Topic
This article discusses configuration options for sites in Cytracom ControlOne, including how to add a Site, how to configure Site options, and how to configure WAN connections.
Environment
- Cytracom ControlOne
Description
Sites represent different physical locations in your organization. They communicate with the ControlOne bridge and provide LAN segmentation for that location.
Index
- Adding a Site
- Connecting the Site to your network
- Site configuration
- Configuring your WAN and LAN connections
Adding a site
1. In the ControlOne portal, click the Add New button in the upper right-hand corner of the screen, select Site from the drop-down window.
Figure 1: Add new Site (click to enlarge)
2. The New Site dialog box will appear. Name your site, then use the drop-down menu at the top right-hand corner of your screen to select the appropriate gateway for your geographic region.
3.. Use the drop-down menus to select your primary bridge, and assign a warm spare, if applicable. When finished, click the Create button.
4. The site's visual representation will appear on the network map, showing port status and connection information.
Figure 2: New Site options (click to enlarge)
The Site icon in the Network Map
Once you create your site, a visual representation will appear in the Network map, showing the site name, connections, download and upload activity, and port status for all six LAN/WAN ports. You will see a red dot over Port 1, indicating that the site is ready to connect its designated bridge.
Figure 3: The Site icon in the Network Map (click to enlarge)
Connecting the site to your network
1. Hover the cursor over the site icon then click the blue circle that appears on the right edge.
Figure 4: The Site icon in the Network Map (click to enlarge)
2. The Connection Options dialog box will appear. Use the drop-down menus to select a port, zone, and connection type (native or VLAN).
Figure 5: Connection options (click to enlarge)
The site's connection is represented in the network map by the line running from the site icon to the zone icon. Also, the port you selected for this connection now appears brighter, indicating it is active.
Figure 6: Connections in the Network Map (click to enlarge)
Site options
Click the three dots on the Site icon to open the options menu.
The menu displays the following options:
- Rename: Rename your site
- Connect: Connect to a zone using the method described above
- Add: Add a VLAN or routed zone
- Configuration: Reset the site to its default configuration or delete the site.
Adding a VLAN from the Options menu
1. Select Add from the option menu, then hover over either VLAN or Routed Zone. A submenu containing the available ports will open.
Select the port you wish to use.
2. A dialog box will open containing VLAN options.
- Enter the VLAN name, the Zone to which it will connect, and the VLAN tag. Note: You can use the up/down arrow icon in the VLAN Tag field to increment or decrement the tag number by one.
- Click the Enabled checkbox to enable the VLAN, then click the Create button.
Adding a routed zone from the Options menu
Site configuration
Once your site is set up, click the blank space within the site icon to open configuration options, then click the General tab at the top of the options panel.
1. Swap between General, Primary, and Warm Spare configuration options
2. Select the primary bridge. You will need a ControlOne license for each bridge. Clicking this option will display a link to add a license.
3. Select a warm spare, if applicable.
4. Enable or disable fail open to the internet should issues occur.
5. Related to show information about connected network components.
6. Reset your site to defaults, or delete it entirely.
Configuring your WAN connections
After setting up your Site, you must connect it to your ISP (or multiple ISPs), through your primary bridge's WAN ports.
If you are using a static IP address provided by your ISP, perform the procedure in Cytracom ControlOne: Configuring a WAN with a static IP address before continuing. If you do not follow the procedure outlined in that article, you will be unable to complete your ControlOne Bridge deployment once onsite.
Designate WAN and LAN ports
Many organizations run ControlOne through the single default WAN port. Some companies, however, may wish to connect with multiple ISPs for redundancy or latency reduction. These companies will need to designate additional WAN ports to communicate with their multiple ISPs.
As a best practice, use your fastest and most stable connection in WAN port 1.
Your ControlOne Bridge has six ports.
- Port 1 is a permanent WAN port. You cannot change it to a LAN port.
- Port 6 is a permanent LAN port. You cannot change it to a WAN port.
- Ports 2-5 can be configured as either LAN or WAN ports.
1. In Site configuration options, click the Primary tab.
2. Click any port between 2 and 5 to highlight it.
3. Under Port Type, select WAN. The system will prompt you to confirm the change.
Once you hook connect your WAN ports to your ISP, the ControlOne Bridge will be assigned the necessary IP address information, and green dots in the Port UI will appear, indicating successful connection.
Additional WAN Configuration options
When you select a WAN port, ControlOne will show several additional configuration options:
1. IP Settings: Use this to switch between DHCP and Static IP modes. See Cytracom ControlOne: Configuring a WAN with a static IP address to learn more.
2. Speed & Duplex: This setting lets users manually set their connection speed and duplex information. As a best practice, keep this option set to Automatic, and only switch it to Advanced during troubleshooting at the request of Cytracom Technical Support.
3. SD WAN: This option lets you designate whether an ISP-connected WAN port should be set as:
- Active (meaning it is being used to perform everyday data transmission)
- Failover (meaning it is only used for critical data transmission if the Active WAN port loses connectivity).
As a best practice: If your different ISP connections have similar speed and stability, it is ok to set multiple ports to Active. If your second ISP is slower or less stable, set it to Failover only.
4. Bandwidth: When set to Auto, this setting will let you use the Optimize button to optimize your ControlOne Network to your available bandwidth. Setting this to Manual lets you specify an expected bandwidth rate instead of using ControlOne's optimization function.
If you opt to set your bandwidth rate manually, it is a best practice to set it at 10-15% below your expected bandwidth rate to allow for network overhead.
Still have questions? Click here to learn how to contact Cytracom Technical Support or open a ticket.