Sputnik sells the best-selling Linksys WRT54GL Wi-Fi-compliant 802.11g wireless access point/router pre-flashed with Sputnik Agent firmware. That means it works out of the box with SputnikNet to let you centrally manage and authenticate users on a distributed Wi-Fi network.

Wired and wireless network users can be authenticated by the Sputnik-powered Linksys device, as its LAN and WLAN interfaces are bridged together. When used as a network gateway, end-users connected to third-party wireless hardware (in bridge mode) are routed through the Sputnik-powered device for authentication. Service providers can leave existing wired and wireless networks in place--whether Wi-Fi, WiMAX, mesh, or other frequency--routing network traffic through the Sputnik-powered device for authentication, tracking, and management.

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

While it is possible to reflash your Linksys device wirelessly, we recommend directly connecting your PC to any of the device's four LAN ports, shown.

After your Linksys device has been flashed with Sputnik-powered DD-WRT firmware, the default port behavior will be:

-the RJ-45 Cat5 Ethernet port on the left is for WAN (wide area networking, or broadband backhaul to the internet)

-the four Ethernet ports on the right are for LAN (local area networking)

- default LAN/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

If you're intending to use your Sputnik-powered Linksys 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 Linksys device.

Each Sputnik-powered Linksys device requires a Sputnik Agent Standard subscription (unless being used as a bridge).

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

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".

Associate with your Sputnik-powered Linksys device (wired or wirelessly), and subscribe it to your SputnikNet or SputnikNet Express Account using Sputnik Instant Setup. For more information, refer to the online documentation chapter titled "Subscribing Sputnik-Powered Devices to your SputnikNet Account with Sputnik Instant Setup".

If you're using SputnikNet Express, see the chapters in the online documentation section titled "SputnikNet Express".

Log into your SputnikNet Account and confirm that your Sputnik-powered Linksys device is active. Click on the name of the 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".

Sputnik offers a wide range of authentication systems for free, advertising-supported, or fee-based Wi-Fi. For more information, see the various online documentation sections on SputnikNet Authentication Systems.

You have full control over the branding on your captive portal pages. For more information, see the online documentation section titled "Branding Networks with SputnikNet".

Each Sputnik-powered 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".

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

Log into the Sputnik-powered DD-WRT control panel on your Sputnik-powered Linksys device as follows (if your Linksys 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".

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

Check out www.linksys.com for detailed information about the Linksys hardware.

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