User Guide

OmniAccess SafeGuard OS Administration Guide
262
Chapter 6: Configuring Authentication and Role Derivation
■ Host – This component has many names, it is also referred to as the supplicant,
the client, or the workstation. It is the device that is making the request to the
LAN for switch services.
■ Switch – This component is the SafeGuard Switch. The switch controls the
physical access to the network using the authentication status of the host.
■ RADIUS server – This component is the remote authentication server.
Figure 6 shows the relationship of these components.
Figure 6 802.1x Components
Communication between components is conducted using extensible authentication
protocol (EAP). EAP messages are encapsulated in another protocol called EAP over
LAN (EAPOL). 802.1X uses EAPOL to start and end the authentication session and pass
EAP messages between the host and switch and from the host to the authentication
server. EAP messages from the switch to an external authentication server use the
RADIUS protocol.
See the following sections for more details:
■ Component Requirements
■ Impact of Protection Modes on 802.1x
■ Configuring IEEE 802.1x Authentication
■ Displaying 802.1x Configuration Information
Component Requirements
SafeGuard OS supports the following configurations:
■ 802.1x supplicants running
— Microsoft Windows XP
— Microsoft Windows CE with Odyssey Software
CST_038b
Hosts or supplicants RADIUS server
SafeGuard Switch
authenticator and
local authentication server