MSM7xx Controllers Configuration Guide v6.4.0

APController
AP establishes secure management tunnel with
the controller.
Controller accepts the secure management
tunnel.
AP receives new software and configuration.The controller updates the AP configuration.
Discovery complete. Wireless services become
available. On the HP 517 and MSM317, the
switch ports also become active.
Discovery of controllers by controlled APs
This section describes how the discovery process works and how it can be customized.
Discovery is the process by which a controlled AP finds a controller (or controller team) on a network
and establishes a secure management tunnel with it. To see how the discovery process fits into
overall controlled mode operations, see “Key controlled-mode events” (page 146).
In most cases, the factory default configuration of an AP will result in automatic discovery of a
controller with no configuration required. However, for some network topologies it may be necessary
to configure the discovery process as described in this section.
See “Discovery recommendations” (page 151) for examples of topologies that can use automatic
discovery and those that require discovery to be configured.
NOTE:
Provisioning can limit the discovery of potential controllers. See “Provisioning APs” (page 171).
Discovery overview
Although the specifics of the discovery process vary depending on whether an AP is unprovisioned
(in its factory default state) or provisioned (had its connectivity or discovery settings changed from
their factory default settings), the discovery process can be summarized as follows:
1. The AP uses various methods to locate one or more controllers that are reachable on the
network. The preferred way to monitor AP discovery is via the controller management tool
(see “Monitoring the discovery process” (page 154)). When in visual range of the APs, you
can watch the status lights for an indication of discovery progress. See the status light
information in the AP Quickstart (provided and available online).
2. Discovered controllers send a discovery reply to the AP. If the controller is configured to require
AP authentication, the reply is only sent after the AP is authenticated by the controller.
3. The controller adds the AP to a group. This will either be the default group (if the AP is
new/unknown) or an existing group (to which the AP was previously assigned).
148 Working with controlled APs