Sputnik-Powered Ubiquiti NanoStation2/5: Quick Start Guide

Plan your Sputnik-powered network.

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The Sputnik-powered Ubiquiti NanoStation is a versatile 802.11-based indoor/outdoor wireless platform. It combines a high-gain 4 antenna system, advanced radio architecture, and Sputnik-powered firmware, allowing extremely high throughput, stability, performance, and centralized management at an affordable price.

Used with Sputnik-powered DD-WRT firmware and SputnikNet, the Ubiquiti NanoStation becomes an easy-to-deploy Wi-Fi access point for access-controlled networks such as hotspots or hotzones.

Flash your Ubiquiti NanoStation2/5 with Sputnik-Powered DD-WRT firmware, if needed.

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Sputnik ships the Ubiquiti devices with Sputnik-powered DD-WRT firmware pre-installed. However, if you need to flash your Ubiquiti device, follow the online documentation chapter titled "Flashing Ubiquiti devices with Sputnik-Powered DD-WRT Firmware via tftp".

IMPORTANT: the cabling configuration for tftp flashing from Ubiquiti default firmware to Sputnik-powered DD-WRT firmware is different from what it will be when you operate the device as a Sputnik-powered AP.

- AC power goes into the supplied PoE adapter
- LAN/PoE cable goes from the PoE port on the PoE adapter to the RJ45 port on the back of the Ubiquiti device (green cable in the photo)
- LAN cable goes from the LAN port on the PoE adapter to your PC, from which you will flash (yellow cable in the photo)

Make sure that the WAN port is enabled.

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Log into the Sputnik-powered DD-WRT control panel on your Sputnik-powered device as follows:

- default URL: http://192.168.180.1
- default username: root
- default password: admin

Select "Basic Setup" under the "Setup" menu. For WAN Connection Type, change from "Disabled" to "Automatic Configuration - DHCP". Click "Apply Settings" at the bottom of the screen (not shown).

Make sure that the WAN port is correctly configured.

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Select the "Networking" tab under the "Setup" menu. For WAN Port Assignment, change from "Disabled" to "eth0". Click "Apply Settings" at the bottom of the screen (not shown).

Reboot the AP.

Sputnik-powered Ubiquiti default port and network settings.

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After your Ubiquiti device has been flashed with Sputnik-powered DD-WRT firmware:

-the RJ-45 Ethernet port on the left is for WAN (wide area networking) and PoE (power over Ethernet)
-the SMA port on the right is for attaching an optional external antenna
- default WLAN IP address is 192.168.180.1; DHCP lease subnet is 192.168.180.x
- WAN is set up as a DHCP client

The Sputnik-powered DD-WRT control panel is available at:

- default URL: http://192.168.180.1
- default username: root
- default password: admin

Plug your Sputnik-Powered Ubiquiti device into power and provide it with broadband.

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The cabling configuration for operating your Sputnik-powered Ubiquiti device is:

- AC power goes into the supplied PoE adapter
- WAN cable goes from the PoE port on the PoE adapter to the RJ-45 port on the back of the Ubiquiti device (purple cable in the photo)
- WAN cable goes from the LAN port on the PoE adapter to your broadband connection (red cable in the photo)

Set up your SputnikNet Account.

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If you're intending to use your Sputnik-powered Ubiquiti device with SputnikNet Express, our free service for branded Wi-Fi hotspots, you can skip this step.

Otherwise, sign up for SputnikNet, and make sure that you have an available subscription for your Sputnik-powered Ubiquiti device.

Each Sputnik-powered Ubituiti NanoStation requires a Sputnik Agent Standard subscription (unless it's being used as a bridge).

For more information, see the online documentation section titled "SputnikNet and SputnikNet On Site: Getting Started".

Check to see that the Sputnik Agent is running on your Sputnik-powered device.

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While the Sputnik Agent should be running by default, it's a good idea to be sure it is active, and communicating effectively with the Sputnik Instant Setup server (for more information about Sputnik Instant Setup, see the next step).

To check the Sputnik Agent status, first associate with the Sputnik-powered device wired or wirelessly.

Log into the Sputnik-powered DD-WRT control panel on your Sputnik-powered device as follows (if your Sputnik-powered device has already connected to your SputnikNet Account, you will need to log in through its assigned captive portal, first):

- default URL: http://192.168.180.1
- default username: root
- default password: admin

To confirm that the Sputnik Agent is running:

- click on the "Sputnik Agent" tab under the "Status" tab.
- "Managed by" should show sputnik@wifi.sputnik.com/default (this is the URL of the Sputnik Instant Setup server, which will be replaced by your SputnikNet Account URL after you complete the next step)
- "State" should show "Running normally - Managed". If it does, you're up and running.

For more information about the Sputnik-powered DD-WRT control panel, see the online documentation chapter titled "Using Sputnik-Powered DD-WRT Firmware".

Subscribe your Sputnik-Powered Ubiquiti device to SputnikNet using Sputnik Instant Setup.

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Be sure your Sputnik-powered Ubiquiti device has an active connection to the internet. That connection is required for it to register with the Sputnik Instant Setup server.

Associate with your Ubiquiti device (wired or wirelessly), and open a browser. You should be directed to the Sputnik Instant Setup page. Enter your SputnikNet ID to "subscribe" your Ubiquiti device to SputnikNet or SputnikNet Express. For more information, refer to the online documentation chapter titled "Subscribing Sputnik-Powered Devices to your SputnikNet Account with Sputnik Instant Setup" or the section titled "SputnikNet Express".

If you do not see the Sputnik Instant Setup page, refer to the "Troubleshooting" online documentation chapter.

Make sure your Sputnik-powered Ubiquiti device is active in your SputnikNet Account.

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Log into your SputnikNet Account and confirm that your Sputnik-powered Ubiquiti device is active.

Manage your Sputnik-Powered Ubiquiti device using SputnikNet.

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Click on the name of your Sputnik-powered Ubiquiti device to change its name, address, and other settings such as the Wi-Fi channel and SSID. From the Sputnik-powered device's "Edit Settings" page you can also change the captive portal that is assigned to that device.

For more information, see the online documentation chapter titled "Subscribing Sputnik-Powered Devices to your SputnikNet Account with Sputnik Instant Setup".

Set up authentication system(s) for your Sputnik-powered network.

Sputnik offers a wide range of authentication systems for free, advertising-supported, or fee-based Wi-Fi. Any number of authentication systems can be applied to a captive portal. For user gadgets without browsers, or when captive portal-based log in should be skipped, you can configure an authentication system to detect and authenticate those gadgets based on MAC address.

For more information, see the various online documentation sections on SputnikNet Authentication Systems.

Set up captive portal(s) for your Sputnik-powered network.

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You have full control over the content and branding of your captive portal pages. SputnikNet supports standard HTML, CSS, JavaScript, and Adobe Flash, enabling you to fully customize your customers' login experience. The login portion of the captive portal page is inserted into your page layout automatically.

For more information, see the online documentation section titled "Branding Networks with SputnikNet".

Apply captive portals, authentication systems, and network policies to your Sputnik-Powered Ubiquiti device.

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Each Sputnik-powered Ubiquiti device is assigned to a specific captive portal. Each portal can be associated with one or more authentication systems. Each authentication system can include optional network policies that are applied to authenticated users. A walled garden is a collection of network domains (URLs) that users are allowed to browse to before authentication, so those policies are assigned directly to captive portals.

For more information, refer to the online documentation chapter titled "SputnikNet Overview" and the "SputnikNet Network Policies" section.

Sign on as a network user to test your Sputnik-powered network.

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Try out your Sputnik-powered Wi-Fi network to make sure everything is working the way you want it to.

Accessing your Sputnik-powered Ubiquiti device's control panel.

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Log into the Sputnik-powered DD-WRT control panel on your Sputnik-powered Ubiquiti device as follows (if your Ubiquiti device has already connected to your SputnikNet Account, you will need to log in through its assigned captive portal, first):

- default URL: http://192.168.180.1
- default username: root
- default password: admin

To confirm that the Sputnik Agent is running:

- click on the "Sputnik Agent" tab under the "Status" tab.
- "Managed by" should show your SputnikNet ID.
- "State" should show "Running normally - Managed". If it does, you're up and running.

For more information about the Sputnik-powered DD-WRT control panel, see the online documentation chapter titled "Using Sputnik-Powered DD-WRT Firmware".

Get support if you need it.

Check out www.sputnik.com/support for additional information about the SputnikNet service, documentation, and user forums.

Check out www.ubnt.com for detailed information about the Ubiquiti PowerStation hardware.

For more detailed information about DD-WRT firmware, refer to the online documentation posted at www.dd-wrt.com.