Wireless/Redundant Edge Services xl Module Management and Configuration Guide WS.02.xx and greater

3-14
Radio Port Configuration
Configuring Radio Settings
3. In the Desired Channel field, use the drop-down menu to select either
Random or ACS.
4. Click the OK button.
If you want to set channels manually, then you must do so for particular radios
after they are adopted. (See “Configuring Radio Settings for a Particular
Radio” on page 3-30).
Setting the Desired Radio Power. After you have selected a channel, you
must select the radio power. Available settings are determined by previously
defined channel and location settings. A radio’s power determines the broad-
cast radio frequency (RF) signal strength in dBm. It is important to set the
power level to a value that is strong enough to clearly reach all the stations,
but not so strong that the RF signal is garbled, overwhelms stations, or
interferes with other RPs. The maximum broadcast power may also be gov-
erned by local and national restrictions. The optimal power level for a partic-
ular channel is best determined by a site survey prior to installation.
You might need to set a higher power to ensure RF coverage when:
■ a radio experiences electromagnetic interference—for example, from a
nearby microwave oven or from other wireless technology
■ the distance between the RP and wireless stations is long
Likewise, you may need to decrease the RF power level when:
■ the radio is close to other RP radios (unintentionally overlapping RF
coverage may cause lost packets and complicate roaming)
■ the radio uses an external antenna
The default radio power setting for 802.11bg radios is 20 dBm, and the default
setting for 802.11a radios is 20 dBm. However, this default might change based
on your country code.
To set the radio power, complete these steps:
1. Select Network Setup > Radio Adoption Defaults and click the
Configuration tab.
2. Select the radio type and click the Edit button.
3. In the Desired Power (dBm) field, use the drop-down menu to select the
default power setting that you have determined for radios of this type.
4. Click the OK button.