802.11 a/b/g/n Wireless USB Adapter User Manual 1.
Contents 1. 2. 3. Windows Wireless Utility ......................................................................................4 1.1 Windows Zero Configuration for XP.........................................................4 1.1.1 Ralink Wireless Utility and Windows Zero Configuration............4 1.1.2 Windows Zero Configuration (WZC)............................................5 1.2 Windows AutoConfig Service for Vista...................................................10 1.2.
4. 5. 3.4 Example to Configure Connection with WPA-PSK ................................53 3.5 Example to Configure Connection with WPA .........................................55 Appendix..............................................................................................................60 4.1 Acknowledgements..................................................................................60 FAQ.......................................................................................................
1. Windows Wireless Utility 1.1 Windows Zero Configuration for XP 1.1.1 Ralink Wireless Utility and Windows Zero Configuration Windows XP includes a wireless configuration utility named "Windows Zero configuration" (WZC) which provides basic configuration functions to the Ralink Wireless NIC. Ralink's utility (RaUI) additionally provides WPA functionality. To make it easier for the user to select the correct utility. RaUI will let users make a selection when it first runs after windows XP boots.
When activating WZC, there are several difference with the RaUI status, compared to the RaUI status without WZC running. The profile button will be gray. Profile functionality is removed since the NIC is controlled by WZC. The Connect and Add Profile function will be gray. Profile functionality is removed since the NIC is controlled by WZC. Please read through this document for full details on the other functions provided by RaUI. 1.1.
Figure 1-6 Wireless Network Connection Select the intended access point and click "Connect". Then click "Connect Anyway" as shown as Figure 1-7.
Figure 1-8 Connect AP: AP1 successfully If you want to modify information about the AP, click "Change advanced settings" as shown in Figure 1-9. Then select the "Wireless Networks" tab shown as Figure 1-10.
Figure 1-9 Click "Change advanced settings" Figure 1-10 Choose the "Wireless Networks" tab 8/61
Click "Properties" as shown in Figure 1-11. Then click "OK" button. Figure 1-11 AP's properties After filling in the appropriate value, click "OK." The pop-up will indicate the status as shown in Figure 1-12. Figure 1-12 Network connection status Clicking the Ralink icon will bring up the RaUI main window. Users can find the surrounding APs in the list. The currently connected AP will be shown with a blue icon beside it, as shown in Figure 1-13.
Figure 1-13 Show connection status by using WZC to initiate the connection 1.2 1.2.1 Windows AutoConfig Service for Vista Ralink Wireless Utility and Windows AutoConfig Service In Windows Vista, the Auto Config service provides basic wireless configuration functions for the Ralink Wireless Network Interface Controller. In order to perform these functions, the Auto Config service should first be enabled (Refer to Section 1-2-2).
Figure 1-3 Ralink Utility The Ralink wireless utility starts in compact mode as shown in Figure 1-3. Clicking the expanding icon at the bottom-right corner can change to the full mode as shown in Figure 1-4. Figure 1-4 Ralink Utility in full mode 1.2.2 Windows AutoConfig Service The following steps outline the procedure for starting/stopping the Windows AutoConfig service.
Double-click the "Administrative Tools" icon Double-click "Services" 12/61
Double-click "WLAN AutoConfig" Manage the AutoConfig properties in the dialog box 13/61
Windows profile manager can be accessed via control panel or network connection icon in the task bar. 1.
Right-click the network to bring up the profile managing menu 15/61
2.
Select "Manage wireless networks" from the tasks list Right-click the network to bring up the profile managing menu 17/61
2. Ralink Wireless Utility (RaUI) 2.1 Start 2.1.1 Start RaUI When starting RaUI, the system will connect to the AP with best signal strength without setting a profile or matching a profile setting. When starting RaUI, it will issue a scan command to a wireless NIC. After two seconds, the AP list will be updated with the results of a BSS list scan. The AP list includes most used fields, such as SSID, network type, channel used, wireless mode, security status and the signal percentage.
Figure 2-1-3 Link Information page Figure 2-1-4 Profile page Figure 2-1-5 Network page 19/61
Figure 2-1-6 Advance page Figure 2-1-7 About page When starting RaUI, a small Ralink icon appears in the notifications area of the taskbar, as shown in Figure 2-1-15. You can double click it to maximize the dialog box if you selected to close it earlier. You may also use the mouse's right button to close RaUI utility.
Additionally, the small icon will change color to reflect current wireless network connection status. The status is shown as follows: : Indicates the connected and signal strength is good. : Indicates the connected and signal strength is normal. : Indicates that it is not yet connected. : Indicates that a wireless NIC can not be detected. : Indicates that the connection and signal strength is weak. 2.2 2.2.
Fragment Threshold: The user can adjust the Fragment threshold number by sliding the bar or key in the value directly. Icons and buttons: : Indicates if a connection made from the currently activated profile. : Indicates if the connection has failed on a currently activated profile. : Indicates the network type is infrastructure mode. : Indicates the network type is in Ad-hoc mode. : Indicates if the network is security-enabled. : Click to add a new profile. : Click to edit an existing profile.
Figure 2-2-2 Profile Name, SSID, Network Configuration Profile Name: The user can chose any name for this profile, or use the default name defined by system. SSID: The user can key in the intended SSID name or select one of the available APs from the drop-down list. Power Save Mode: Choose CAM (Constantly Awake Mode) or Power Saving Mode. Network Type: There are two types, infrastructure and 802.11 Ad-hoc modes. Under Ad-hoc mode, user can also choose the preamble type.
Figure 2-2-4 WEP Key Configuration WEP Key: Only valid when using WEP encryption algorithms. The key must be identical to the AP's key. There are several formats to enter the keys. 1. Hexadecimal - 40bits: 10 Hex characters. 2. Hexadecimal - 128bits: 26 Hex characters. 3. ASCII - 40bits: 5 ASCII characters. 4. ASCII - 128bits: 13 ASCII characters. Figure 2-2-5 Pre-shared Key Configuration Pre-shared Key: This is the key shared between the AP and STA.
802.1x Setting: This is introduced in the topic of “Section 3-2 : 802.1x Setting” Figure 2-2-7 Advanced Configuration Power Save Mode: Choose CAM (Constantly Awake Mode) or Power Saving Mode. Channel: Only available for setting under Ad-hoc mode. Users can choose the channel frequency to start their Ad-Hoc network. RTS Threshold: User can adjust the RTS threshold number by sliding the bar, or key in the value directly. The default value is 2347.
Specify a Profile Name. Select an AP from the SSID drop-down list. The AP list from the last Network. Now the profile which the user set appears in the profile list. Click "Activate". Now the profile which the user active will connect to AP.
2.2.4 Pre-logon Connect The Pre-logon Connect configuration page as shown in Figure 2-2-4. Figure 2-2-4 Pre-logon Connect Page Field definitions: Pre-logon Connect: Use ID and Password in Profile. ** Recommend: You need to restart the computer when using/non-using Pre-logon connection. 2.3 2.3.1 Network Network The system will display the information of local APs from the last scan result as part of the Network section.
Figure 2-3-1-1 Network function Definition of each field: SSID: Name of BSS or IBSS network. Network Type: Network type in use, Infrastructure for BSS, Ad-Hoc for IBSS network Channel: Channel in use. Wireless Mode: AP support wireless mode. It may support 802.11a, 802.11b, 802.11g or 802.11n wireless mode. Security-Enable: Indicates if the AP provides a security-enabled wireless network. Signal: Receive signal strength of the specified network.
: Indicate that the AP list is sorted by SSID, Channel or Signal. : Button to connect to the selected network. : Issues a rescan command to the wireless NIC to update information on the surrounding wireless network. : Adds the selected AP to the Profile setting. It will bring up a profile page and save the user's setting to a new profile. Connected network: When RaUI first runs, it will select the best AP to connect to automatically.
2.3.2 Example on Adding Profile in Network Select the AP from the list on the Network tab Click "Add to Profile" The System section will appear at the bottom of the Add Profile window. You can specify your own profile name.
Next, you will see the new profile in the profile list. Click "Activate" 2.4 2.4.1 Advanced Advanced Figure 2-4 shows the Advance functions of RaUI.
Figure 2-4 Advance function Wireless mode: Select wireless mode. 2.4G, 5G and 2.4+5G are supported.(2.4G/5GHz options are depend on different products) Wireless Protection: Users can choose from Auto, on, and off. (This is not supported by 802.11n adapters.) Auto: STA will dynamically change as AP announcement. On: The frames are always sent with protection. Off: The frames are always sent without protection. TX Rate: Manually select the transfer rate. The default setting is auto. (802.
Figure 2-4-2 Certificate Management function 2.5 2.5.1 Link Information Link Status The link status page displays detailed information about the current connection as shown in Figure 2-5-1. Figure 2-5-1 Link Status function Status : Current connection status. If no connection, if will show Disconnected. Otherwise, the SSID and BSSID will show here. Extra Info : Display link status in use. Channel : Display current channel in use. Authentication : Authentication mode in use.
2.5.2 Throughput The throughput page displays detailed information about the current connection as shown in Figure 2-5-2. Figure 2-5-2 Throughput function Link Speed: Show current transmit rate and receive rate. Throughout: Display transmits and receive throughput in unit of Mbps. Link Quality: Display connection quality based on signal strength and TX/RX packet error rate. Signal Strength 1: Receive signal strength 1, user can choose to display as percentage or dBm format.
Frames Transmitted Successfully: Frames successfully sent. Frames Fail To Receive ACK After All Retries: Frames failed transmit after hitting retry limit. RTS Frames Successfully Receive CTS: Successfully receive CTS after sending RTS frame. RTS Frames Fail To Receive CTS: Failed to receive CTS after sending RTS. Frames Retransmitted Successfully: Successfully retransmitted frames numbers. Reset counters to zero.
Figure 2-10 About function Connect to Ralink's website : Ralink Technology, Corp. Display Configuration Utility, Driver, and EEPROM version information. Display Wireless NIC MAC address. 2.7 2.7.1 WPS WPS Figure 2-7-1 illustrates the RaUI WPS functions. Figure 2-7-1 WPS function WPS Configuration: The primary goal of Wi-Fi Protected Setup (Wi-Fi Simple Configuration) is to simplify the security setup and management of Wi-Fi networks.
Figure 2-7-1-1 WPS Profile PIN Code: The user is required to enter an 8-digit PIN Code into Registrar. When an STA is the Enrollee, you can click "Renew" to re-generate a new PIN Code. Config Mode: The station serving as an Enrollee or an external Registrar. Figure 2-7-1-2 WPS PIN function After the user clicks PIN or PBC, please do not rescan within two-minutes of the connection. If you want to abort this setup within the interval, restart PIN/PBC or click "Disconnect" to stop WPS action.
2.7.2 Example to Add to Registrar Using PIN Method The user obtains a device password (PIN Code) from the STA and enters the password into the Registrar. Both the Enrollee and the Registrar use PIN Config method for the configuration setup. The following image outlines the process. Select an AP (SSID/BSSID) that STA will join to and Select the “PIN/numeric code” method. Select "Enrollee" from the Config Mode drop-down list.
If you use Microsoft Window Connection Now as an External Registrar, you must start PIN connection at STA first. After that, search out your WPS Device name and MAC address at Microsoft Registrar. Add a new device and enter PIN Code of STA at Microsoft Registrar when prompted. Click “PIN” to enter the PIN The result should appear as the image below.
Then connect successfully. The result appears as the following image.
Start PIN connection - SSID ~> Begin associating to WPS AP ~> Associated to WPS AP ~> Sending EAPOL-Start ~> Sending EAP-Rsp (ID) ~> Receive EAP-Req (Start) ~> Sending M1 ~> Received M2 ~> (Received M2D ~> Sending EAP-Rsp (ACK)) ~> Sending M3 ~> Received M4 ~> Sending M5 ~> Received M6 ~> Sending M7 ~> Received M8 ~> Sending EAP-Rsp(Done) ~> Configured ~> WPS status is disconnected ~> WPS status is connected successfully-SSID WPS configuration doesn't complete after a two-minute connection: WPS EAP proces
Click PBC to start the PBC connection. Push the PBC on AP. The progress bar as shown in the figure below indicates that scanning progress. When one AP is found, join it.
Configure and receive one or more credential(s). Then connect successfully. The result will be displayed as it is in the figure below.
Start PBC connection ~> Scanning AP ~> Begin associating to WPS AP ~> Associated to WPS AP ~> Sending EAPOL-Start ~> Sending EAP-Rsp (ID) ~> Receive EAP-Rsp (Start) ~> Sending M1 ~> Received M2 ~> Sending M3 ~> Received M4 ~> Sending M5 ~> Received M6 ~> Sending M7 ~> Received M8 ~> Sending EAP-Rsp (Done) ~> Configured ~> WPS status is disconnected ~> WPS status is connected successfully-SSID No PBC AP available: Scanning AP ~> No PBC AP available ~> Scanning AP ~> No PBC AP available ~>...
2.7.4 Example to Configure a Network/AP Using PIN or PBC Method Select an AP (SSID/BSSID) that STA will config and Select the “PIN/numeric code” method. Select “Registrar” from the Config Mode drop-down list. Enter the PIN Code of the STA into the Registrar when prompted by the Registrar.
Enter the details of the credential and change configurations (SSID, Authentication, Encryption and Key) manually if needed. Start PIN or PBC. The following procedures are as similar as section 2-7-3 (PIN Enrollee Setup) or section 2-7-4(PBC Enrollee Setup), If your AP Enrollee has been configured before the WPS process, the credential you set in advance will be updated to the AP itself.
3. Security 3.1 Auth.\ Encry. Setting – WEP/TKIP/AES Figure 3-1 Auth.\Encry. Settings in the Profile Page Authentication Type: There are 7 authentication modes supported by RaUI. They are Open, Shared, WPA and WPA-PSK, WPA2 and WPA2-PSK, 802.1x, WAPI-PSK and WAPI-CA. Encryption Type: For open and shared authentication mode, the available encryption types are none and WEP. For Shared and 802.1x authentication mode, the selection of available encryption is WEP.
Figure 3-1-3 Pre-shared Key Configuration Pre-shared Key: This is the shared key between the AP and STA. If operating in WPA-PSK and WPA2-PSK authentication mode, this field must be filled with a key between 8 and 32 characters in length. Figure 3-1-4 WEP Key Configuration WEP Key: Only valid when using WEP encryption algorithm. The key must match the AP's key. There are several formats to enter the keys. 1. Hexadecimal - 40bits: 10 Hex characters. 2. Hexadecimal - 128bits: 32Hex characters. 3.
Authentication type: PEAP: Protect Extensible Authentication Protocol. PEAP transport securely authenticates data by using tunneling between PEAP clients and an authentication server. PEAP can authenticate wireless LAN clients using only server-side certificates, thus simplifying the implementation and administration of a secure wireless LAN. TLS/Smart Card: Transport Layer Security. Provides for certificate-based and mutual authentication of the client and the network.
Tunnel Password: Password for tunnel. ID \ PASSWORD Authentication ID/Password: The identity, password and domain name for server. Only "EAP-FAST" and "LEAP" authentication can key in domain name. Domain names can be keyed in the blank space. Tunnel ID/Password: Identity and Password for the server.. Client Certification Use Client certificate: Client certificate for server authentication.
Certificate issuer: Select the server that issues the certificate. Allow intermediate certificates: It must be in the server certificate chain between the server certificate and the server specified in the "certificate issuer must be" field. Server name: Enter an authentication sever root. 3.3 Example to Configure Connection with WEP on Select an AP with WEP encryption and click "Connect". The Auth.\Encry.
Enter 1234567890 in the Key#1 Hexadecimal field. This value is same as our intended AP's setting. Click "OK".
3.4 Example to Configure Connection with WPA-PSK Select the AP with a WPA-PSK authentication mode and click "Connect". Auth.\Encry. function appears. Select WPA-PSK as the Authentication Type. Select TKIP or AES encryption. Enter the WPA Pre-Shared Key as "12345678".
Click "OK". Be careful, if the WPA Pre-Shared Key entered is not correct, you won’t be able to exchange any data frames, even though the AP can be connected.
3.5 Example to Configure Connection with WPA Select an AP with WPA authentication mode and click "Connect". The Auth.\Encry. function pop up. (If AP setup security to Both (TKIP + AES), system defines is AES that security is severely.) Click "8021X" and the setting page will appear.
Authentication type and setting method: PEAP: 1. Select "PEAP" as the Authentication type from the drop-down list. Key-in "wpatest2" for the identity. "Select "EAP-MSCHAP v2" from the drop-down list for tunnel authentication and key-in the tunnel identity as "wpatest2" and the tunnel password as "test2". These settings are the same as our intended AP's setting. 2. Click to next page. *If you want to disconnect, please click cancel button in Authentication Status function.
TLS / Smart Card: 1. "Select TLS / Smart Card" from the Authentication type drop-down list. TLS only requires the identification to be set as "wpatest2" for server authentication. 2. TLS must use client certification. Click "Client Certification" and select a certification for server authentication. 3. Click to the next page. *If you want to disconnect, please click "Cancel" on the Authentication Status function page. *In Profile function, show "Profile Name" option only in adding AP to Profile function.
TTLS: 1. Select TTLS from the Authentication type drop-down list. Key-in the identity as "wpatest2". Select CHAP for tunnel authentication, and key-in the identity as "wpatest2" and tunnel password as "test2". These settings are the same as our intended AP's setting. 2. Click "OK". The dialog box should appear as the image below. *If you want to disconnect, please click "Cancel" on the Authentication Status function page.
EAP-FAST: 1. Select EAP-FAST from the Authentication type drop-down list. Key-in the identity as "wpatest2" and a domain name into the blank field. The tunnel identity is "wpatest2" and password is "test2". These setting are the same as our intended AP's setting. 2. Click to the next page. 3. If the connection is successful, the dialog box will appear as the image below. *If you want to disconnect, please click "Cancel" on the Authentication Status function page.
4. Appendix 4.1 Acknowledgements The above settings are used in the test platform by RaLink technology corp. Users can set the function in accordance with their AP. Acknowledgements: "This product includes software developed by MDC and its licensors. This product includes software developed by the OpenSSL Project for use in the OpenSSL Toolkit (http://www.openssl.org/)". This product includes cryptographic software written by Eric Young (eay@cryptsoft .com).
Regulatory Information 61/61
