User Guide

Glossary 613
Nortel WLAN Security Switch 2300 Series Configuration Guide
association The process defined in IEEE 802.11 by which an authenticated mobile (wireless) station
establishes a relationship with a wireless access point (AP) to gain full network access. The access point
assigns the mobile station an association identifier (AID), which the wireless LAN (WLAN) uses to track the
mobile station as it roams. After associating with a Access Point (AP) access point in a Nortel WLAN 2300
System, a mobile station can send and receive traffic through any AP access point within the same Mobility
Domain™ group.
attribute In authentication, authorization, and accounting (AAA), a property used to identify (authenticate)
a user or to configure (authorize) or record (account for) a user’s administrative or network session. A user’s
AAA attributes are stored in a user profile in the local database on a WLAN—Security Switch (WSS) switch,
or on a RADIUS server. Attribute names are case-sensitive. See also RADIUS; VSA.
authenticated identity In a Nortel WLAN 2300 System, the correspondence established between a
user and his or her authentication attributes. User authentication attributes are linked to the user, rather than to
a physical port or device, regardless of the user’s location or type of network connection. Because the
authenticated identity follows the user, he or she requires no reauthentication when roaming.
authentication, authorization, and accounting See AAA.
authentication mobility The ability of a user (client) authenticated through Extensible
Authentication Protocol (EAP)—plus an appropriate subprotocol and back-end authentication, authorization,
and accounting (AAA) service—to roam to different access points (APs) without reauthentication.
authentication server An entity that provides an authentication service to an authenticator. From the
credentials provided by a client (or supplicant), the authentication service determines whether the supplicant is
authorized to access the services of the authenticator. In a Nortel WLAN 2300 System, one or more RADIUS
servers can act as authentication servers.
authenticator A device that authenticates a client. In a Nortel WLAN 2300 System, the authenticator is a
WLAN—Security Switch (WSS) switch.
baseline association rate A value set in Nortel WMS to help plan Access Point (AP) access point
coverage in a network. The baseline association rate is the average data transmission rate at which you want
typical mobile clients in the coverage area to associate with the access point(s).
basic service set See BSS.
basic service set identifier See BSSID.
bias The priority of one Wireless Security Switch (WSS) switch over other WSS switches for booting,
configuring, and providing data transfer for a Access Point (AP) access port. Bias can be set to either low or
high on each WSS switch and is high by default. Bias applies only to WSS switches that are indirectly attached
to the AP through an intermediate Layer 2 or Layer 3 network. An AP always attempts to boot on AP port 1
first, and if the AP is directly attached to an WSS switch on AP port 1, the AP uses the directly attached WSS
switch to boot from regardless of the bias settings. See also dual-homed connection.
BSS Basic service set. A set of wireless stations that communicate with one another through an access point
(AP).
BSSID Basic service set identifier. The 48-bit media access control (MAC) address of the radio in the
access point (AP) that serves the stations in a basic service set (BSS).
CA See certificate authority (CA).