Contents

Configuring an 802.1X client 1

About 802.1X clients· 1

802.1X client tasks at a glance· 1

Enabling the 802.1X client feature· 1

Configuring an 802.1X client username and password· 2

Specifying an 802.1X client EAP authentication method· 2

Configuring an 802.1X client MAC address· 3

Specifying an 802.1X client mode for sending EAP-Response and EAPOL-Logoff packets· 3

Configuring an 802.1X client anonymous identifier 4

Specifying an SSL client policy· 4

Display and maintenance commands for 802.1X client 5

 

Configuring an 802.1X client

About 802.1X clients

As shown in Figure 1, the 802.1X client feature allows the access device to act as the supplicant in the 802.1X architecture. For information about the 802.1X architecture, see "802.1X overview."

Figure 1 802.1X client network diagram

 

802.1X client tasks at a glance

To configure an 802.1X client, perform the following tasks:

1.     Enabling the 802.1X client feature

2.     Configuring an 802.1X client username and password

3.     Specifying an 802.1X client EAP authentication method

4.     (Optional.) Configuring an 802.1X client MAC address

5.     (Optional.) Specifying an 802.1X client mode for sending EAP-Response and EAPOL-Logoff packets

6.     (Optional.) Configuring an 802.1X client anonymous identifier

7.     Specifying an SSL client policy

This task is required when you specify PEAP-MSCHAPv2, PEAP-GTC, TTLS-MSCHAPv2, or TTLS-GTC authentication as the 802.1X client EAP authentication method.

Enabling the 802.1X client feature

1.     Enter system view.

system-view

2.     Enter Ethernet interface view.

interface interface-type interface-number

3.     Enable the 802.1X client feature.

dot1x supplicant enable

By default, the 802.1X client feature is disabled.

Configuring an 802.1X client username and password

Restrictions and guidelines

To ensure successful authentication, make sure the username and password configured on the device is consistent with the username and password configured on the authentication server.

Procedure

1.     Enter system view.

system-view

2.     Enter Ethernet interface view.

interface interface-type interface-number

3.     Configure an 802.1X client username.

dot1x supplicant username username

By default, no 802.1X client username is configured.

4.     Set an 802.1X client password.

dot1x supplicant password { cipher | simple } string

By default, no 802.1X client password is configured.

Specifying an 802.1X client EAP authentication method

About 802.1X client EAP authentication methods

The 802.1X clients on the device support the following EAP authentication methods:

·     MD5-Challenge.

·     PEAP-MSCHAPv2.

·     PEAP-GTC.

·     TTLS-MSCHAPv2.

·     TTLS-GTC.

Restrictions and guidelines

The following matrix shows the restrictions for the selection of authentication methods on the 802.1X client and the authenticator:

 

Authentication method specified on the 802.1X client	Packet exchange method specified on the authenticator
MD5-Challenge	·     EAP relay ·     EAP termination
·     PEAP-MSCHAPv2 ·     PEAP-GTC ·     TTLS-MSCHAPv2 ·     TTLS-GTC	EAP relay

 

For information about 802.1X packet exchange methods, see "Configuring 802.1X."

Make sure the specified 802.1X client EAP authentication method is supported by the authentication server.

Procedure

1.     Enter system view.

system-view

2.     Enter Ethernet interface view.

interface interface-type interface-number

3.     Specify an 802.1X client EAP authentication method.

dot1x supplicant eap-method { md5 | peap-gtc | peap-mschapv2 | ttls-gtc | ttls-mschapv2 }

By default, an 802.1X client-enabled interface uses the MD5-Challenge EAP authentication.

Configuring an 802.1X client MAC address

About 802.1X client MAC addresses

The authenticator adds the MAC address of an authenticated 802.1X client to the MAC address table and then assigns access rights to the client.

If multiple Ethernet interfaces on the device act as 802.1X clients, configure a unique MAC address for each interface to ensure that they can pass 802.1X authentication.

You can use either of the following methods to configure a unique MAC address for each interface:

·     Execute the mac-address command in Ethernet interface view. For information about this command, see Layer 2—LAN Switching Command Reference.

·     Configure an 802.1X client MAC address.

Procedure

1.     Enter system view.

system-view

2.     Enter Ethernet interface view.

interface interface-type interface-number

3.     Configure an 802.1X client MAC address.

dot1x supplicant mac-address mac-address

By default, the 802.1X client on an Ethernet interface uses the interface's MAC address for 802.1X authentication. If the interface's MAC address is unavailable, the 802.1X client uses the device's MAC address for 802.1X authentication.

Specifying an 802.1X client mode for sending EAP-Response and EAPOL-Logoff packets

About specifying an 802.1X client mode for sending EAP-Response and EAPOL-Logoff packets

802.1X authentication supports unicast and multicast modes to send EAP-Response and EAPOL-Logoff packets. As a best practice, use multicast mode to avoid 802.1X authentication failures if the NAS device in the network does not support receiving unicast EAP-Response or EAPOL-Logoff packets.

Procedure

1.     Enter system view.

system-view

2.     Enter Ethernet interface view.

interface interface-type interface-number

3.     Specify a mode for 802.1X authentication to send EAP-Response and EAPOL-Logoff packets.

dot1x supplicant transmit-mode { multicast | unicast }

By default, 802.1X authentication uses unicast mode to send EAP-Response and EAPOL-Logoff packets.

Configuring an 802.1X client anonymous identifier

About 802.1X client anonymous identifiers

At the first authentication phase, packets sent to the authenticator are not encrypted. The use of an 802.1X client anonymous identifier prevents the 802.1X client username from being disclosed at the first phase. The 802.1X client-enabled device sends the anonymous identifier to the authenticator instead of the 802.1X client username. The 802.1X client username will be sent to the authenticator in encrypted packets at the second phase.

If no 802.1X client anonymous identifier is configured, the device sends the 802.1X client username at the first authentication phase.

The configured 802.1X client anonymous identifier takes effect only if one of the following EAP authentication methods is used:

·     PEAP-MSCHAPv2.

·     PEAP-GTC.

·     TTLS-MSCHAPv2.

·     TTLS-GTC.

If the MD5-Challenge EAP authentication is used, the configured 802.1X client anonymous identifier does not take effect. The device uses the 802.1X client username at the first authentication phase.

Restrictions and guidelines

Do not configure the 802.1X client anonymous identifier if the vendor-specific authentication server cannot identify anonymous identifiers.

Procedure

1.     Enter system view.

system-view

2.     Enter Ethernet interface view.

interface interface-type interface-number

3.     Configure an 802.1X client anonymous identifier.

dot1x supplicant anonymous identify identifier

By default, no 802.1X client anonymous identifier is configured.

Specifying an SSL client policy

About SSL client policies

If the PEAP-MSCHAPv2, PEAP-GTC, TTLS-MSCHAPv2, or TTLS-GTC authentication is used, the 802.1X authentication process is as follows:

·     The first phase—The device acts as an SSL client to negotiate with the SSL server.

The SSL client uses the SSL parameters defined in the specified SSL client policy to establish a connection with the SSL server for negotiation. The SSL parameters include a PKI domain, supported cipher suites, and the SSL version. For information about SSL client policy configuration, see "Configuring SSL."

·     The second phase—The device uses the negotiated result to encrypt and transmit the interchanged authentication packets.

If the MD5-Challenge authentication is used, the device does not use an SSL client policy during the authentication process.

Procedure

1.     Enter system view.

system-view

2.     Enter Ethernet interface view.

interface interface-type interface-number

3.     Specify an SSL client policy.

dot1x supplicant ssl-client-policy policy-name

By default, an 802.1X client-enabled interface uses the default SSL client policy.

Display and maintenance commands for 802.1X client

Execute display commands in any view.

 

Task	Command
Display 802.1X client information.	display dot1x supplicant [ interface interface-type interface-number ]