Filter
Top Products
10-3
Catalyst 2960 and 2960-S Switch Software Configuration Guide
OL-8603-09
Chapter 10 Configuring IEEE 802.1x Port-Based Authentication
Understanding IEEE 802.1x Port-Based Authentication
Device Roles
Device roles with 802.1x port-based authentication:
Figure 10-1 802.1x Device Roles
• Client—the device (workstation) that requests access to the LAN and switch services and responds
to requests from the switch. The workstation must be running 802.1x-compliant client software such
as that offered in the Microsoft Windows XP operating system. (The client is the supplicant in
the 802.1x standard.)
Note To resolve Windows XP network connectivity and 802.1x authentication issues, read the
Microsoft Knowledge Base article:
http://support.microsoft.com/support/kb/articles/Q303/5/97.ASP
• Authentication server—performs the actual authentication of the client. The authentication server
validates the identity of the client and notifies the switch whether or not the client is authorized to
access the LAN and switch services. Because the switch acts as the proxy, the authentication service
is transparent to the client. In this release, the RADIUS security system with Extensible
Authentication Protocol (EAP) extensions is the only supported authentication server. It is available
in Cisco Secure Access Control Server Version 3.0 or later. RADIUS operates in a client/server
model in which secure authentication information is exchanged between the RADIUS server and
one or more RADIUS clients.
• Switch (edge switch or wireless access point)—controls the physical access to the network based on
the authentication status of the client. The switch acts as an intermediary (proxy) between the client
and the authentication server, requesting identity information from the client, verifying that
information with the authentication server, and relaying a response to the client. The switch includes
the RADIUS client, which is responsible for encapsulating and decapsulating the EAP frames and
interacting with the authentication server. (The switch is the authenticator in the 802.1x standard.)
When the switch receives EAPOL frames and relays them to the authentication server, the Ethernet
header is stripped, and the remaining EAP frame is re-encapsulated in the RADIUS format. The
EAP frames are not modified during encapsulation, and the authentication server must support EAP
within the native frame format. When the switch receives frames from the authentication server, the
server’s frame header is removed, leaving the EAP frame, which is then encapsulated for Ethernet
and sent to the client.
The devices that can act as intermediaries include the Catalyst 3750-E, Catalyst 3560-E,
Catalyst 3750, Catalyst 3560, Catalyst 3550, Catalyst 2975, Catalyst 2970, Catalyst 2960,
Catalyst 2955, Catalyst 2950, Catalyst 2940 switches, or a wireless access point. These devices must
be running software that supports the RADIUS client and 802.1x authentication.
101229
Workstations
(clients)
Authentication
server
(RADIUS)