Controllerless Networks

Hello everyone,

 

I wanted to post this incase anyone else runs into the same issue. We have the Following:

Dell W-AP225 Instant Version: 6.4.4.3-4.2.2.1_53878

ClearPass Policy Manager 6.5.5.78974 on CP-VA-500 platform

 

All of our AirPrint printers stop communicating with the virtual controller after about 60 minutes. We would have to restart each of them to become visible again. But sure enough, a short time later, they would stop working. 

 

We just see the mDNS traffic just drop right off of the virtual controller.  We have worked with Dell Pro Support and Aruba Engineering with no luck at all.  Any thoughts?

Aruba ticket#?

Not sure of the ticket number since we go through Dell Pro Support and they loop in Aruba engineering.  I will ask on Monday.  Here is the Dell SR: 921725557 in case you can cross reference the number.  

I cannot access Dell Ticket Numbers.

 

What kind of print server device is this?

Did you try having Airgroup Off?

Are the printers in the same VLAN as the users?

 

The printers are Xerox, Dell & Presto


There are at least 4 different VLAN's involved:

VLAN for Printers & Servers

VLAN for IAP's

VLAN for Personal Wireless Devices

VLAN for School owned Wireless Devices


Airprint works great for about an hour!


I don't think we tried disabling AirGroup, but I will check.

Is there a print server with queues in the picture, or are all of your devices using Airprint?

 

If the printers and users are not in the same VLAN, don't turn off Airgroup because they won't be able to communicate.  If your IAP225s are replacing a previous deployment, you would not be able to print using Airgroup if your users and devices were not in the same VLAN....

The last one mentioned Presto is a print server. The others two are AirPrint printers.

Are the Airprint servers on the same VLAN as the users?  Are you having problems with the print servers going offline, as well?

The AirPrint Servers is on another VLAN. The print server is having the same issue.

Can the clients ping the print server and airgroup servers, even though they seem to be offline?

 

 

So if the print server is having the same issue, it is quite possible that you are not allowing the correct protocol between the users and the print server.  Typically a print server needs SNMP between the users the print server to query the print server, in addition to the printing protocols.  You might need to find out from the print server manufacturer what is needed, or have your clients as unrestricted so that there is nothing blocking them.

The clients can ping and print fine.  All clients can print if all printers are restarted.  After about an hour, all clients except for AirPrint clients still work.  If the protocol types were an issue, then no printing would ever happen.  I am guessing you are on the right track as there is likely a bug in the protocol itself.  

Are the printers wired or wireless?

Do wired clients print to the printers?

The printers are on wired.  The wired and wireless clients print to them.  

Not all the printers are discovered during Airprint, right?  If not, they should all be 100% available to wireless and wired clients.

They are all discovered when the printers are all turned on, but then dissapear after an hour or so.

So to be clear, some printers use airprint, and some are just queues, but they all disappear?  There is something fundamental that is wrong.  Have you tried making sure that all the wireless clients have unrestricted roles and that there is no NAT/firewall between printers and clients?

 

Hi, 

 

It works for the first one hour after reboot, then stops working! 

 

Run the command "# show airgroup global credits" every two seconds during when it is working and when it stops working. Let me know if you see Query or Response packets count getting stuck at 0 or any fixed value. 

 

Thanks, 

Rajaguru Vincent 

Not working now:

 

show airgroup global credits

Global Credits - Default
------------------------
Type Value
---- -----
Query Packets 160
Response Packets 90

Global Credits - Current
------------------------
Type Value packets drop - last half an hour packets drop - last read packets drop - total throttled
---- ----- -------------------------------- ------------------------ ------------------------------
Query Packets 160 0 0 0
Response Packets 90 0 0 0

Hi, 

 

The "Global Credits - Default" and the"Global Credits - Current" are showing the same value. In a working scenario, you show see the "Current" value decrementing every few seconds for every mDNS query/response. 

 

Here is an example, where you can see the "current" values decrementing. 

 

Instant-4.2.2.1# show airgroup global credits 

Global Credits - Default
------------------------
Type              Value
----              -----
Query Packets     80
Response Packets  45
 
Global Credits - Current
------------------------
Type              Value  packets drop - last half an hour  packets drop - last read  packets drop - total throttled
----              -----  --------------------------------  ------------------------  ------------------------------
Query Packets     75     0                                 0                         0
Response Packets  42     0                                 0                         0


 
Instant-4.2.2.1# show airgroup global credits 

Global Credits - Default
------------------------
Type              Value
----              -----
Query Packets     80
Response Packets  45
 
Global Credits - Current
------------------------
Type              Value  packets drop - last half an hour  packets drop - last read  packets drop - total throttled
----              -----  --------------------------------  ------------------------  ------------------------------
Query Packets     74     0                                 0                         0
Response Packets  40     0                                 0                         0

If the "Global Credits - Current" is stuck at some value after one hour, that could be the issue and TAC should be able to help you with it. 

 

Thanks, 

Rajaguru Vincent 

Been working with Deepak Balachandran all morning.

Dell Global:Case #1841980: SR 921725557 - Airprint Printers become undiscoverable: [ ref:_00D30008G4._500330uAbTU:ref ]

You are right that query packets and response packets do not change much ones the printers drop off.

Aruba Case:  #1847734 

We found that a PC on the same LAN as an Airprinter work sfine.  However, if they are not, then they do not work for more than a couple of hours.  So they still work for an hour and a half which indicates that the traffic is getting routed correctly.  However, the mDNS is dissappearing from the virtual controller after 60-120 minutes.  We now see a Presto sever on another VLAN and that has not dissapeared.  It is has been on the network for more than 30 hours.  This is starting to look like a bug on the IAP's with AirGroup.  Aruba and Dell are continuing to work on the problem daily.  

This is getting interesting.....

 

A PC with Bonjour Printer Services can see all the printers all the time.  All iPads can only see one of the printers.  If we restart the printers, All iPads can see All printers for about an hour or two, but then most of them go away.  However, the PC can still see those printers.  Why? 

 

Both the iPAD and PC are on the same SSID and same VLAN.  Wow!  How bizar!  

The airprint simply does not work.  We have tried and Aruba and Dell have concluded that AirPrint does not work with our IAP-225 Series.  

---

dot@chch.org wrote:

This is getting interesting.....

 

A PC with Bonjour Printer Services can see all the printers all the time.  All iPads can only see one of the printers.  If we restart the printers, All iPads can see All printers for about an hour or two, but then most of them go away.  However, the PC can still see those printers.  Why? 

 

Both the iPAD and PC are on the same SSID and same VLAN.  Wow!  How bizar!  

---

 

I'm having the same problem with AIRPLAY ... AND DLNA.     after about an hour streaming suddenly stops.  airplay speakers are no longer visible on the network  from  ANY of my computers on the network. 

Been working on it since October. I suspect it is a firmware bug on the IAP's. Will take Aruba forever to realize it.