RF Throughput, Performance and Troubleshooting 55
E-EQ-MX2RG-L-ARC MX2 Reference Guide
RF Throughput, Performance and Troubleshooting
Because of the complicated nature of wireless LAN technology, problems occasionally arise. This
section provides general information about performance and addresses some problems that might
arise during setup or use of a wireless network with RF units. This should be your first resource in
case of trouble.
Power Management at the Proxim RangeLAN2 Access Point
Proper setup of the access point (AP) is essential to RF power management. Even with the MX2
set up for maximum power savings, the batteries can become drained quickly if the AP is not
configured properly.
MU Access Control
For environments in which multiple RF networks overlap, you can use an authorization table to
prevent RangeLAN2 APs from accessing RF cards on other networks. This list contains media
access control (MAC) addresses of mobile units that are allowed to associate with the AP.
See the AP user’s guide for more information about MAC addresses and for information about the
authorization table.
Message Filtering
Network packets include a protocol type (IPX, IP, ARP broadcast, NetBIOS, etc.) in the header
field. By filtering out unwanted protocol messages, you can prevent the AP from sending these
packets to the MX2. This will reduce the amount of times the radio cards have to wake up out of
doze mode to service incoming packets.
It can be especially important to filter out broadcast messages. These types of packets, which are
generically addressed to all computers on a system, may force the MX2 to operate continuously in
full receive mode, even when the data is not relevant to the MX2. If the MX2 does not turn off
automatically after the preset timeout, it is an indication that the radio card is receiving broadcast
messages and is unable to go to sleep.
The Proxim AP user interface for filtering packets allows you to select the type of packets that
will be filtered by selecting from a list of possible types. The best method with the Proxim
RangeLAN2 access point is to turn on filtering for every packet type that you know you won’t
use. For example, if the access point is hooked up to a TCP/IP network, you would set TCP/IP to
Not Filtering and all other protocols to Filtering. In a NetBEUI environment, turn off the Filter
NetBEUI option, and turn filtering on for all the rest of the protocols. ARP Broadcast packets
should always be turned off, unless your application requires them, to prevent broadcast messages
from waking up the MX2.
Note: For more information on packet filtering, see the RangeLAN2 access point manual or
your network administrator.
