Chapter 23 AAA
GS3700/XGS3700 Series User’s Guide
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23.1.2 RADIUS and TACACS+
RADIUS and TACACS+ are security protocols used to authenticate users by means of an external
server instead of (or in addition to) an internal device user database that is limited to the memory
capacity of the device. In essence, RADIUS and TACACS+ authentication both allow you to validate
an unlimited number of users from a central location.
The following table describes some key differences between RADIUS and TACACS+.
23.2 AAA Screens
The AAA screens allow you to enable authentication, authorization, accounting or all of them on the
Switch. First, configure your authentication and accounting server settings (RADIUS, TACACS+ or
both) and then set up the authentication priority, activate authorization and configure accounting
settings.
Click Advanced Application > AAA in the navigation panel to display the screen as shown.
Figure 130
Advanced Application > AAA
23.2.1 RADIUS Server Setup
Use this screen to configure your RADIUS server settings. See
for more
information on RADIUS servers and
for RADIUS attributes utilized by the
authentication and accounting features on the Switch. Click on the RADIUS Server Setup link in
the AAA screen to view the screen as shown.
Table 96
RADIUS vs TACACS+
RADIUS
TACACS+
Transport Protocol
UDP (User Datagram Protocol)
TCP (Transmission Control Protocol)
Encryption
Encrypts the password sent for
authentication.
All communication between the client (the
Switch) and the TACACS server is encrypted.