Can I use a pair of PMP450b to form a PTP link at point A and Point B instead of using PMP450i at Point A and PMP450b at Point B ?
Older 450b SM's, part numbers:
| C050045C011A | 5 GHz 450b - Mid-Gain WB SM |
| C050045H012A | 5 GHz 450b - High-Gain WB SM – 4-pack |
CANNOT be changed to PTP450b due to regulatory and export control reasons (even if you upgrade to firmware v16.x). Those part numbers will always be SM's.
Going forward, these SKU's can be used as PMP450b SM's and/or PTP450b's.
| C050045B032A | 5 GHz 450b - Mid-Gain – FCC |
| C050045H022A | 5 GHz 450b - High Gain – 4-pack – FCC |
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@Tony So wrote:
Can I use a pair of PMP450b to form a PTP link at point A and Point B instead of using PMP450i at Point A and PMP450b at Point B ?
Hi Tony,
There are PTP 450b models available which use 450b or 450b High Gain radios as PTP endpoints. You can see those here: https://www.cambiumnetworks.com/products/backhaul/
If you are asking if it's possible to use a PMP450b as an AP with another PMP450b as an SM as a "fake" PTP link, the answer is no. We don't currently offer a PMP450b in an AP configuration.
If you were to purchase a pair of PTP450b radios, it is possible to convert those to PMP450b SMs using a GUI toggle. It is not possible, however, to convert a PMP450b to a PTP450b via the GUI unless it was originally keyed as a PTP device. You may be able to contact support about converting an existing PMP450b to a PTP450b by re-keying it as a PTP device, but I'm not sure if this is a service we offer, and charges may apply.
Hope that helps.
-Al
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Thanks for reply. The reason why I asked this is because we have successful case using ePMP Force 180 to work as both AP and SM to form a PTP link (though Force 180 is a SM).
Since PMP450b is small size similar to Force 180 with higher reliability and channel bandwidth selection, we are wondering if we can use PMP450b to form a PTP link with one of them set as AP and the other set as SM to meet some customer's special requirements.
Tony,
Yes, you can definitely deploy the 450b in a PTP link. While ePMP allows you to configure any device as an AP or SM in PMP or PTP mode the 450b has the flexibility to operate as an SM in PMP mode or a Backhaul Master (BHM) or BackHaul Slave (BHS) in PTP mode, but never as an AP in PMP mode. The terminology in PTP mode is different from ePMP, which uses the terms "AP/SM" even in PTP mode, but the concept is the same.
Also, if you need a higher gain device for longer links you can use the 450b High Gain, which has similar gain to the ePMP Force 200.
Just want to reiterate here. In addtion to Brian's comments on the terminology, the important thing to note is that you cannot simply convert a 450b SM into a 450b PTP BHS/BHM unless it was already originally keyed as a PTP device in the factory.
You would need to purchase a PTP-keyed 450b device to ensure the hardware/software meet regulatory requirements for your region where you intend to operate it. Once acquired, that same PTP device can be converted to an SM if desired, and back to PTP again as well. But, if it was originally purchased as an SM, the reverse process is not true.