendly Name section.

System location – specify the identification of the WILI MESH device physical location [string].

System contact – specify the textual identification of the contact person for the WILI device together with information on how to contact this person [string].

Read only community (v1/v2) – specify the read-only community name for SNMP version 1 and version 2c [string]. The read-only community allows a manager to read values, but denies any attempt to change values.

Read only user (v3) – specify the user name for read-only SNMP version 3 access [string]. The read-only community allows a manager to read values, but denies any attempt to change values.

Read only user password (v3) – specify the password for read-only SNMPv3 access [string].

Change – click to save the changes. After the changes are saved the WILI device must be rebooted for a new device configuration to take effect.

Maintenance

Use the Maintenance menu to upgrade system firmware, reboot or set the WILI device to factory default values.

To update your device firmware use the Firmware upgrade section under the Maintenance menu, select the firmware file and click the Upload button:

Current Firmware Version – displays version of the current firmware of the WILI MESH device.

Browse… – click the button to select the new image from a folder on the PC.

Upload – upload the new firmware.

	When updating FW image from 3.5x to 5.xx, a new license key should be uploaded on WILI device first. Otherwise the device will be inactive after reboot and the default configuration will be uploaded with the dynamic IP address given by the local DHCP server. For information on how to upload a license file please refer to the appropriate section License.

The WILI device system firmware upgrade is compatible with all configuration settings. When the device is upgraded with a newer version or the same version builds, all the system’s configuration will be preserved after the upgrade.

The new firmware image is uploaded to the controller’s temporary memory. It is necessary to save the firmware into the WILI device permanent memory. Click the Upgrade button:

Upgrade – upgrade device with the uploaded image and reboot the system.

	Do not switch off and do not disconnect the device from the power supply during the firmware update process as the device could be damaged.

Use the Reboot section to reboot the WILI device:

Reboot – reboot device with the last saved configuration.

After clicking the Reboot button, the confirmation message appears:

Reboot – click to finish the device reboot process.

Cancel – click to revoke reboot device process.

Use the Factory Defaults menu to reset WILI device parameters into factory defaults:

Reset – click to reset the device to factory default values.

	Resetting the device is an irreversible process. Current configuration and the administrator password will be set back to the factory default. Nevertheless the device license will be still valid after resetting the device to defaults.

After clicking the Reset button, the confirmation message appears:

Reset – click to reset the device to factory default values.

Cancel – click to cancel reset process.

WILI skin has an ability to generate a troubleshooting file that contains a valuable information about device configuration, routes, log files, command outputs and etc. Using the troubleshooting file the device itself gathers information instead of you. This is helpful for submitting problems to WILIBOX support team.

Download – click to download the troubleshooting file to your local PC.

Tools

Use the Tools menu to use the following WILI device applications:

Site Survey – to view the list of wireless networks in local graphical area.
Antenna Alignment – to align WILI MESH device antenna.
Traffic Generator – to measure the WILI Mesh throughput.
Traffic Monitor - to view the connection tracking data.

Site Survey

The Site Survey test shows overview information for wireless networks in a local geographic area.

Using this test, an administrator can scan for working access points, check their operating channels, WEP encryption and see signal/noise levels. An administrator can use this feature to identify a clear channel to set the WILI-S based device to that will not receive interference from adjacent APs.

	Note that Site Survey function can take several minutes to perform.

A Site Survey test is performed every time on the startup of the device, therefore the results of the last performed Site Survey test and its time can be found on the page. Thus, to obtain the results, the initiation of the scan is not necessary.

To perform the Site Survey test currently, click the Scan:

Choose wireless interface – choose the interface on which the Site Survey test will be performed form the drop-down list.

	The Site Survey function is impossible if the selected wireless interface is disabled.

Scan – click to perform the Site Survey test.

After the Site Survey test is performed the results and its time can be found on the page. Thus, to obtain the results, the initiation of the scan is not necessary.

Antenna Alignment

The antenna alignment test measures signal quality between the bridge/access point and other wireless networking devices. For best results during the antenna alignment test, turn off all wireless networking devices within range of the device except the device(s) with which you are trying to align the antenna. Watch the constantly updated display in the antenna alignment test window as you adjust the antenna.

Choose wireless interface – select the wireless interface on which the Antenna Alignment test will be performed.

	The Antenna Alignment is impossible if the selected wireless interface is disabled

The Antenna Alignment test results appear when you click the Start button, and finishes when you click Stop button.

Traffic Generator

This test generates TCP/UDP traffic and measures throughput from client to server with current established point-to-point link conditions.

The throughput test requires two endpoints: server on remote point-to-point link host and the client. Operating mode is selected using

Operating mode – specify the operating mode of particular throughput test [server/client].

Throughput test Client endpoint supports the following settings:

Protocol – specify the network protocol of the throughput test [TCP/UDP].

Host – specify the IP address of the device which acts as throughput test server [IP address]. T

Duplex traffic – specify to perform throughput test with simultaneous data transmission in both directions.

Start – click to start the throughput test.

Stop – click to stop the throughput test.

Show Results – click to view the results of the throughput test.

Results – displays table of the throughput results.

	Do not forget to stop Server’s side after the throughput test is finished, as the test may influence on the WILI device performance.

Traffic Monitor

Use this tool for connection tracking, based on the IPtables 'conntrack' module. The traffic monitor table displays only those IP Conntrack table entries that are in [ASSURED] state.

To view traffic monitor data, the IP Conntrack module must be loaded using shell command:

   # modprobe ip_conntrack

Once loaded the IP Conntrack module will remain until device reboot. Do not forget to disable IP Conntrack module, as it may influence on the WILI-O device performance. To disable this module use command on shell:

  # rmmod ip_conntrack

To enable IP Conntrack module once for all, setup WILI device configuration file using the Configuration menu with the following System Modules configuration keys:

  modules.status=enabled
  modules.1.status=enabled
  modules.1.name=ip_conntrack
  modules.1.arguments=hashsize=8192

	Refer to the respective document WILI-S Configuration Reference Manual for detailed information about the syntax of the configuration file.

Use the Refresh button to view the connection tracker’s file data:

The filter options will allow you to specify any of protocol, source IP or port ,and destination IP or port. There is an ability to filter data using multiple keywords by entering them separated by space, e.g. “tcp 131". Enter these keywords, use Search button and table will be refreshed according the filter results:

	Do not forget to disable IP Conntrack module, as it may influence on the WILI device performance.

Logout

Click LOGOUT link on the top right corner of the main menu to leave the Web management interface:

Logout – click to leave the WILI-Mesh Web management.

When the LOGOUT button is clicked, the administrator is redirected to the login page.

Setup WILI MESH Network

The WILI MESH software is based on the WILI-S (WILIBOX WILI software platform). For the instructions on WILI MESH Node installation please refer to the Installation Guide.

MESH Node Configuration

The configuration of the each Mesh Node can be made using two methods:

Web management based on WILI MESH skin;
By creating the configuration file of the WILI device manually.

The following additional (mesh) keys of the configuration file are used to configure the WILI MESH Node (for the detailed information on overall WILI device configuration refer to the respective document WILI-S Configuration Reference Manual, as the Mesh Node functionality is based on the WILI-S software):

mesh.status – specify the status of WILI MESH [enabled/disabled].

mesh.ssid – specify the SSID of the Mesh Node [string, 0-32 characters].

mesh.ssid.is_hex – specify the status of SSID converting to HEX format [enabled/disabled]. For example if SSID string "00552235" (8 symbols) will be converted into HEX format, the real value would be 0x00 0x55 0x22 0x35 (4 HEX symbols)

mesh.ssid=00552235
mesh.ssid.is_hex=enabled

mesh.uplink.<index>.status – specify status of the Uplink [enabled/disabled].

mesh.uplink.<index>.devname – specify the interface name of the Uplink [string].

mesh.downlink.<index>.status – specify status of the Downlink [enabled/disabled].

mesh.downlink.<index>.devname – specify the interface name of the Downlink [string].

The configurable coefficients for the Best Path Algorithm of the WILI MESH:

mesh.min_rate_weight – specify the coefficient for minimal rate over whole path [0-255]. Default: 1.

mesh.pos_weight – specify the coefficient for path length in hops [0-255]. Default: 20.

mesh.max_tx_load_weight – specify the coefficient for radio load over whole path [0-255]. Default: 1.

mesh.min_hop_threshold – specify the threshold coefficient in percents that arbitrates if the node's Uplink should connect to alternative Best Path [1-100]. The default threshold value 30% means that new Best Path value should be bigger by 30% in order to switch from the current one.

The additional statistics keys should be specified in the configuration file to send the specific Mesh statistics to the WILI Scout.

	Without the specified statistics, the WILI Scout will not be able to display Mesh network as it will not receive information from the Mesh Nodes.

rcms.heartbeat.mesh_statistics – enable statistics for WILI MESH device [enabled/disabled]. This key controls if MESH statistics should be collected and send with heartbeat.

	For detailed information on statistics configuration refer to the respective document WILI-S Configuration Reference Manual.

Mesh Node configuration file example:

mesh.status=enabled
mesh.ssid=WILI-Mesh
mesh.ssid.is_hex=disabled
mesh.Uplink.1.status=enabled
mesh.Uplink.1.devname=ath1
mesh.Downlink.1.status=enabled
mesh.Downlink.1.devname=ath2

The configuration of the Mesh Nodes should meet following requirements:

Uplink and Downlink interfaces of the all Mesh Nodes must have the same SSID in the same network.

The Uplink should be configured in managed mode (client) and the Downlink should be configured in the master (AP) mode.

The Uplink and Downlink interfaces on single Mesh Node must be bridged.

The same wireless security settings must be configured on all Mesh Nodes.

	Refer to the WILI-S Configuration Reference Manual for detailed information on Mesh Node functionality configuration as the WILI MESH is based on the WILI-S 5.20 software.

Discover WILI MESH Nodes with WILI Scout

WILI Scout is a Java application, integrated into RCMS server or available as stand-alone application. This is a tool for graphical representation for network topology and status of WILI devices including WILI Mesh Nodes.

WILI Scout features:

Shows mesh network topology and individual WILI devices
Ability to search mesh elements by MAC, IP or device name
Capability of operating as a standalone application, without the existing RCMS server
Ability to filter by part of the IP address, by Service Set, by part of the Firmware (includes ability to filter by hardware type), active nodes (inactive/offline nodes are hidden),
Bird's eye view/navigation - ability to view all network at once
Discovery tool - allow to discover WILI devices (Mesh and Non-mesh) within reach of a single multicast packet.

For proper operation WILI Scout needs the statistical information from WILI devices. The Mesh Nodes and WILI devices are periodically sending status information - heartbeats. The WILI Scout updates the screen continuously while receiving the heartbeats from the WILI devices. The configuration of WILI devices must be configured properly to send heartbeats to the WILI Scout. It can be done in two ways:

Correctly configured RCMS agent settings in the device configuration
Correctly configured IP multicast discovery settings in the device configuration and by enabling Heartbeat Polling via Multicast on Tools menu in the WILI Scout.

	Refer to the section RCMS and WILI Scout Settings for instructions on how to setup the WILI Scout settings or refer to the document WILI-S Configuration Reference Manual for detailed information on all WILI-S features configuration, including RCMS client.

	The mesh network does not require the WILI Scout to be running, it only represents current status of your WILI MESH network.

The WILI Scout should run from a machine on wired side of the network. It is possible to run the WILI Scout from the wireless side of the network, but does not guarantee optimal performance and is strongly discouraged.

	Launch of WILI Scout requires installed Java Runtime Environment (J2SE Runtime Environment 5.0 or later). This may be downloaded from: http://java.sun.com/javase/downloads/index.jsp.

Load WILI Scout from the RCMS server or start via WebStart from the download area of the official WILIBOX site www.wilibox.com

After WILI Scout is successfully installed on your local PC, power up a duly configured Mesh Gateway and then power up Mesh Nodes. The relay Mesh Gateway and Mesh Nodes icons appear on the WILI Scout screen. The icons initially appear in a cluster, however, they can be moved to desired locations by clicking and dragging.

Each relay Mesh Node icon has a line that connects it to its parent Mesh Node (or Mesh Gateway). Green icons show online Mesh Nodes (darker green means marked device); while gray icons indicate that a particular Mesh Node or WILI device is offline. The MESH devices are represented as bubbles while non-mesh WILI devices are displayed as squares.

The left upper pane of the WILI Scout represents the list of the WILI MESH Nodes, ranged in the Mesh position. The Mesh Nodes are named by MAC addresses or by Friendly Names optionally (View -> Use friendly names option).

The left lower pane of the WILI Scout is dedicated for details of each WILI Device. All information of a selected Mesh Node is available at a glance on the Properties tab. This includes hardware information, MAC addresses, IP settings, Mesh position, etc. The Clients tab allows user to view information (MAC address and the SSID of the Service Set) of all clients connected to the selected Mesh Node. The Heartbeat tab displays the content of the last received heartbeat. The non-mesh devices does not have Mesh statistics and information about clients.

The main pane on the right of the WILI Scout frame displays graphical view of the WILI MESH network topology, relationships between the Mesh Nodes and Mesh Gateway. The number indicated on the Mesh node shows the number of clients connected to that node. Each WILI device (Mesh and Non-mesh) can be marked by its Label (View -> Show Device Labels). The Label can be chosen as IP address, MAC address or by Friendly name (View -> Customize Labels). The Links of the Mesh Nodes can be also be labeled by the signal quality (View -> Show Link Labels).

	The information on the WILI Scout is refreshed with each new heartbeat update from any WILI device. The heartbeat interval should be specified by configuring the RCMS client on the each WILI device.

Retrieved from "http://www.wiligear.com/wiki/index.php/WILI-MESH_Skin_User_Guide"