Operation Manual – 802.1x-HABP-MAC AuthenticationH3C S5500-EI Series Ethernet Switches Chapter 1 802.1x Configuration1-11when an authenticator multicasts an EAP-Request/Identity frame. Once anauthenticator sends an EAP-Request/Identity frame to a supplicant, it starts thistimer. If this timer expires but it receives no response from the supplicant, itretransmits the request. To cooperate with a supplicant system that does not sendEAPOL-Start requests unsolicitedly, the authenticator multicastsEAP-Request/Identity frames to the supplicant system at an interval defined bythis timer.z Supplicant timeout timer (supp-timeout): Once an authenticator sends anEAP-Request/MD5 Challenge frame to a supplicant, it starts this timer. If this timerexpires but it receives no response from the supplicant, it retransmits the request.z Server timeout timer (server-timeout): Once an authenticator sends a RADIUSAccess-Request packet to the authentication server, it starts this timer. If this timerexpires but it receives no response from the server, it retransmits the request.z Handshake timer (handshake-period): After a supplicant passes authentication,the authenticator sends to the supplicant handshake requests at this interval tocheck whether the supplicant is online. If the authenticator receives no responseafter sending the allowed maximum number of handshake requests, it considersthat the supplicant is offline.z Quiet timer (quiet-period): When a supplicant fails the authentication, theauthenticator refuses further authentication requests from the supplicant in thisperiod of time.1.1.7 Implementation of 802.1x in the DevicesThe devices extend and optimize the mechanism that the 802.1x protocol specifies by:z Allowing multiple users to access network services through the same physicalport.z Supporting two authentication methods: portbased and macbased. With theportbased method, after the first user of a port passes authentication, all otherusers of the port can access the network without authentication, and when the firstuser goes offline, all other users get offline at the same time. With the macbasedmethod, each user of a port must be authenticated separately, and when anauthenticated user goes offline, no other users are affected.
