96 Enterprise Fabric Suite 2007 User Guide • September 2008
the response to the challenge. This information is forwarded to the RADIUS server
for authentication and the server responds with the results, either an accept or reject.
The RADIUS client does not need to be configured with any user authentication
information, this all resides on the RADIUS server and can be managed centrally
and separately from the clients. In addition, no passwords are exchanged between
the RADIUS server and its clients. Authentication of requests from a RADIUS client
to the server and responses from the server to a client can also be authenticated. This
requires sharing a secret between the server and client. The accounting RADIUS
supports the auditing of the users and switch services such as Telnet, FTP, and
switch management applications.
Note – The RADIUS server and Security dialogs are available only on a secure (SSL)
fabric and on the entry switch (out of band switch). To enable the SSL option for a
switch, open the Switch menu and select Services. In the Services dialog, select the
SSL option. You must then close the fabric and re-establish a connection to secure
the fabric using SSL.
Note – You may need to configure a security set for RADIUS device security that
will be used in authenticating ISLs. Refer to “Creating a Security Set” on page88 for
more information.
Adding a RADIUS Server
When you add a RADIUS server, you provide a method to centralize the
management of authentication passwords over a network.