User`s guide

Configuring the Radio Network 4 - 7
Encapsulation
The Encap option and the related encapsulation table commands of
Show, Add and Remove are of concern only when both of the following
conditions exist:
n You are assembling a wireless LAN that incorporates non-Aironet
equipment.
n The non-Aironet equipment uses a proprietary method of packet
encapsulation that is different from the method used by Aironet.
If your wireless LAN consists only of Aironet components, use the
default Encap value of 802.1H and disregard the information in follow-
ing discussion “Packet Encapsulation in Mixed Networks.”
Packet Encapsulation in Mixed Networks
Aironet LAN software allows you to assemble a wireless infrastructure
using components from different suppliers. When combining equipment
from different sources into a wireless LAN, you might need to accom-
modate different methods of packet addressing and conversion. The
complete subject of packet addressing is beyond the scope of this man-
ual, and our purpose here is to provide only basic guidelines and consid-
erations.
To combine a mix of equipment from alternate suppliers into a wireless
LAN, you need to know the packet encapsulation methods used by the
different suppliers. If you determine that your infrastructure will be
mixing packet encapsulation methods, you will first need to determine
your primary method, or standard, and choose that as the default setting
with the Encap option. All methods other than the primary, or default,
method need to be entered in the Encapsulation Table.
For all Aironet equipment, the defined packet encapsulation standard is
802.1H. The Show, Add and Remove options allow you to manage a
table of alternate, non-I802.1H encapsulation methods that might be
required to read data packets sent from the other, non-Aironet equip-
ment. The primary alternate to the I802.1H standard is RFC 1042.