[Dual System] - Network Equipment setup

Warning: This article is for Dual System only.

Introduction

Before setting up the computers and the headsets, we need a network for them all to connect to so that they can communicate with each other and get updates.

This article will take you through the steps required to configure the physical network for your site to allow for all your devices to function correctly.

As you receive the equivalent of two systems of gear, we will need to duplicate most steps below for both systems. The configuration of the gateways will be done in two steps and is a little complex, but it allows for instant failover should one fail at any point.

The end state for the network will be like the diagram below:

Time Required

2 hours / 30 minutes.

Tools and Equipment Required

• Meraki Switch x2
• Meraki Gateway x2
• Network cables
• Access to your IPS router/gateway.
• Dual System Hardware Kit (ZL-03-17)

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On this page:

  Apply Labels to all Networking Equipment

  Install Gateway #1

  Install your Switches

  Install Gateway #2

  Install your Wireless Access Points

  Install Cameras

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Apply labels to all networking equipment

When you first receive your network equipment, none of it will be labelled for either system. As such,  you will need to apply the correct labels to the equipment before we can proceed with the rest of the setup.

You will receive a list from Client Services (CS) listing each piece of network equipment with its corresponding Serial number and Label to apply. This should come to you in table format like the example below:

System A:

XX-XX in the label column below represents your Primary Site code.

Hardware	Serial Number	Label
Meraki Gateway (MX64)	XXXX-XXXX-XXXX	XX-XX-GW-01
Meraki Switch (MX120)	XXXX-XXXX-XXXX	XX-XX-SW-01
Meraki Access point (CW9166)	XXXX-XXXX-XXXX	XX-XX-AP-01
Meraki Access point (CW9166)	XXXX-XXXX-XXXX	XX-XX-AP-02
Meraki Access point (CW9166)	XXXX-XXXX-XXXX	XX-XX-AP-03
Meraki Access point (CW9166)	XXXX-XXXX-XXXX	XX-XX-AP-04

System B: 

XX-XX in the label column below represents your Primary Site code.

Hardware	Serial Number	Site Code Label	Large ID label
Meraki Gateway (MX64)	XXXX-XXXX-XXXX	XX-XX-GW-02	No Label
Meraki Switch (MX120)	XXXX-XXXX-XXXX	XX-XX-SW-02	No Label
Meraki Access point (CW9166)	XXXX-XXXX-XXXX	XX-XX-AP-05	5
Meraki Access point (CW9166)	XXXX-XXXX-XXXX	XX-XX-AP-06	6
Meraki Access point (CW9166)	XXXX-XXXX-XXXX	XX-XX-AP-07	7
Meraki Access point (CW9166)	XXXX-XXXX-XXXX	XX-XX-AP-08	8

Steps to identify and Label the equipment:

Complete the steps below to correctly label your network equipment for both spaces. It is recommended that once you have labelled the equipment, you place the equipment in two separate areas for ease of installation later.

1. Carefully identify each of the pieces of network equipment via the Serial Number on the ID plate of the equipment:
   • Gateway:
     
   • Switch:
   • Access Point:
     
2. Take the Label for that piece of equipment and adhere the label to the equipment as shown in the images below:
   • Gateway:
   • Switch:
   • Access Point:
     

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Install Gateway #1

The first item that needs to be installed is the Gateway (GW). This first GW will be the primary for your site and will be connected to both switches.

For this step you will need:

• The "Primary" gateway (The one labelled with your Primary site code)
• 1x Ethernet cable for this step.

Once you have found and unpacked the gateway, you will need to connect it to your ISP's gateway.

• Plug one end of the Ethernet cable into the "Internet" port on the Primary GW supplied by ZL,
• Plug the other end into the first available port on your ISP's router.
• XX-XX-GW-01, Internet Port -> ISP router/gateway, First free port.

Once that is all connected, you just need to plug the Gateway into power. When you do, the GW will initially show an orange light for a short period of time, then cycle through all the colours (rainbow), and should finally settle on a dim white light.

It may do the above cycle of lights a few times as it pulls down new firmware and updates itself. I would recommend that you plug it in and then continue with the rest of this guide. By the time you are finished, it should have configured itself.

Light indications:

• White
  • This indicates that the GW is powered on and operating normally.
• Solid Orange
  • The GW is powered, but has not contacted the Meraki cloud and been configured yet.
• Rainbow
  • The GW is booting / updating config / updating firmware / connecting to the Meraki Cloud.
• Flashing Orange
  • This is an error state -- contact Client Services.
• Not showing

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Install your Switches

Next we want to install the switches for your system. You should have two switches, one for each system.  We first want to set up the switch for System A, so locate the switch that has the Primary site code.

For this step you will need:

• Both of the Network Switches.
• 2x Ethernet cables.
• Dual System Hardware Kit (ZL-03-17)

Switch #1 (System A):

Once you find and unbox the switch, you will first want to install it into your server rack, or place it in the location that it will be in when your system is running.

Once it's in the server rack, you will need to run a cable from Port 1 on the primary gateway (GW-01) to Port 1 on Switch 1. This will provide the switch with a connection to the internet.

• XX-XX-GW-01, Port 1 -> XX-XX-SW-01, Port 1.

Next, plug in the power to the switch. The power cable may be located in another box in the shipment. When the switch powers on, it will be quite loud for the first few minutes as it starts, but it will quiet down significantly afterward.

The Switch will boot up and connect, download its configuration from the internet, and update firmware if it needs to. This process can take up to 15 minutes. The light indications will be the same as the GW.

While this switch is starting, you can pull out switch two and set it up.

Switch #2 (System B):

Before installing this Switch, you will need to re-label the Switch so that it matches the naming scheme for your "System B". See [Dual System Overview] for details.

Locate the "Dual System Hardware Kit (ZL-03-17)" and find the label with the name "XX-XX-SW-02" where XX-XX is your "Primary" site code.

• Remove the label that is currently on the switch.
• Affix the new label to the switch.

As before, you will need to install the switch into the server rack or other location where you are keeping your network equipment, in this case for System B.

Once installed, you will need to run an Ethernet cable from Port 2 on the primary gateway (GW-01) to Port 9 on Switch 2.

• XX-XX-GW-01, Port 2 -> XX-XX-SW-02, Port 9.

This is the "Backup" link for Switch 2, we will install the Primary link with the next Gateway.

As before, plug in the power for the Switch, and let it go through its boot up process. While you're waiting, we can move on to setting up GW-02.

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Install Gateway #2

Next we need to install the secondary gateway (GW). This gateway serves as a backup to the primary, allowing for it to fail without any downtime for the system.

For this step you will need:

• The second Gateway.
• 3x Ethernet cables.

You will need to re-label the second gateway to GW-02, so that it matches the naming scheme for "System B". See [Dual System Overview] for details.

Locate the "Dual System Hardware Kit (ZL-03-17)" and find the label with the name "XX-XX-GW-02" where XX-XX is your "Primary" site code.

• Remove the label that is currently on the GW.
• Affix the new label to the GW.

GW-02 will also need to be connected to your ISP's router / Gateway. To do this, connect one end of the Ethernet cable into the "Internet" port of GW-02, and then connect the other end into the next free port on your ISP router/gateway.

• XX-XX-GW-02, Internet Port -> ISP router/gateway, next free Port.

Next you will need to connect this GW to Switch 1. Connect an Ethernet cable into Port 1 on the GW, and connect the other end to Port 9 on Switch 1.

• XX-XX-GW-02, Port 1 -> XX-XX-SW-01, Port 9.

Finally, you will need to run a cable from this GW to Switch 2. Connect an Ethernet cable into Port 2 on GW-02, and connect the other end into SW-02 Port 1.

• XX-XX-GW-02, Port 2 -> XX-XX-SW-02, Port 1.

Now we can power on the Switch. Locate and install the power cable into the switch and wait for it to power on. The process is the same as the previous GW.

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Install your Wireless Access Points

For this step you will need:

• 8x Wireless Access Points
• 8x Ethernet Cables
• Labels from the Dual System Hardware Kit (ZL-03-17)

Next we need to install the Access Points (AP) for the site that allow for all the headsets to communicate with the rest of the system.

System A:

There are 4 AP's per System, so we will start with System A. Locate the Access Points with the Labels that correspond to your "Primary" Site code.

These AP's need to be plugged into Ports 21, 22, 23 and 24 on Switch 1.

• AP-01 -> XX-XX-SW-01, Port 21
• AP-02 -> XX-XX-SW-01, Port 22
• AP-03 -> XX-XX-SW-01, Port 23
• AP-04 -> XX-XX-SW-01, Port 24

System B:

Next we need to re-label the Access Points for System B. They will currently be labelled with the "Secondary" site code 01 -> 04, and we need to label them with the "Primary" site code with the numbers 05 -> 08.

You will need to remove the current labels and replace them with the labels from the Dual System Hardware Kit.

• AP-01 -> XX-XX-AP-05
• AP-02 -> XX-XX-AP-06
• AP-03 -> XX-XX-AP-07
• AP-04 -> XX-XX-AP-08

Once they are re-labelled with the correct "Primary" site code and numbers, we can now plug them into the network. This second set of 4 Access Points need to be plugged into Switch 2, Ports 21 -> 24.

• AP-05 -> XX-XX-SW-02, Port 21
• AP-06 -> XX-XX-SW-02, Port 22
• AP-07 -> XX-XX-SW-02, Port 23
• AP-08 -> XX-XX-SW-02, Port 24

Once all the access points are plugged in, they will cycle through the colours similarly to the GW and switches, however they have 2 colour states that the others do not:

• Solid Green: Access point is on and ready to accept connections
• Solid Blue: Access point has at least 1 device connected.

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Install Cameras

Lastly, we need to install the Cameras for the player takeaway video. You will have a set of two cameras per gamespace (a total of 4 cameras) that will need to be installed and later configured.

Most of the documentation below can be followed to the letter, however, as you have 2 systems, there are a few extra things that should be noted:

1. Each pair of cameras should be plugged into their respective networks.
   • The two cameras for System A should be plugged into Switch 1, Port 19 + Port 20
   • The two cameras for System B should be plugged into Switch 2, Port 19 + Port 20
2. Camera Configuration after physical setup will require a Game Master (GM) machine set up on each system.
   • You will need to wait until after we have set up the Game Master machines.
   • You will need 1 GM per system for configuration.

Follow the install instructions for the cameras in this documentation:

[Player takeaway camera installation]

Once the cameras have been physically connected you can move on to setting up the Computers for both systems, which is the next step in the [Dual System site setup]

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Dual System