MAC Address Restriction and Ensemble Management

[bhata]

I'm looking for a new set of AP's and was reading up on the WAC720 and WAC730.

With regards to the MAC Authentication feature, is there a limit on the number of MAC addresses that can be added?  This is in the Configuration > Security > Advanced > MAC Authentication.

I am intrigued with the Ensemble Management feature.  Does it have the ability to specify a common list of MAC addresses that can be restricted in an Ensemble?  Or would one need to configure each individual AP?

Also in the Users Guide it says that:

Each ensemble can include up to 10 members, which must be of the same model.

Does this mean that one cannot have both WAC720's and WAC730's in the same Ensemble?

TIA

BruceH

[cjaques · Accepted solution]

I have a pair of WAC720s in Ensemble (Firmware 3.5.12.0) and I just checked out the settings for the MAC Authentication. In my testing I found that the MAC Authentication list is shared between Ensemble members. As far as the number of MAC Addresses that you can add I'm not sure but there is a feature to import from a file so I think that you can have a large list. Otherwise you can setup the MAC Authentication to work with a RADIUS server. It should be noted that MAC Authentications are per band(2,4GHz and 5GHz) and not per SSID.

MAC Authentication can be found via the web interface at Configuration>Security>Advanced>MAC Authentication

[JohnRo]

Hello bhata, 

Welcome to the community! 

I have not seen any documentation about the limit on the MAC authentication. I believe the limit will be the same as the total number of users the AP can support. I am not sure yet but definitely, can be inquired to our engineering team. For your second question regarding ensemble, the answer is yes. For now, it can only support the same model per cluster. 

Thanks, 

[bhata]

Hi JohnRo,

Thanks for the info...

Do you know if the list of restricted MAC addresses is propagated in a cluster?  Or would one need to configure each individual AP?

It's unfortunate that the Ensemble Management feature doesn't allow multiple models per cluster.  I'm a bit surprised since the configuration seems to be the same.

-bhata

[JohnRo]

Hi bhata, 

You'll need to set up the MAC authentication on each AP. Ensemble is mostly for managing and monitoring the wireless AP. In fact, I do not see any setting for MAC authentication on the ensemble web-interface. I'm hopeful that it will be addressed in future firmware updates. Ensemble management is pretty new so there could be more to it on the future. 

Thanks, 

[bhata]

Thanks again JohnRo... It'll probably be a few months before I actually upgrade so perhaps some new firmware to expand capabilities will occur in the near future...

[JohnRo]

Hello bhata, 

You're welcome!

Hopefully, yes. On the other hand, you can already post your requested feature on our Idea Exchange Board. If the feature requests gets enough like/kudos it is more likely to be prioritized.

Thanks,

[JohnRo]

Hi bhata, 

We’d greatly appreciate hearing your feedback letting us know if the information we provided has helped resolve your issue or if you need further assistance.
If your issue is now resolved we encourage you to mark the appropriate reply as the “Accepted Solution” so others can be confident in benefiting from the solution. The Netgear community looks forward to hearing from you and being a helpful resource in the future!

Thanks, 

[cjaques · Accepted solution]

I have a pair of WAC720s in Ensemble (Firmware 3.5.12.0) and I just checked out the settings for the MAC Authentication. In my testing I found that the MAC Authentication list is shared between Ensemble members. As far as the number of MAC Addresses that you can add I'm not sure but there is a feature to import from a file so I think that you can have a large list. Otherwise you can setup the MAC Authentication to work with a RADIUS server. It should be noted that MAC Authentications are per band(2,4GHz and 5GHz) and not per SSID.

MAC Authentication can be found via the web interface at Configuration>Security>Advanced>MAC Authentication

[bhata]

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@cjaques wrote:

I have a pair of WAC720s in Ensemble (Firmware 3.5.12.0) and I just checked out the settings for the MAC Authentication. In my testing I found that the MAC Authentication list is shared between Ensemble members. As far as the number of MAC Addresses that you can add I'm not sure but there is a feature to import from a file so I think that you can have a large list. Otherwise you can setup the MAC Authentication to work with a RADIUS server. It should be noted that MAC Authentications are per band(2,4GHz and 5GHz) and not per SSID.

MAC Authentication can be found via the web interface at Configuration>Security>Advanced>MAC Authentication

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Hi cjaques -

Thanks for the info that the MAC Authentication is shared within the Ensemble!  Having that ability would be a big help in administration.  I currently have 3 eight-year old WAPs and each time I add or remove a MAC address, I have to do it to each of the 3 devices.  I looking to expand my wireless coverage so I'm thinking I would have a total of 6 to 8 WAPs and having Ensemble update the devices automatically would be a big help.

I did notice that the list could be imported, so that makes it easier to manage. I'm guessing too that the list could be large.

Much appreciated!

-bhata