Wireless networking and networking in general may seem to have a vocabulary all their own. Many terms exist in regard to wireless network devices and technologies that are often used interchangeably, sometimes correctly, sometimes not. Here is a list of the most commonly used terms a person may see when shopping for or researching wireless networking equipment:
802.11 is a set of standards for wireless local area network computer communication, developed by the IEEE. Although the terms 802.11 and Wi-Fi are often used interchangeably, the Wi-Fi Alliance uses the term “Wi-Fi” to define a slightly different set of overlapping standards. 802.11 a, b, g & n are amendments to the original 802.11 standard, each with it’s own operating capabilities and limitations. Some, though not all of these amended standards are compatible with the others
802.11a - 802.11a operates in the 5 GHz band with a maximum data rate of 54 Mbit/second. Since it operates in the 5GHz range, it has the advantage of not being interfered with by devices operating in the more populated 2.4GHz range (.11b and g). One disadvantage that comes with this is that 802.11a has a shorter range than the other wireless standards. This is because signals in the 5GHz range are absorbed more easily by walls and other solid objects.
802.11b - This standard was developed at roughly the same time as 802.11a and operates in the 2.4GHz specturm. Although it does boast significantly longer range than .11a, it only has a throughput of 11Mbit/sec. It was largely superseded in 2003 by 802.11g
802.11g - 802.11g, like .11b operates in at 2.4Ghz and is measurably faster. It is capable of a maximum throughput of 54Mbit/s and was designed so that .11g devices would be backwards compatible with .11b devices. The caveat to this is that when .11b device participate in the wireless network, all devices are restricted to .11b’s max throughput of 11Mbit/s.
802.11n - As of August 2008, 802.11n is still a draft standard and is not expected to be officially ratified until December 2009. However, anticipating consumer demand for higher-performance wireless networking equipment, many vendors have already begun producing .11n devices based on the draft standard. 802.11n implements a multiple radio technology, known as multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO), to produce throughputs of up to 600Mbit/s (when the standard is fully ratified - current devices only operate up to 300Mbit/s). 802.11n is hoped to be fully backwards compatible with previous standards, though that has not been fully realized in its current draft stage.
Access Point - A wireless access point is, quite simply, the point where the wired network becomes the wireless network. It is a device with an Ethernet input from the wired network and an 802.11 radio that transmits the signal to client computers. It is where the wireless network’s SSID, channel and security are configured. Wireless access points are often integrated with a router to form what is know as a wireless router.
Broadband Modem - This is the piece of equipment that will convert the signal from your internet provider (cable, DSL, etc.) into an Ethernet connection for your the computers in your home. This is usually provided by the provider and you may or may not have access to login to it for management purposes. Standard broadband modems have one connector for the incoming medium (for example, a coaxial connection for cable internet), and one Ethernet connector for a PC (or other network device). Some broadband modems come integrated with a router to provide more than one connection, and some will even have wireless capabilities.
SSID - This stands for Service Set Identifier. It is a string of characters (no spaces), chosen by the administrator (you), that identifies which network a particular wireless signal is being transmitted from - basically the ‘name’ of the wireless network. It is the means for client computers to determine which wireless network it will connect to. It is configured on the wireless router, along with channel information and a password or key that will be required of any user attempting to connect to the wireless network. It is sometimes used synonymously with ‘channel’, though a ‘channel’ is the actual radio frequency that the wireless network operates on, measured in megahertz (MHz).
Wardriving - Wardriving is the act of using a mobile wireless network client to find and connect to unsecured (or under-secured) wireless networks for internet access without the owner’s permission. A wireless network with no security configured is favorable, as it requires nothing more than parking with range of the signal and connecting with a laptop or other wifi device. Wardrivers will often mark the area so that it can be easily found at a later date. This is known as ‘warchalking’.
WEP - WEP stands for Wired Equivalent Privacy. It is a method for encrypting transmitted data. It is an option for basic security on most wireless networking equipment available today. Since its introduction in 1999, it has been determined to contain very weak encryption, and has been largely deprecated in favor of the much more secure WPA or WPA2. Despite its known vulnerabilities, it is still widely used today, as it is the default security mechanism on many wireless devices. WEP authentication in ’shared key’ mode requires a shared password or key to be entered on the client prior to any authentication or connection.
Wi-Fi - The term ‘wi-fi’ is often used interchangeably with all forms of wireless networking in general. In fact, it is a trade name, owned by the Wi-Fi Alliance for the technology that encompasses 802.11a, 802.11b, 802.11g and 802.11n. Wi-fi enabled devices can be used to connect to a larger network (as with a wireless client computer connecting to a wireless access point or router), or in ad-hoc or peer-to-peer mode where on computer establishes a wireless connection to another wi-fi enabled computer.
Wireless Bridge - A wireless bridge differs from a wireless router or access point in that, rather than establishing a wireless connection with a single client computer, it forms a connection to another wireless bridge. This other bridge is in turn connected via a wired Ethernet connection to a whole group of computers, printers etc. It is literally used to bridge a distance between two groups of network devices where a wired connection is not feasible.
Wireless Network Adapter - The wireless network adapter (sometimes know as a wireless NIC, for ‘network interface card’), is a peripheral of a computer that allows it to participate on a wireless LAN. Wireless adapters may be an integrated component (as with many laptops), or and add on piece of hardware. The add on variety may be an installed PCI card (in a desktop), a PCMCIA card, or a portable USB device. They all basically provide the same function and will usually come with software drivers to guide the user through the installation and connection process. It is important when you go to connect that you know the following about your wireless network:
- The SSID of the network
- The channel that the wireless signal is broadcast on
- Any passwords or keys that have been configured for security
Some of these (not including password or keys) may be auto detected by the wireless network adapter software.
Wireless Router - A wireless router is basically a wireless access point integrated with a router. What that router portion does is separate the wired and wireless networks, allowing more than one wired network to share the wireless connection. Where a wireless access point will only have a single wired Ethernet connection, a wireless router will have multiple connections, each of which can be configured to use a separate Ethernet address space. This enables firewall and management capabilities between each network (wired or wireless) to control who can communicate with whom and with what applications.
WLAN - Short for ‘wireless local area network’. The WLAN is comprised of the installed wireless network equipment and all computers participating on the wireless network. Each particular WLAN is denoted by its SSID.
WPA/WPA2 - WPA stands for ‘Wi-Fi Protected Access’. It is a security mechanism that was developed by the Wi-Fi Alliance in repsonse to the inherent weaknesses of WEP. It was intended as an intermediate measyre while WPA2 was under development. It includes many improvements over WEP, the most important being a new 128-bit encryption key and a mechanism called Temporal Key Integrity Protocol or TKIP which changes the key periodically to defeat the attacks which WEP was vulnerable to.
WPA2 introduced still more improvement, including tougher AES-based encryption algorithms and Counter Mode with Cipher Block Chaining Message Authentication Code (CCMP). Wireless data transmission protected by WPA2 is, at this time, considered to be fully secure.
To use WPA or WPA2 as a security measure, both the wireless router and wireless network adapter must be WPA/WPA2 compatible.
For more information on the devices and technologies discussed in this article, be sure to see the following links:
