User Guide: AWC plug-in version 3.13.1 for VST-APL

# Preparations

In order to configure and manage the factory default APs by using OTA (Over The Air: AP-to-AP wireless communication), an available DHCP server is required in the subnet to which the Root AP is connected.
It is also necessary to configure the DHCP server in advance so that the IP address and monitoring port number of the AWC Plug-in are notified by DHCP Option 43 (Vendor Specific Information).
Here, it is assumed that the DHCP server on the AMF switch has created a DHCP pool "pool1" to be assigned to the management VLAN. The following is an example of the setting.

`ip dhcp pool pool1
network 192.168.1.0 255.255.255.0
range 192.168.1.10 192.168.1.49
default-router 192.168.1.1
subnet-mask 255.255.255.0
!
`

For this DHCP setting, register the AP to be managed by OTA and set to add AWC server information.

1. Define DHCP option.
   Set the option name of option code 43 to "awcserver" and the option type to be set to hexadecimal.
   `awplus#configure terminal
   awplus(config)#ip dhcp option 43 name awcserver hex
   `
2. Set a static IP address for DHCP pool "pool1".
   Here, set a static IP address "192.168.1.230" for the AP (MAC address: 00:00:5e:00:53:00) registered as the Root AP.
   For the AP (MAC address: 00:00:5e:00:53:20) operated as a satellite AP (terminator AP), manually set the IP address "192.168.1.231" separately from the AP web interfaces.
   `awplus(config)#ip dhcp pool pool1
   awplus(dhcp-config)#host 192.168.1.230 0000.5e00.5300
   `
3. Set the value of the created option "awcserver".
   The format of the AWC server information passed as an optional setting value is as follows:
   The following setting shows an example in which the IP address of the AWC Plug-in is set to "192.168.1.250":

   Table 1: DHCP option 43 format
   Field name | Field length | Description | Variable / Fixed | Setting Example
   --- | --- | --- | --- | ---
   Content | Hexadecimal value
   Header | 1 octet | Information header to be passed as vendor-specific information. | Fixed | 207 | CF
   Option 1 type | 1 octet | Indicates that the following field is the IP address of the AWC Plug-in. | Fixed | 1 | 01
   Option 1 value | 4 octets | Specify the IPv4 address of the AWC Plug-in. | Variable | 192.168.1.250 | C0A801FA
   Option 2 type | 1 octet | Indicates that the following field is the monitoring port number of the AWC Plug-in. | Fixed | 2 | 02
   Option 2 value | 2 octets | Specify the monitoring port number of the AWC Plug-in. | Fixed | 65437 | FF9D

   As a result, the setting value becomes "CF01C0A801FA02FF9D".
   `awplus(config)#ip dhcp pool pool1
   awplus(dhcp-config)#option awcserver cf01c0a801fa02ff9d
   awplus(dhcp-config)#exit
   awplus(config)#exit
   `

With the above, the IP address assigned from the DHCP pool "pool1" will be notified of the IP address and monitoring port number of the AWC Plug-in by DHCP option 43.

29 Apr 2025 14:51