Controllerless Networks

So I got 2 Aruba AP-535 access points, to replace my Ubiquiti access points.

Plugged a Cat 6e cable into it using a POE 48VDC @ 0.5A adapter. Power LED blinks green for a while then goes steady red. Radio LED stays off. I can access the AP via it's IP address and reach the device, but I don't know what the red LED means.

If I plug the device into my 52 Port Managed POE Switch, the Power LED light blinks green for a while then goes steady Amber. Radio LED blinks green, then goes steady green. Only the 2.4 Ghz radio seems to be on and not the 5Ghz.

What am I missing?

------------------------------
David Silvera
------------------------------

Your POE injector is likely (recognized as) an 802.3af (15.4W) injector. Those basic injectors do not have enough power for an AP-535.
Perhaps you are reusing a Ubiquiti injector? Thos may have more power, but often do not comply with the POE standards and will not be identified as an 802.3at (30W, class 4) injector.
Your switch seems to deliver 30W of power and comply with 802.3at. Strictly speaking, for unrestricted operation, the AP-535 can in some cases need even more than that, but in general it should be enough for the AP to operate without restrictions. In some software version, we did turn the system LED amber to indicate this state, but that was later changed (green LED) since the restrictions are minimal (USB port disabled, second ethernet disabled).
You could try to upgrade the code to fix the LED, but the functional behavior should be the same. Or you could enable the IPM feature to remove any default restrictions (and turn the LED green as well).
How did you conclude that the 5GHz radio is not active? Unless not configured or disabled, or if the country setting does not allow 5GHz operation, it should be operational.

------------------------------
Onno Harms
------------------------------

Onno, you are correct. It is the Ubiquiti POE adapter I'm using. Specifically the POE48-24W-G model with output voltage 48VDC @ 0.5A. I thought it met the specifications for the AP, so what POE adapter/injector should I look for that would work with the AP?

I used my laptop which has a 5 Ghz antenna. It didn't see or pickup the signal of the wifi from the AP. My phone only picked up the 2.4 Ghz wifi signal.

I set the country setting to US, which should include 5Ghz operation.

As you mentioned the IPM, I have not seen this option in the settings.
​

------------------------------
David Silvera
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: Nov 23, 2020 05:46 PM
From: Onno Harms
Subject: Red LED light Aruba AP-535

Your POE injector is likely (recognized as) an 802.3af (15.4W) injector. Those basic injectors do not have enough power for an AP-535.
Perhaps you are reusing a Ubiquiti injector? Thos may have more power, but often do not comply with the POE standards and will not be identified as an 802.3at (30W, class 4) injector.
Your switch seems to deliver 30W of power and comply with 802.3at. Strictly speaking, for unrestricted operation, the AP-535 can in some cases need even more than that, but in general it should be enough for the AP to operate without restrictions. In some software version, we did turn the system LED amber to indicate this state, but that was later changed (green LED) since the restrictions are minimal (USB port disabled, second ethernet disabled).
You could try to upgrade the code to fix the LED, but the functional behavior should be the same. Or you could enable the IPM feature to remove any default restrictions (and turn the LED green as well).
How did you conclude that the 5GHz radio is not active? Unless not configured or disabled, or if the country setting does not allow 5GHz operation, it should be operational.

------------------------------
Onno Harms
------------------------------

Any 802.3at (class 4) or higher POE injector should work. Aruba offers these, but they're standard products.
Some options here: https://www.amazon.com/802-3at-poe-injector/s?k=802.3at+poe+injector&page=2
If the radio LED is solid green, both radios should be active in "access" mode (AP), so not scanning or disabled.
Not sure why your laptop does not see the 5GHz signal, but there may be many reasons for that. First thing to do is ensure that the AP is configured properly.

------------------------------
Onno Harms
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: Nov 23, 2020 06:29 PM
From: David Silvera
Subject: Red LED light Aruba AP-535

Onno, you are correct. It is the Ubiquiti POE adapter I'm using. Specifically the POE48-24W-G model with output voltage 48VDC @ 0.5A. I thought it met the specifications for the AP, so what POE adapter/injector should I look for that would work with the AP?

I used my laptop which has a 5 Ghz antenna. It didn't see or pickup the signal of the wifi from the AP. My phone only picked up the 2.4 Ghz wifi signal.

I set the country setting to US, which should include 5Ghz operation.

As you mentioned the IPM, I have not seen this option in the settings.
​

------------------------------
David Silvera
------------------------------


Original Message:
Sent: Nov 23, 2020 05:46 PM
From: Onno Harms
Subject: Red LED light Aruba AP-535

Your POE injector is likely (recognized as) an 802.3af (15.4W) injector. Those basic injectors do not have enough power for an AP-535.
Perhaps you are reusing a Ubiquiti injector? Thos may have more power, but often do not comply with the POE standards and will not be identified as an 802.3at (30W, class 4) injector.
Your switch seems to deliver 30W of power and comply with 802.3at. Strictly speaking, for unrestricted operation, the AP-535 can in some cases need even more than that, but in general it should be enough for the AP to operate without restrictions. In some software version, we did turn the system LED amber to indicate this state, but that was later changed (green LED) since the restrictions are minimal (USB port disabled, second ethernet disabled).
You could try to upgrade the code to fix the LED, but the functional behavior should be the same. Or you could enable the IPM feature to remove any default restrictions (and turn the LED green as well).
How did you conclude that the 5GHz radio is not active? Unless not configured or disabled, or if the country setting does not allow 5GHz operation, it should be operational.

------------------------------
Onno Harms

That's the thing, nothing on the datasheet for this POE adapter says if it conforms to 802.3at class4 standards. I was hoping if I plugged 2 of them into the AP it would take the power it needed from the 2nd POE port. But that didn't seem to make much difference in getting rid of the red light or the radio turning on.

I'll see if I can get another adapter that's 802.3.at compliant.

------------------------------
David Silvera
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: Nov 23, 2020 07:47 PM
From: Onno Harms
Subject: Red LED light Aruba AP-535

Any 802.3at (class 4) or higher POE injector should work. Aruba offers these, but they're standard products.
Some options here: https://www.amazon.com/802-3at-poe-injector/s?k=802.3at+poe+injector&page=2
If the radio LED is solid green, both radios should be active in "access" mode (AP), so not scanning or disabled.
Not sure why your laptop does not see the 5GHz signal, but there may be many reasons for that. First thing to do is ensure that the AP is configured properly.

------------------------------
Onno Harms
------------------------------


Original Message:
Sent: Nov 23, 2020 06:29 PM
From: David Silvera
Subject: Red LED light Aruba AP-535

Onno, you are correct. It is the Ubiquiti POE adapter I'm using. Specifically the POE48-24W-G model with output voltage 48VDC @ 0.5A. I thought it met the specifications for the AP, so what POE adapter/injector should I look for that would work with the AP?

I used my laptop which has a 5 Ghz antenna. It didn't see or pickup the signal of the wifi from the AP. My phone only picked up the 2.4 Ghz wifi signal.

I set the country setting to US, which should include 5Ghz operation.

As you mentioned the IPM, I have not seen this option in the settings.
​

------------------------------
David Silvera


Original Message:
Sent: Nov 23, 2020 05:46 PM
From: Onno Harms
Subject: Red LED light Aruba AP-535

Your POE injector is likely (recognized as) an 802.3af (15.4W) injector. Those basic injectors do not have enough power for an AP-535.
Perhaps you are reusing a Ubiquiti injector? Thos may have more power, but often do not comply with the POE standards and will not be identified as an 802.3at (30W, class 4) injector.
Your switch seems to deliver 30W of power and comply with 802.3at. Strictly speaking, for unrestricted operation, the AP-535 can in some cases need even more than that, but in general it should be enough for the AP to operate without restrictions. In some software version, we did turn the system LED amber to indicate this state, but that was later changed (green LED) since the restrictions are minimal (USB port disabled, second ethernet disabled).
You could try to upgrade the code to fix the LED, but the functional behavior should be the same. Or you could enable the IPM feature to remove any default restrictions (and turn the LED green as well).
How did you conclude that the 5GHz radio is not active? Unless not configured or disabled, or if the country setting does not allow 5GHz operation, it should be operational.

------------------------------
Onno Harms

It is highly unlikely that that adapter is PoE+/802.3at as 48V multiplied by 0.5A comes to the 24 Watts that is in the product number. For 802.3at you will need to deliver 30W which is more. If you search on the internet there are some hits that link that product number to PoE/802.3af, so 15.4W max, and that is not enough for your AP-535.

Any reason why you can't use the PoE switch? Or doesn't that provide PoE+ either? It can be that during the provisioning only the 2.4GHz radio is enabled until you configured the country code and your own SSID.

------------------------------
Herman Robers
------------------------
If you have urgent issues, always contact your Aruba partner, distributor or Aruba TAC Support. Check https://www.arubanetworks.com/support-services/contact-support/ for how to contact Aruba TAC.
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: Nov 23, 2020 08:41 PM
From: David Silvera
Subject: Red LED light Aruba AP-535

That's the thing, nothing on the datasheet for this POE adapter says if it conforms to 802.3at class4 standards. I was hoping if I plugged 2 of them into the AP it would take the power it needed from the 2nd POE port. But that didn't seem to make much difference in getting rid of the red light or the radio turning on.

I'll see if I can get another adapter that's 802.3.at compliant.

------------------------------
David Silvera
------------------------------


Original Message:
Sent: Nov 23, 2020 07:47 PM
From: Onno Harms
Subject: Red LED light Aruba AP-535

Any 802.3at (class 4) or higher POE injector should work. Aruba offers these, but they're standard products.
Some options here: https://www.amazon.com/802-3at-poe-injector/s?k=802.3at+poe+injector&page=2
If the radio LED is solid green, both radios should be active in "access" mode (AP), so not scanning or disabled.
Not sure why your laptop does not see the 5GHz signal, but there may be many reasons for that. First thing to do is ensure that the AP is configured properly.

------------------------------
Onno Harms


Original Message:
Sent: Nov 23, 2020 06:29 PM
From: David Silvera
Subject: Red LED light Aruba AP-535

Onno, you are correct. It is the Ubiquiti POE adapter I'm using. Specifically the POE48-24W-G model with output voltage 48VDC @ 0.5A. I thought it met the specifications for the AP, so what POE adapter/injector should I look for that would work with the AP?

I used my laptop which has a 5 Ghz antenna. It didn't see or pickup the signal of the wifi from the AP. My phone only picked up the 2.4 Ghz wifi signal.

I set the country setting to US, which should include 5Ghz operation.

As you mentioned the IPM, I have not seen this option in the settings.
​

------------------------------
David Silvera


Original Message:
Sent: Nov 23, 2020 05:46 PM
From: Onno Harms
Subject: Red LED light Aruba AP-535

Your POE injector is likely (recognized as) an 802.3af (15.4W) injector. Those basic injectors do not have enough power for an AP-535.
Perhaps you are reusing a Ubiquiti injector? Thos may have more power, but often do not comply with the POE standards and will not be identified as an 802.3at (30W, class 4) injector.
Your switch seems to deliver 30W of power and comply with 802.3at. Strictly speaking, for unrestricted operation, the AP-535 can in some cases need even more than that, but in general it should be enough for the AP to operate without restrictions. In some software version, we did turn the system LED amber to indicate this state, but that was later changed (green LED) since the restrictions are minimal (USB port disabled, second ethernet disabled).
You could try to upgrade the code to fix the LED, but the functional behavior should be the same. Or you could enable the IPM feature to remove any default restrictions (and turn the LED green as well).
How did you conclude that the 5GHz radio is not active? Unless not configured or disabled, or if the country setting does not allow 5GHz operation, it should be operational.

------------------------------
Onno Harms

Herbert, that makes sense. Thanks for that.

The POE switch is a different network for the LAN, separate from our wireless network. Not to mention it's full. I just plugged out a cable from the switch to test the Aruba with it, to see if it was the adapter that was the issue for the red LED light. Which my suspicions was correct.

------------------------------
David Silvera
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: Nov 24, 2020 10:56 AM
From: Herman Robers
Subject: Red LED light Aruba AP-535

It is highly unlikely that that adapter is PoE+/802.3at as 48V multiplied by 0.5A comes to the 24 Watts that is in the product number. For 802.3at you will need to deliver 30W which is more. If you search on the internet there are some hits that link that product number to PoE/802.3af, so 15.4W max, and that is not enough for your AP-535.

Any reason why you can't use the PoE switch? Or doesn't that provide PoE+ either? It can be that during the provisioning only the 2.4GHz radio is enabled until you configured the country code and your own SSID.

------------------------------
Herman Robers
------------------------
If you have urgent issues, always contact your Aruba partner, distributor or Aruba TAC Support. Check https://www.arubanetworks.com/support-services/contact-support/ for how to contact Aruba TAC.
------------------------------


Original Message:
Sent: Nov 23, 2020 08:41 PM
From: David Silvera
Subject: Red LED light Aruba AP-535

That's the thing, nothing on the datasheet for this POE adapter says if it conforms to 802.3at class4 standards. I was hoping if I plugged 2 of them into the AP it would take the power it needed from the 2nd POE port. But that didn't seem to make much difference in getting rid of the red light or the radio turning on.

I'll see if I can get another adapter that's 802.3.at compliant.

------------------------------
David Silvera


Original Message:
Sent: Nov 23, 2020 07:47 PM
From: Onno Harms
Subject: Red LED light Aruba AP-535

Any 802.3at (class 4) or higher POE injector should work. Aruba offers these, but they're standard products.
Some options here: https://www.amazon.com/802-3at-poe-injector/s?k=802.3at+poe+injector&page=2
If the radio LED is solid green, both radios should be active in "access" mode (AP), so not scanning or disabled.
Not sure why your laptop does not see the 5GHz signal, but there may be many reasons for that. First thing to do is ensure that the AP is configured properly.

------------------------------
Onno Harms


Original Message:
Sent: Nov 23, 2020 06:29 PM
From: David Silvera
Subject: Red LED light Aruba AP-535

Onno, you are correct. It is the Ubiquiti POE adapter I'm using. Specifically the POE48-24W-G model with output voltage 48VDC @ 0.5A. I thought it met the specifications for the AP, so what POE adapter/injector should I look for that would work with the AP?

I used my laptop which has a 5 Ghz antenna. It didn't see or pickup the signal of the wifi from the AP. My phone only picked up the 2.4 Ghz wifi signal.

I set the country setting to US, which should include 5Ghz operation.

As you mentioned the IPM, I have not seen this option in the settings.
​

------------------------------
David Silvera


Original Message:
Sent: Nov 23, 2020 05:46 PM
From: Onno Harms
Subject: Red LED light Aruba AP-535

Your POE injector is likely (recognized as) an 802.3af (15.4W) injector. Those basic injectors do not have enough power for an AP-535.
Perhaps you are reusing a Ubiquiti injector? Thos may have more power, but often do not comply with the POE standards and will not be identified as an 802.3at (30W, class 4) injector.
Your switch seems to deliver 30W of power and comply with 802.3at. Strictly speaking, for unrestricted operation, the AP-535 can in some cases need even more than that, but in general it should be enough for the AP to operate without restrictions. In some software version, we did turn the system LED amber to indicate this state, but that was later changed (green LED) since the restrictions are minimal (USB port disabled, second ethernet disabled).
You could try to upgrade the code to fix the LED, but the functional behavior should be the same. Or you could enable the IPM feature to remove any default restrictions (and turn the LED green as well).
How did you conclude that the 5GHz radio is not active? Unless not configured or disabled, or if the country setting does not allow 5GHz operation, it should be operational.

------------------------------
Onno Harms