The port-based network access control is a method described in norm IEEE 802.1X to protect IEEE 802 networks from unauthorized access. The protocol controls the access on a port by authenticating and authorizing a terminal device that is connected to this port of the device.
The 802.1X Port Authentication function requires that you configure a RADIUS Server for authentication and authorization. The authentication and authorization are carried out by the authenticator, in this case the device. The device authenticates the supplicant (the querying device, e.g. a PC), which means that it permits the access to the services it provides (e.g. access to the network to which the device is connected), or else refuses it. In the process, the device accesses an external authentication server (RADIUS server), which checks the authentication data of the supplicant. The device exchanges the authentication data with the supplicant via the Extensible Authentication Protocol over LANs (EAPOL), and with the RADIUS server via the RADIUS protocol.