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CHAPTER 18
Port Authentication
18.1 Overview
This chapter describes the IEEE 802.1x authentication method.
Port authentication is a way to validate access to ports on the Switch to clients based on an external
server (authentication server). The Switch supports the following method for port authentication:
• IEEE 802.1x
2
- An authentication server validates access to a port based on a username and
password provided by the user.
18.1.1 What You Can Do
•Use the Port Authentication screen (Section 18.2 on page 146) to check if IEEE 802.1x port
authentication is activated.
•Use the 802.1x screen (Section 18.3 on page 147) to activate IEEE 802.1x security.
•Use the Guest VLAN screen (Section 18.3 on page 147) to activate IEEE 802.1x security.
18.1.2 What You Need to Know
IEEE 802.1x authentication uses the RADIUS (Remote Authentication Dial In User Service, RFC
2138, 2139) protocol to validate users. See RADIUS and TACACS+ on page 183 for more
information on configuring your RADIUS server settings.
IEEE 802.1x Authentication
The following figure illustrates how a client connecting to a IEEE 802.1x authentication enabled port
goes through a validation process. The Switch prompts the client for login information in the form of
a user name and password. When the client provides the login credentials, the Switch sends an
2. At the time of writing, IEEE 802.1x is not supported by all operating systems. See your operating system documentation. If
your operating system does not support 802.1x, then you may need to install 802.1x client software.
