Aruba ACMA study guide
Aruba ACMA · Work through your exam, one topic at a time.
The Aruba Certified Mobility Associate (ACMA) is an associate-level credential from HPE Aruba Networking that validates a candidate's ability to deploy and operate Aruba wireless LANs. It suits network engineers, wireless administrators and managed-service staff who already understand basic IP networking and want to demonstrate practical competence with Aruba's wireless product line rather than general RF theory alone. The Aruba ACMA study guide has 6 sections and about 2,033 words.
01Aruba Wireless Architecture and Product Portfolio
Aruba wireless separates management, control, and data planes. In ArubaOS 8.x the Mobility Master (MM) is the management/configuration node in a master–local hierarchy: it pushes configuration to Mobility Controllers (MCs) but does not forward client traffic.
286 words, about 1 min02802.11 Standards and Amendments
802.11 defines the MAC/PHY. Legacy: 802.11b (2.4 GHz, DSSS, up to 11 Mbps), 802.11a (5 GHz, OFDM, up to 54 Mbps), 802.11g (2.4 GHz, OFDM, 54 Mbps).
267 words, about 1 min03WLAN RF Fundamentals and Channel Planning
RSSI is received signal power in dBm; the noise floor is typically -90 to -95 dBm in a quiet 5 GHz channel. SNR = RSSI - noise floor.
304 words, about 2 min04ArubaOS WLAN Configuration: SSIDs, Virtual APs, and Profiles
ArubaOS uses reusable profiles bound into groups. For a WLAN, the SSID profile defines the ESSID and encryption; the virtual AP (VAP) profile binds the SSID profile, AAA profile, VLAN, and forwarding mode; the AP group references the VAP so every AP in that group advertises it.
278 words, about 1 min05Wireless Security, Authentication, Encryption, Roles, and Policies
WPA2-Personal uses a pre-shared key (PSK) with CCMP/AES. WPA2-Enterprise uses 802.1X: the supplicant, the AP/controller as authenticator, and a RADIUS server as authentication server; EAP methods include PEAP, EAP-TLS, and EAP-TTLS.
294 words, about 1 min06Client Connectivity, Roaming, and RF Optimization
Roaming is a client decision. Layer 2 roaming stays in the same subnet/VLAN; Layer 3 roaming crosses subnets and requires mobility support so the client keeps its IP.
604 words, about 3 min