Concept Guide

MAC authentication with Captive Portal authentication
You can enforce MAC authentication for captive portal clients. For more information configuring a W-IAP to use
MAC authentication with captive portal authentication, see hConfiguring MAC Authentication with Captive
Portal Authentication on page 181.
802.1X authentication with Captive Portal Role
This authentication mechanism allows you to configure different captive portal settings for clients on the same
SSID. For example, you can configure an 802.1X SSID and create a role for captive portal access, so that some
of the clients using the SSID derive the captive portal role. You can configure rules to indicate access to external
or internal captive portal, or none. For more information on configuring captive portal roles for an SSID with
802.1X authentication, see Configuring Captive Portal Roles for an SSID on page 147.
WISPr authentication
Wireless Internet Service Provider roaming (WISPr) authentication allows a smart client to authenticate on the
network when they roam between wireless Internet service providers, even if the wireless hotspot uses an
Internet Service Provider (ISP) with whom the client may not have an account.
If a hotspot is configured to use WISPr authentication in a specific ISP and a client attempts to access the
Internet at that hotspot, the WISPr AAA server configured for the ISP authenticates the client directly and
allows the client to access the network. If the client only has an account with a partner ISP, the WISPr AAA
server forwards the client’s credentials to the partner ISP’s WISPr AAA server for authentication. When the
client is authenticated on the partner ISP, it is also authenticated on your hotspot’s own ISP as per their service
agreements. The W-IAP assigns the default WISPr user role to the client when your ISP sends an authentication
message to the W-IAP. For more information on WISPr authentication, see Configuring WISPr Authentication
on page 182.
Supported EAP Authentication Frameworks
The following EAP authentication frameworks are supported in the Instant network:
l EAP-TLS— The Extensible Authentication Protocol-Transport Layer Security (EAP-TLS) method supports the
termination of EAP-TLS security using the internal RADIUS server . The EAP-TLS requires both server and
certification authority (CA) certificates installed on the W-IAP. The client certificate is verified on the Virtual
Controller (the client certificate must be signed by a known CA), before the username is verified on the
authentication server.
l EAP-TTLS (MSCHAPv2)— The Extensible Authentication Protocol-Tunneled Transport Layer Security (EAP-
TTLS) method uses server-side certificates to set up authentication between clients and servers. However,
the actual authentication is performed using passwords.
l EAP-PEAP (MSCHAPv2)— EAP-PEAP is an 802.1X authentication method that uses server-side public key
certificates to authenticate clients with server. The PEAP authentication creates an encrypted SSL / TLS
tunnel between the client and the authentication server. Exchange of information is encrypted and stored
in the tunnel ensuring the user credentials are kept secure.
l LEAP— Lightweight Extensible Authentication Protocol (LEAP) uses dynamic WEP keys for authentication
between the client and authentication server.
To use the W-IAP’s internal database for user authentication, add the names and passwords of the users to be
authenticated.
Dell does not recommend the use of LEAP authentication, because it does not provide any resistance to
network attacks.
Dell Networking W-Series Instant 6.4.3.1-4.2.0.0 | User Guide Authentication and User Management | 158