SNR S2989G-48TX-RPS — understanding 802.1x Protocol for Network Access Control [297/553]

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S2989G-24TX Operation Manual

Chapter 6 Security Function Configuration

6-24

6.2 802.1x

6.2.1

Introduction to 802.1x

The 802.1x protocol originates from 802.11 protocol, the wireless LAN protocol of

IEEE, which is designed to provide a solution to doing authentication when users access a

wireless LAN. The LAN defined in IEEE 802 LAN protocol does not provide access

authentication, which means as long as the users can access a LAN controlling device

(such as a LAN Switch), they will be able to get all the devices or resources in the LAN.

There was no looming danger in the environment of LAN in those primary enterprise

networks.

However, along with the boom of applications like mobile office and service operating

networks, the service providers should control and configure the access from user. The

prevailing application of WLAN and LAN access in telecommunication networks, in

particular, make it necessary to control ports in order to implement the user-level access

control. And as a result, IEEE LAN/WAN committee defined a standard, which is 802.1x,

to do Port-Based Network Access Control. This standard has been widely used in wireless

LAN and ethernet.

“Port-Based Network Access Control” means to authenticate and control the user

devices on the level of ports of LAN access devices. Only when the user devices

connected to the ports pass the authentication, can they access the resources in the LAN,

otherwise, the resources in the LAN won’t be available.

6.2.1.1 The Authentication Structure of 802.1x

The system using 802.1x has a typical Client/Server structure, which contains three

entities (as illustrated in the next figure): Supplicant system, Authenticator system, and

Authentication server system.