Appendix A:
DS.5800 FAQ
General
Can the BU-DS.5800/RB-DS.5800D indoor unit be placed outdoors?
It is not recommended. The BU-DS.5800/RB-DS.5800 indoor units are specified to operate between 0
°
C and 40
°
C and is not weather proof so it is best to mount the DS.5800 indoors or in a protective cabinet.
Do DS.5800 units support 802.1Q VLAN?
Yes, but the support is limited to transparent operation. This means that the DS.5800 does not take any action on 802.1Q frames, but will transparently pass them within a VLAN network.
What is the maximum number of networked PCs the BU-DS.5800/
RB-DS.5800 can learn?
1024 network MAC addresses can be learned by the BU-DS.5800/RB-
DS.5800 from the LAN side.
Can the BU-DS.5800/RB-DS.5800 be used for multi-point as well as point-to-point links?
Yes. The BU-DS.5800 can support multiple RB-DS.5800 units creating a point-to-multi-point network.
How many RB-DS.5800 units can one BU-DS.5800 support?
The maximum number of associations is 128.
What is the practical limit to the number of RB-DS.5800 units per
BU-DS.5800? And, what performance can I expect for a multi-point link?
This depends upon average throughput expectations. All clients would have the maximum throughput available for burst traffic, however the overall average would depend on the utilization of the network. For example, in a heavily utilized network needing about 350Kbps to
500kbps average net throughput per site, 9 to 12 RB-DS.5800’s would be the limit. For a moderately utilized network needing about 175Kbps to 258Kbps average, 18 to 24 RB-DS.5800’s should be used, and for a lightly used network needing 32Kbps to 48Kbps average net throughput per site could use up to 128 RB-DS.5800’s.
What is the range of the BU-DS.5800/RB-DS.5800 Bridges?
Up to 30 miles (50Km) can be achieved using the SP2-5 2 ft. Parabolic antenna kit for a point-to-point link. Consult the antenna and accessory guide range tables for distances using other antennas.
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Does the BU-DS.5800/RB-DS.5800D support 802.1d spanning tree protocol?
No, the BU-DS.5800/RB-DS.5800 does not support spanning tree.
What is the normal PER (Packet Error Rate) for the BU-DS.5800/
RB-DS.5800?
The error rate will be about 4%-6% (transmitted fragments vs. retry count). This is typical when operating in a non-interference environment at maximum range for bi-directional traffic loads. If the traffic load is more uni-directional, then the PER will be less.
What is the best value for the CW min parameter on the DS.5800?
Setting the CW min parameter to 31 for heavy bi-directional traffic loads will minimize the PER. Setting the CW min to 15 will improve performance for more uni-directional traffic loads. CW min 7 should only be used for short-range point-to-point links, and 63 should be used for large, long-range multi-point links.
Manual Revision: 1.0
Appendix A: FAQ
Collocation
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How many BU-DS.5800 or RB-DS.5800 units can be collocated on the same building or tower?
You can collocate up to 4 BU-DS.5800 or RB-DS.5800 units on the same structure. Each unit is assigned to one of the non-overlapping channels, 1, 6, 11 or 14.
What is the antenna separation requirement for collocating
BU-DS.5800 or RB-DS.5800 units on the same building or tower?
The antennas should be mounted at least 3 feet (1 meter) apart when using the sector or parabolic dish antenna and 4 feet (1.2 meter) when using the integral antenna.
Can a 2.4 GHz network operate in the same area as the BreezeNET
DS.5800?
Yes, however be aware that the DS.5800 uses 2.412 to 2.484 GHz as a first I/F (Intermediate Frequency). Therefore, a powerful 2.4 GHz band signal can cause interference. For this reason, Alvarion offers an optional 5 GHz band pass filter that will suppress any strong 2.4 GHz signals. With the filter, a strong 2.4 GHz signal (36dBm EIRP) can be in the path ands only 1 meter away from the DS.5800. Without the filter, it depends on the resulting converted 2.4 signal (2.4 signal + 3.328 = 5.7
GHz channel). If the shifted frequency is within +25MHz of the DS.5800 channel you are using, then the strong 2.4 signal must be more then
500 meters away. If the resulting signal is outside +25MHz, then only 1 meter separation is required.
Can I use DS.5800 Bridges to feed a Frequency Hopping distribution point?
Yes, this is an ideal application. Just be certain that none of the FH system’s antennas at the collocation site are pointing into the DS.5800 antenna.
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BreezeNET DS.5800 System Manual
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Performance
What is the throughput of the DS.5800?
The BU-DS.5800/RB-DS.5800 bridge link typical performance is
4.2Mbps using TCP and 6.2Mbps using UDP. For long-range links, the performance drops by about 5%.
What if the DS.5800 link experiences interference?
If interference is affecting the DS.5800 link, one of the other channels may be selected to operate away from the frequency of the interference.
Also, physically re-locating the antennas may help.
What is the typical latency of a BU-DS.5800/RB-DS.5800?
A point-to-point link would realize about 3mS latency.
Manual Revision: 1.0
Appendix A: FAQ
Firmware
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Can the BU-DS.5800/RB-DS.5800 firmware be upgraded?
Yes, the firmware in the BU-DS.5800/RB-DS.5800 is stored in flash and is upgraded using the built in Configuration Utility or the TFTP server.
Can the BU-DS.5800/RB-DS.5800 flash be erased or the firmware changed by an unauthorized person?
No, the TFTP server in the BU-DS.5800/RB-DS.5800 requires the SNMP write community name (password) to perform an upgrade.
Can the firmware flash be corrupted when upgrading to a new version?
Yes, if the TFTP file transfer is interrupted during a flash update the firmware may be corrupted. The DS.5800 has a backup flash, which contains the previous version for firmware. If the primary flash is corrupt, then the backup is automatically used to return the unit to an operating state.
When does the back up flash image get upgraded?
After completing a firmware upgrade, the backup flash containing the old firmware version is overwritten with the new version on the new power on cycle.
Can DS.5800 firmware be downgraded?
Yes, an earlier version of firmware can overwrite a newer version.
Can the previous version of firmware be kept?
The previous version of firmware cannot be kept on the DS.5800 itself, but can be stored on your PC and loaded if needed.
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Configuration
How can the DS.5800 be configured or managed if the SNMP
Community name has been forgotten?
Press the reset button on the top panel with a paper clip. This will set the read and write Community names to public and private, respectively.
How can the DS.5800 unit be returned to factory default settings?
There are two ways. One way is to use the Default button on the Station
Control Tab in the DS.5800 Configuration Utility. The other is to press and hold the reset button on the back of the unit while powering on the unit. Remember that all settings including IP addresses will be lost when setting defaults.
Manual Revision: 1.0
Appendix A: FAQ
Management
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What management options are available for the DS.5800?
The BU-DS.5800/RB-DS.5800D comes with a graphical Configuration
Utility that operates on any Windows based network ready PC. With this utility you can configure and monitor every DS.5800 on your network.
You can also use the DS.5800 SNMP MIB on standard management platforms like SNMPc, and HP Openview.
Does the DS.5800 offer out-of-band management?
No, the DS.5800 does not offer out-of-band management, such as a serial port. The DS.5800 is managed in-band only via the DS.5800
Configuration Utility or SNMP.
What installation and site survey tools are available for BU-
DS.5800/RB-DS.5800?
The DS.5800 comes with a Windows based manager utility. With this utility you can configure link parameters and monitor signal quality and
RSSI (received signal strength indication). Optimizing antenna alignment is done using the signal quality and RSSI display. Any computer on the network can use this utility to manage the
BU-DS.5800/RB-DS.5800.
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Manual Revision: 1.0
