User's Manual

Dell Networking W-Series ArubaOS 6.4.x| User Guide Adding Local Controllers | 857
Chapter 36
Adding Local Controllers
This chapter explains how to expand your network by adding a local controller to a master controller
configuration. Typically, this is the first expansion of a network with just one controller (which is a master
controller). This chapter is a basic discussion of creating master-local controller configurations. More
complicated multi-controller configurations are discussed in other chapters.
This chapter describes the following topics:
l Moving to a Multi-Controller Environment on page 859
l Configuring Local Controllers on page 857
Configuring Local Controllers
This section highlights the difference in configuration for both of these scenarios.
The steps involved in migrating from a single to a multi-controller environment are:
1. Configure the role of the local controller to local and specify the IP address of the master.
2. Configure the layer-2 / layer-3 settings on the local controller (VLANs, IP subnets, IP routes).
3. Configure as trusted ports the ports the master and local controller use to communicate with each other.
4. For those APs that need to boot off the local controller, configure the LMS IP address to point to the new
local controller.
5. Reboot the APs that are already on the network, so that they now connect to the local controller.
These steps are explained below.
You configure the role of a controller by running the initial setup on an unconfigured controller, or by using the
WebUI, Controller Wizard, or CLI on a previously-configured controller.
Using the Initial Setup
Initial setup can be done using the browser-based Setup Wizard or by accessing the initial setup dialog via a
serial port connection. Both methods are described in the Dell Networking W-Series ArubaOS Quick Start Guide
and are referred throughout this section as "initial setup".
The initial setup allows you to configure the IP address of the controller and its role, in addition to other
operating parameters. You perform the initial setup the first time you connect to and log into the controller or
whenever the controller is reset to its factory default configuration (after executing a write erase, reload
sequence).
When prompted to enter the controller role in the initial setup, select or enter local to set the controller
operational mode to be a local controller. You are then prompted for the master controller IP address. Enter
the IP address of the master controller for the WLAN network. Enter the preshared key (PSK) that is used to
authenticate communications between controllers.
You need to enter the same PSK on the master controller and on the local controllers that are managed by the
master.
Using the Web UI
For a controller that is up and operating with layer-3 connectivity, configure the following to set the controller
as local: