User's Manual Part 2

BETA DRAFT - CISCO CONFIDENTIAL
8-25
Cisco Aironet Wireless LAN Client Adapters Installation and Configuration Guide for Windows
OL-1394-03
Chapter 8 Routine Procedures
Restarting the Client Adapter
Deleting the ACU Icon from the Desktop
An ACU icon is automatically added to the desktop when you install ACU, provided you selected this
option during installation. If you wish to remove this icon from your desktop, right-click the icon, click
Delete, and click Yes to confirm your decision.
Restarting the Client Adapter
ACU enables you to re-initialize (or restart) the client adapter without having to reboot your computer
or eject and reinsert the adapter. For instance, if your client adapter is experiencing poor throughput, you
might want to restart the client adapter to try to force it to disassociate from the access point to which it
is currently associated in the hope that it will reassociate to an access point with a stronger signal.
Note Restarting the client adapter may cause you to lose your wireless network connection.
Follow the steps below to restart the client adapter.
Step 1 Open ACU.
Step 2 Select the Restart Card option from the Commands drop-down menu (see Figure 8-4).
Step 3 When prompted to confirm your decision, click Yes. The driver stops the client adapter’s radio, writes
the configuration (although no parameter settings have been changed), and restarts the radio. The status
bar at the bottom of the ACU screen shows the client adapter losing association and then reassociating.
Turning Your Client Adapter’s Radio On or Off
Your client adapter’s radio can be turned on or off. Turning the radio off prevents the adapter from
transmitting RF energy. You might want to turn off the client adapter’s radio when you are not
transmitting data and want to conserve battery power or when you are using a laptop on an airplane and
want to prevent the adapter’s transmissions from potentially interfering with the operation of certain
devices.
When the radio is on, it periodically sends out beacons even if it is not associated to an access point, as
required by the 802.11 specification. Therefore, it is important to turn it off around devices that are
susceptible to RF interference.
Note Your client adapter is not associated while the radio is off.
Follow the instructions below to turn the client adapter’s radio on or off.
• If your client adapter’s radio is on, opening ACU and selecting Radio Off from the Commands
drop-down menu (see Figure 8-4) turns the radio off. The status bar at the bottom of the ACU screen
indicates that the radio is turned off.
• If your client adapter’s radio is off, opening ACU and selecting Radio On from the Commands
drop-down menu (see Figure 8-4) turns the radio on.