Fluke WaveRunner User manual

WaveRunnerTM
802.11b Wireless Network Analyzer
Getting Started Guide
PN 1778211
June 2002, Rev. 3, 4/03
© 2002-2003 Fluke Corporation. All rights reserved. Printed in USA
All product names are trademarks of their respective companies.

SoftwareNotice
The WaveRunner is powered in part by the Linux
Operating System and other publicly available software.
A machine-readable copy of the corresponding source
code is available for the cost of distribution. Please
contact the Fluke Networks Technical Assistance
Center (1-800-283-5853) and visit the GNU web site
(http://www.gnu.org) formore information.

i
Table of Contents
Title Page
Welcome to WaveRunner ......................... 1
Before you Start........................................ 2
Safety Information............................... 3
Contacting Fluke Networks Sales,
Service, and Support Centers.............. 4
Registering the WaveRunner............... 4
The WaveRunner and Supplied Items....... 5
Supplied Items .................................... 5
Getting Acquainted with the WaveRunner. 6
Using the WaveRunner............................. 8
Charging Your WaveRunner................ 8
Routine Care....................................... 10
Powering the WaveRunner On/Off ...... 11
Using the Touch Display...................... 12
WaveRunner Navigation ........................... 12
Powering On for the First Time............ 15
Selecting the Country Location............ 15
WaveRunner Main Screen .................. 17
Device Scan button............................. 18
Site Scan button.................................. 21
Channels button.................................. 22
Traffic button....................................... 24
Tools button........................................ 25
Reports button..................................... 28
Setup button........................................ 29
About button........................................ 31
Using the Built-in Help System.................. 32
Accessing and Navigating the Help
System................................................ 32
Troubleshooting Your WaveRunner .......... 33
Before Calling Technical Support ........ 33
Specifications............................................ 35

ii
Regulatory Notices.................................... 37
Federal Communications Commission
Notice.................................................. 37
Modifications....................................... 37
Declaration of Conformity for products
marked with the FCC logo - United
States only.......................................... 38
Canadian Notice.................................. 38
Avis Canadien..................................... 38
European Union Notice....................... 38

1
WaveRunnerTM
Getting Started Guide
Welcome to WaveRunner
Thank you for purchasing the Fluke Networks
WaveRunner wireless network analyzer.
WaveRunner, the newest member of the Fluke
Networks handheld tools family, brings true handheld
operation and ease-of-use to wireless LAN tools. Unlike
laptop-based solutions, WaveRunner is designed to
work wherever the wireless LAN network extends: in
the conference room, on the production floor or at the
outdoor receiving dock. Whether you’re detecting
rogue access points, designing a wireless LAN
deployment, verifying a recent installation or
troubleshooting wireless connectivity problems,
WaveRunner gives you the vision you need to manage
your wireless network.

2
Before You Start
Note
The WaveRunner consists of an HP iPAQ, a
Fluke Networks Wireless LAN PC card, and
the WaveRunner software. The original HP
iPAQ software and operating system have
been replaced.
Caution
WaveRunner is equipped with a wireless
network access card allowing use of
channels 1 through 14.
Channel selection based on the country or
a custom configuration is an easily
modified configuration accessed in the
WaveRunner Setup menu (Setup | General
Settings). Based on this information, only
those channels that are allowed for the
selected country are displayed as legal
channels. IT IS YOUR RESPONSIBILTY
TO USE ONLY LEGAL CHANNELS.
Note
In the United States, the FCC allows use of
channels 1 through 11. United States users
need to be aware that FCC regulations within
the United States does not permit use of
Channels 12 through 14, and use of these
channels is illegal.

3
Safety Information
W PLEASE READ THE FOLLOWING WARNINGS
FOR SAFETY
W Warnings
•Do not use this product if it is damaged.
Before using the product, inspect the
case. Look for cracked or missing
plastic. Pay particular attention to the
insulation surrounding the connectors.
•Do not operate the product around
explosive gas, vapor or dust.
•If this product is used in a manner not
specified by the manufacturer, the
protection provided by the product may
be impaired.
•The WaveRunner system unit (HP iPAQ)
and the PC card sleeve contain lithium
polymer battery packs. Recycle or
dispose of these items properly. There is
a risk of chemical burn and/or fire if the
batteries are handled improperly. Do not
take apart, crush, puncture, short
contacts, or dispose of in water or in a
fire.

4
Contacting FlukeNetworksSales,
Service,and SupportCenters
Have a question about using WaveRunner? Contact the
Technical Assistance Center at one of the numbers
listed below, or email: [e-mail].
USA: 1-800-283-5853 (1-800-28-FLUKE)
Canada: 1-800-363-5853 (1-800-36-FLUKE)
Europe: [phone]
Japan: [phone]
Singapore: [phone]
Anywhere in the world: [phone]
Also,visitus on the Web atwww.flukenetworks.com.
Registering the WaveRunner
When the WaveRunner is initially turned on, a
Registration screen will prompt you to register the
WaveRunner. You will be instructed to go to the Fluke
Networks registration site and fill out the on-line
registration, or call us at 1-800-283-5853 (or 1-425-446-
4519). Once the registration is complete, you will be
given a six digit key code via email. Enter this code in
the “Enter key code below”field and the screen will be
removed.

5
The WaveRunner and Supplied
Items
aov010f.eps
Figure 1. Supplied Items
Supplied Items
Table 1. Supplied Items
1 Fluke Networks Wireless LAN card
2 HP iPAQ
3 HP iPAQ PC card sleeve
4 Stylus (PN 1778159)
5 Holster (PN 1778209)
6 AC universal charger (PN 2063322)
7 Cradle
8 WaveRunner Multi-language documentation
CD-ROM
Getting Started Guide (this book)
Warranty card (not shown)
Lithium polymer battery pack (installed in
sleeve, not shown - PN 2063417)

6
Getting Acquainted with the
WaveRunner
The WaveRunner has the following buttons and user
options:
10
9
14
7
16
15
17
6
8
13
20
11
12
1
3
2
5
4
18
19
aov023f.eps
Figure 2. Front Panel Identifiers
Table 2. Front Panel Identifiers
1 Power button
2 Battery charge indicator
3 Speaker
4 Color display
5 HP iPAQ PC card sleeve
6 Help button
7 Back button
8Navigation button (up/down, left/right). The
navigation button can also be used as the
select button by pressing the middle of the
button.

7
9 Home button
10 Keyboard button
11 Background light sensor (not used)
12 Microphone
13 Memo record button
14 Wireless LAN card
15 Memory card slot (not used)
16 Headphone jack
17 N/A
18 PC Card eject button
19 PC Card slot
20 Stylus (push to eject)
2
1
3
aov040f.eps
Figure 3. Bottom Panel Identifiers
Table 3. Bottom Panel Identifiers
1 Reset button
2 Battery charge connectors
3 HP iPAQ PC card sleeve

8
aov202f.eps
Figure 4. Front View in Holster
Using the WaveRunner
Charging YourWaveRunner
The universal charger adapter (PN 2063322) comes
with four international AC plug connectors. The charger
can handle a line voltage between 100 and 240 Volts at
50 - 60 Hz.
To install a plug connector into the charger adapter,
simply slide the connector into the holding slots until
you hear a click. See figure 5.
To remove a plug connector from the adapter, press the
holding tab and slide plug connector out.
Note
To properly condition the battery(s), a new
WaveRunner must be initially charged for
8 hours.

9
If the batteries become completely
discharged, you must connect the unit to AC
power and press the reset button. See
figure 3.
The sleeve battery pack is replaceable (PN
2063417).
A fully charged WaveRunner can operate continuously
for up to 3 hours and longer depending on which
standby and backlight settings are chosen in Setup |
Power Settings. To fully charge a WaveRunner, it will
take approximately 8 hours with the unit off.
Charge your WaveRunner on a regular basis with either
the AC adapter or the cradle.
Press
aov050f.eps
Figure 5. Charging directly with the AC adapter

10
Plug power cable
into cradle.
Plug
WaveRunner
into cradle.
aov212.eps
Figure 6. Charging with the Cradle
The charge light (see figure 2) blinks when recharging
the battery. This is also true for the charge light on the
sleeve. The charge light is solid (non-blinking) when the
battery is fully charged. The battery will not overcharge.
Routine Care
To keep the WaveRunner in good condition and
working properly, follow these guidelines:
•Keep your WaveRunner away from excessive
moisture and temperature extremes. Do not
expose it to liquids or precipitation.
•Do not place anything on top of the
WaveRunner to prevent damage to the
screen.
•Store your WaveRunner in a protective case
when not in use.

11
•Clean your WaveRunner by wiping the
screen and exterior with a soft cloth
moistened only with water.
•Avoid exposing your WaveRunner to direct
sunlight or strong ultraviolet light for extended
periods of time. Also avoid scratching the
surface of the screen and striking it against
hard objects.
Note
Use only the WaveRunner stylus to prevent
scratching the screen.
Powering the WaveRunnerOn/Off
Simply press the On/Off button located in the upper-
right corner on the front of the WaveRunner (see figure
2 for the On/Off button location).

12
Using the Touch Display
Only the supplied stylus should be used on the touch
panel display. See figure 2 for stylus location.
WaveRunner Navigation
On each WaveRunner screen the following common
buttons are found:
Help - Press this icon to open help on the current
topic. Click on the “X”in the help screen upper-right
corner to close help.
Close screen –The “X”is displayed in the screen’s
upper-right corner next to the Help button on every
screen except the main screen. Pressing the “X”closes
the currently opened screen. Screens are opened on
top of previously visited screens. Press the “X”to close
each screen until you reach the main screen.
Home –Press this icon on any screen to return to
the main screen.
Keyboard –Press this icon to open and close the
keyboard tool as shown below.

13
Pressing the Shift key opens the second bank of
keyboard keys as shown below:
Fields that require text or numeric entry automatically
open the keyboard tool when selected. Pressing the
keyboard button a second time closes the keyboard.
Speaker volume –Press the speaker icon to open
the volume control dialog as shown below:
Press and slide the volume slide bar to adjust the
volume (0 = lowest, 100 = highest), or check the Mute
check box to disable sound. Press the speaker volume
button a second time to close the volume control dialog.

14
Time and Date –Press on the time to
display the date. Press on the date to display time.
Time and date are entered in the Setup | General
Settings screen. Time and date must be initially setup
for the WaveRunner to save correct time stamps for
test results.
Battery indicator –Displays an approximate
amount of remaining battery life. The indicator goes
from green to yellow to red (needs to be charged).
Whenever not using the WaveRunner, it is
recommended it be placed on a charger. The battery
will last up to 3 hours before needing to be charged. It
takes approximately 8 hours to fully charge the battery
with WaveRunner off.
When you press the battery icon, it displays a graph of
battery usage and approximate battery life remaining.

15
Powering On for the First Time
When you first turn on a WaveRunner, the General
Settings screen is automatically displayed prompting
you to enter owner information, country location, time
and date information, whether you want to hear button
clicks and turn on/off the Rogue and Unknown devices
auditable alarm. Once you save these settings, the
power up sequence will then bypass the General
Settings screen and open the main screen shown on
the next page.
You can change this information at any time. This
information is accessed from the main screen by
pressing Setup | General Settings.
Selecting the CountryLocation
The country selection is the first item you should
configure before using the WaveRunner. Country
selection determines which channels are legal and
illegal for a region.
Illegal channels are display in red throughout all
screens. In the Channels screen the channel number
box is displayed in red for illegal channels.

16
aov232s.bmp
Figure 7. Country Channel Selection
To select a country, select Change in the General
Settings screen. Then select Use a predefined
country (default), and then select the country from the
Country drop-down list.
If your country is not listed, select the Use the
following country information option, enter the
country name, and choose the channels that are legal
for the country.
Note
When a function is started that requires
WaveRunner to transmit on an illegal
channel, a warning will pop up. The warning
popup will allow you to cancel prior to
transmission or continue.