Product and Software: This article applies to Aruba Air Monitor and Access Point.
The physical hardware of an Air Monitor (AM) is identical to that of an Access Point (AP). All APs can be set to operate in AM mode with a simple change of configuration.
Air Monitor
Clients cannot connect to an AM. The function of an AM is similar to a radio scanner because it analyzes all channels and detects all wireless attacks. An AM automatically classifies clients and APs as one of the three categories: valid, interfering, or rogue. An AM provides wireless protection without any reduction in valid client performance. An AM also scans other channels while disabling rogue clients. It also provides faster update speed for triangulation and centralized management of all events and alerts. An AM also is capable of remote packet capture on ANY channel in your regulatory domain AP and band(s).
Access Point
An AP is required to provide WiFi connectivity to clients: 802.11a, b/g, or latest N, depending on hardware. An Aruba AP can simultaneously support client connectivity and Wireless Intrusion Detection and Protection on the channel the AP is set to when the Adaptive Radio Management (ARM) feature and scanning is enabled.
Since rogue APs are detected by monitoring management frames in an AP or AM, a network with proper coverage design can have an excellent chance of detecting all rogues on the channels being used. When Wireless Intrusion Protection and ARM are enabled, if no clients are connected to the AP, the AP automatically allocates itself the same channel as the rogue AP and protects the network at the same time as it advertises service on the new channel. When ARM and scanning is enabled, an AP automatically classifies clients and APs as one of the three categories: valid, interfering, or rogue. It also provides triangulation of all clients and centralized management of all events and alerts. An AP also supports Remote Packet Capture on the channel that the AP is serving clients on.