User's Manual

Deployment Guide 77
Chapter 7 Using HiveManager
You can conceptualize the Aerohive cooperative control architecture as consisting of three broad planes of
communication. On the data plane, wireless clients gain network access by forming associations with HiveAPs. On
the control plane, HiveAPs communicate with each other to coordinate functions such as best-path forwarding, fast
roaming, and automatic RF (radio frequency) management. On the management plane, HiveManager provides
centralized configuration, monitoring, and reporting of multiple HiveAPs. These three planes are shown in Figure 1.
Figure 1 Three Communication Planes in the Aerohive Cooperative Control Architecture
As you can see in Figure 1, HiveManager operates solely on the management plane. Any loss of connectivity between
HiveManager and the HiveAPs it manages only affects HiveAP manageability; such a loss has no impact on
communications occurring on the control and data planes.
The management
plane is the logical division of
administrative traffic relating to the
configuration and monitoring of HiveAPs. From a
management system, an admin can use the HiveManager to
configure, maintain, and monitor multiple HiveAPs, essentially coordi-
nating the control and data planes from a single, central location.
Data Plane
Control Plane
Management Plane
The data plane
is the logical division of
wireless client traffic (user data)
traversing a wireless-to-wired LAN. Traffic
in the data plane follows optimal paths
that various mechanisms in the control
plane determine.
The control plane is
the logical division of traffic that
hive members use to collaborate on how
best to forward user data, coordinate
radio frequencies, and provide layer-2
and layer-3 roaming capabilities with
each other.
To the wired
network ...
Management
System