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BreezeACCESS VL
BreezeACCESS VL Version 3.1
Release Note
February 2006 (Updated for v3.1.25)
P/N 214356
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1. Introduction
BreezeACCESS VL version 3.1 includes new SW and new HW (Rev C hardware supporting the two
ranges in the 4.9 GHz band, and the 5.4 GHz band). It introduces new features and some problem
fixes.
2. Frequency bands
The currently supported frequency bands:
• 5.725 – 5.850 GHz (5.8 band, FCC)
• 5.470 – 5.725 GHz (5.4 band, ETSI)
• 5.150 – 5.350 GHz (5.2 band)
• 5.250 – 5.350 (5.3 band, FCC)
• 4.900-5.000, 5.030 – 5.091 GHz (4.9, Japan)
3. New Features and Improvements
Increased Capacity through Improved Concatenation Mechanism
The Concatenation mechanism enables bundling several data frames into a single frame for
transmission to the wireless link. This feature reduces the overhead in the wireless media and
improves significantly the achievable throughput. In version 3.1 the number of data frames that can be
bundled into a single wireless frame was increased from 2 to 8 data frames, and the maximum size of
a concatenated frame for units with HW revision C was increased from 3400 bytes to 4092 bytes (for
units with HW revision B the maximum size remains 2200 bytes). It should be noted that when a unit
with HW revision C communicate with a unit using HW revision B, the maximum size is dictated by the
unit with the lower HW revision (2200 bytes).
The improved concatenation mechanism results in a significantly increased throughput. For sectors
with HW revision C only, the achievable FTP throughput is up to 32 Mbps and 16Mbps for 20 MHz and
10 MHz channel bandwidths respectively. For sectors that includes revision B units the achievable
FTP throughput is up to 25 Mbps (22 Mbps with ETSI or UK country codes) for channel bandwidth of
20 MHz.
New Tx and Rx counters were added to indicate the number of transmitted/received concatenated
frames with more than two data frames.
To support the improved concatenation feature, the upper limit of the RTS Threshold parameter has
been changed to 4092 bytes. The default value of the RTS Threshold parameter in AU has been
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changed to 4092 (No RTS/CTS) in units with HW revision C. When upgrading from a previous SW
version, the RTS Threshold in AU is forced to 4092 (regardless of the HW revision).
Enhanced QoS Support through Multiple Prioritization Options
The traffic prioritization mechanism enables improved support of delay-sensitive applications such as
Voice over IP as well as service differentiation through allocation of higher priority to certain
applications and/or end-users.
Each packet received on the Ethernet port is assigned either a high or low priority according to a set of
classifiers. In the MIR/CIR mechanism there are be two queues: one for packets with high priority and
the second one for packets with low priority. Packets with high priority will be sent with minimal delay.
Packets with low priority will be sent only if the high priority queue is empty.
The available priority classifiers in the new Traffic Prioritization feature are:
• VLAN Priority Threshold. This parameter replaces the VLAN Priority Threshold parameter that
was available in previous versions in the Bridging - VLAN Support menu. After version
upgrade, this parameter is forced to the default value of 7, meaning no VLAN-based
prioritization.
• IP ToS: IP Precedence (3-bits according to RFC791). This parameter replaces the ToS
Precedence Threshold parameter that was available in previous versions in the Bridging
menu. After version upgrade, this parameter is forced to the default value of 7, meaning no IP
Precedence based prioritization)
• DSCP (6-bits according to RFC2474)
• UDP and/or TCP ports. This classifier is intended primarily for prioritization of VoIP traffic,
including support for prioritization of only RTP packets or both RTP and RTCP packets.
Each one of these classifiers can be activated/deactivated. If more than one classifier is activated, the
priority of each packet will be determined by the highest priority given to it by the active classifiers.
MAC Pinpoint
The MAC Pinpoint feature enables identifying the SU or AU that is used by a certain Ethernet station to
access the wireless network. The MAC Pinpoint feature is available in AU using either SNMP or
Telnet.
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Limiting Transmissions of Broadcast/Multicast Packets
The Ethernet Broadcast/Multicast Limiter option, available in both AU and SU, enables to limit the
number of broadcast and/or multicast packets that can be transmitted per second, in order to prevent
the potential flooding of the wireless media by certain ARP attacks or similar events.
In SUs, the limiter is placed after the Ethernet Broadcast Filters. For this reason, the limiter will receive
only the packets that pass through these filters. In case that the Ethernet filters of the SU are disabled,
the limiter will be applied to all relevant packets received from the Ethernet port.
When the Ethernet Broadcast/Multicast Limiter is enabled and the specified limit is reached, the unit
will send a trap. The trap will be sent periodically, informing the user how many packets were
discarded in the last period. The interval between two consecutive traps is configurable in the range
from 1 to 60 minutes.
Remote Blocking of the Ethernet Port
The Ethernet Port Control option allows enabling or disabling non-management traffic to/from the
Ethernet port of an SU. The system administrator can use this feature for blocking communication
to/from end-users upon non-payment or similar events. When the port is disabled, all current data
sessions will be terminated. The unit is still manageable via the Ethernet port even if it is disabled for
data traffic.
Increased Number of Management Stations
The Set/Change Network Management IP Address Ranges feature enables defining, updating or
deleting IP address ranges from which the unit can be managed if the Network Management Filtering
option is enabled. This is in addition to the previous options in the Network Management menu that
enable defining, updating and deleting discrete IP addresses. IP address ranges can be defined using
either start and end addresses or start address and subnet mask.
Adding the SU’s Name to the MAC Address Database
The Sys Name of the SU is sent to the AU during the association process and is available through
both Telnet (Association Info) and SNMP.
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Improved MMI for IP Ranges Definition in User Filtering
The MMI for IP address ranges definition in User Filtering through Telnet was improved to make it
clearer and more user-friendly (similar to the MMI for the newly add feature for defining management
IP address ranges).
Enhanced Access Security
The access security algorithm was changed, and it is now based on MD5. This increases the level of
protection against unauthorized access to various configuration options.
4. Documentation
The information in the release notes is complementary to the product documentation, provided with the
products. BreezeACCESS VL documentation includes the System Manual for BreezeACCESS VL
version 3.1, User Manual for BreezeCONFIG version 3.1, installation support documents, and release
notes. All the documentation, including the latest release notes, is available in the customer service
section of the Alvarion web site.
5. BreezeCONFIG Configuration Utility Version 3.1
A new version of BreezeCONFIG that supports all the new features of BreezeACCESS VL version 3.1
is provided with the product. BreezeCONFIG SW will also be available in the customer service section
of the Alvarion web site.
6. Compatibility and Interoperability
Version 3.1 is fully compatible with versions 1.2, 2.0 and 3.0. Nevertheless, it is recommended to
always upgrade existing equipment to the latest version.
HW revision C is compatible with HW revision A and B. If an SU with HW revision A or B is used
in a cell where the AU is with HW C (or vice versa), performance will be those available with the
lower HW revision. The same is true also for cases where units that run different SW version are
used: the performance will be determined by the unit with the lower SW version.
The SW package will be available in the customer service section of the Alvarion web site.
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7. Important Notes
• BA VL plugged-in modules (AU-BS, and SU-E-BS) work only with BS-SH-VL chassis, and
requires a VL power supply (BS-PS-AC/DC-VL). BS-SH-VL chassis can be identified by a
label on the chassis’ s flange arms.
• BS-SH-VL chassis can host all GFSK (3Mbps) products at all frequencies. GFSK & VL
modules can co-exist on the same chassis, however they need a different power supply (BS-
PS-AC/DC for GFSK and BS-PS-AC/DC-VL for VL.
• The system provides TFTP functionality for SW and configuration download. In case FTP
functionality is required, an additional IP address is required for the FTP client. In addition, FTP
parameters change requires reset. Note: The FTP frames are not handled as management
frames and are not affected by VLAN management and management filtering.
• Although minimum output power is defined as -10 dB when configuring the Tx Power
manually, when ATPC is enabled the SU’s output power may be less than this minimum.
• Extra care should be taken when configuring VLAN management and management IP filtering
in order not to lose connectivity with unit. In case of connectivity loss, use the “restore default
parameters” application to reset to factory values.
• In case data encryption is used, the maximum number of SUs that can be served by an AU is
limited to 124 (512 when data encryption is not used. Note than when data encryption is
needed, it must be used by all SUs served by the same AU, as well as by the AU itself).
• Upon downgrade from version 3.1 to a previous version, all the information in the new Network
Management IP Address Ranges table will be lost. Hence, management access may be lost if
the unit was managed from an IP address that is on a subnet defined in the new tables.
• When upgrading from previous versions to version 3.1, the high/low packet classification
settings according to the old VLAN Priority Threshold or IP Precedence Threshold parameters
will be lost. The new parameters are forced to the default value of 7, meaning no prioritization.
• When downgrading from version 3.1 to previous versions, the MIR value is changed to the
default 14976 and can manually be set to any value up to the maximum of 32896.
• The system was checked with SNMPC version 5.1.11e.
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8. Limitations & Known Issues
• Sensitivity may change slightly as a function of frequency (+/-2dB).
• Transmission power accuracy is +/-1dB above 8dBm @ antenna port (typical condition). At
lower levels the accuracy is +/-3dBm, never contradicting regulations. At very low levels the
use of ATPC may cause significant fluctuations in the power level of the transmitted signal.
When operating at such low levels, it is recommended to disable the ATPC Option in the SU
and to set the Transmit Power parameter to the average Tx Power level before the ATPC was
disabled.
• In units operating in the 5.3 GHz band, the following rule must be met for full compliance with
FCC regulations: When operating at 5270 MHz, the Transmit Power parameter in the AU, and
the Maximum Tx Power parameter in the SUs served by this AU, should not be set to a value
above “17-Antenna Gain” (The maximum allowed EIRP for 5270 MHz is 17 dBm).
• The FTP Client IP address should not be configured with the same value as the unit’s IP
address. Attempting to do so will display an error when telnet is used. No error will be raised
when SNMP is used. Note that the FTP settings are not reverted to defaults upon issuing a
“Set Full Operator defaults” command (they do revert to default after executing “Set Full
Factory Defaults”).
• The maximum number of SUs that can be served by an AU when Data Encryption is enabled
is 124. The number displayed for the Maximum Number of Associations is the value
configured for this parameter, which might be higher than the actual limit, indicated in the Show
Air Interface Parameters display.
• In units with HW Revision B, Burst Mode cannot be activated when using WEP for data
encryption. In units with HW Revision B, the Burst Mode option will be “blocked” upon trying to
enable it when using WEP for data encryption. This limitation does not apply to units with HW
Revision C.
• The Country Code Learning by SU feature does not function with the default ESSID (ESSID1).
• In some cases the "Power Tables" tab under the "Air Interface" option in BreezeCONFIG may
not include the entire "Tx Power" and "Maximum Transmit Power" tables and some entries
may be missing. Using the "Refresh" button several times may resolve the problem. Also, in
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some cases, setting the "Max Tx Power" in the "Maximum Transmit Power Table" does not
actively set the configured value in the device, and it is recommended to use telnet for that
purpose.
• The Sub-Band parameter is not available through export unit parameters feature (CFG file).
9. Fixed Issues
• In previous versions the prioritization mechanism was disabled when the traffic rate reached
the maximum information rate supported by the SU. This problem was solved.
• In some scenarios, units may stop transmitting after a period of typically over several days (all
incoming packets from the Ethernet port are discarded by the MIR/CIR mechanism). This
problem was solved in version 3.1.25.
• In some scenarios of heavy traffic and/or interferences an AU may reset upon new
association/re-association of an SU. Some of these scenarios include Best AU feature on.
Typical error messages were produced: “MIR/CIR Priority Queue problem (3): PQ is empty:” or
“FTL - Fragments in TX AU”. This problem was solved with 3.1.25.
ALVARION LTD.
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