Chapter
4Network (WLAN)
Wireless Local Area
WLAN
• WLAN stands for Wireless Local Area Network.
• A wireless network that allows devices to connect and
communicate with each other without the need for
physical wired connections.
• WLANs are typically based on the IEEE 802.11
standards, commonly known as Wi-Fi.
• The 802.11 standards define the protocols and
specifications for wireless communication, including
frequency bands, data rates, security mechanisms,
and network management.
---- WLAN technology
WLANs typically use multiple 802.11 access points
connected by a wired network at backbone
Uses shared medium, all wireless devices have equal access
to the medium
Uses half duplex
WLAN reduces physical wires so it's a versatile way of
communication and minimize cost required.
WLAN also reduces the value of ownership.
It's easier to connect or remove workstation.
Wireless LAN standards
● Standards specify the RF spectrum used, data rates, how
the information is transmitted etc (slide 1)
● IEEE 802.11 standard governs the WLAN environment
● Thefour amendments of IEEE 802.11 standard that
describe
different characteristics for wireless communication are
●802.11a
●802.11b
●802.11g
802.11a
● Uses 5 GHz RF spectrum band
● Not compatible with 2.4 GHz spectrum, i.e. 802.11b/g/n
devices
● Maximum data rate 54mbps
● Relatively expensive to implement compared to other
technologies
● Increasingly difficult to find 802.11a compliant
equipment
● Has 12 to 23 clean channels depending on the
country
802.11b
● Operate on 2.4GHz to 2.4835GHz radio band
● Maximum data rate 11mbps.
● Range of approximately 46 m (150 ft) indoors/96 m (300
ft.) outdoors
● Have 3 clean channels
802.11g
● 2.4GHz technologies
● Maximum data-rate increase to 54 Mbps
● Same range as the 802.11b
● Backward compatible with 802.11b
● Have 3 clean channels
802.11n
● Uses multiple-input, multiple-output (MIMO) technology.
● MIMO is a wireless technology that uses multiple transmitters and
receivers to transfer more data at the same time.
● 2.4 GHz technologies (draft standard specifies support for 5 GHz)
● Extends the range and data throughput because it uses multiple
receiving & transmitting antenna
● Backward compatible with existing 802.11g and 802.11b equipment
(draft standard specifies support for 802.11a)
● Range it cover 250 m
● Maximum data rate 540mbps
Wireless LAN
Components
● all components within the WLAN adhere to the
standard, or are at least compatible with the
standard
● Components that must be considered in a WLAN
include:
●a wireless client or STA,
● an Access Point,
● a Wireless Bridge and
Wireless client
● Any host device that can participate in a wireless
network.
● Can either be stationary or mobile
● referred to as a STA, short for station
● Examples include: Desktops if equipped with the
proper wireless NIC and software, laptops, PDAs,
printers, projectors, storage devices and digital
cameras.
ACCESS
POINT
● Controls access between a wired and a wireless network
● Acts as a media converter accepting the Ethernet frames
from the wired network and converting them to 802.11
compliant frames before transmitting them on the
WLAN and vice versa
● Support wireless connections within a limited area,
known as a cell or Basic Service Set (BSS)
Wireless Bridge
● Used to connect two wired networks through a wireless link
● Allows long-range point-to-point connections between networks
● Using wireless bridge RF frequencies, networks 40km(25miles)
or more apart can be connected without the use of wires
● Bridge is very important to connect networks in uncomforted
area such as rivers.
Antennas
● Used on APs and Wireless bridges
● It is important to radiate and receive signals from and to the
device.
● Increases the output signal strength from a wireless device
● Receives wireless signals from other devices such as STAs
…Antennas
● Increase in signal strength from an antenna is known as
the gain
● Higher gains usually translate into increased
transmission distances.
● Types of antenna according to the way they radiate the
signal.
● Directional:concentrates the entire signal strength into
one direction and achieve great transmission distance.
● Used in wireless bridges
● Omni-directional: designed to emit signal equally in all
directions.
● Used in APs
WLANs and the
● SSID
SSID
is stands to Service set Identifier
● It is the name of the network for a particular area called cell
● SSID is used to make sure that the wireless components are
connected to the appropriate network
● SSID is a case sensitive, alpha-numeric string (32
characters)
● It is used to tell the wireless devices to which WLAN they
belong to and with which other devices they can
communicate
● All wireless devices in a WLAN must be configured with
the same SSID in order to communicate.
● Basic forms of WLAN installation
● Ad-hoc
●Infrastructure mode
Ad-hoc mode
● Is the simplest form of a wireless network
● Created by connecting two or more wireless clients together in a
peer-to-peer network
● Does not include AP
● All the clients are equal
● Good for small network
● Used to exchange files and information b/n devices without the
expense and complexity of purchasing and configuring an AP
● The area covered by this network is called IBSS (Independent
Basic Service Set )
INFRASTRUCTURE MODE
● Used in larger networks which require a single device that
controls communications in the wireless cell.
● Uses AP to control who can talk and when
● Individual STAs can not communicate directly with each
other.
● To communicate each device must obtain permission from
the AP
● The AP ensures that all STAs have equal access to the
medium
● The area covered by a single AP is known as BSS or
Cell
● BSS is the smallest building block of a WLAN
● To expand the coverage area, it is possible to connect
multiple BSSs through a Distribution System. This forms an
ESS(extended service set)
● BSSs must overlap by ~10% to allow movement b/n the
cells without loss of signal.
● This allows the client to connect to the second AP
before disconnecting from the first AP.
Wireless Channel
A way to control conversation b/n sender and
receiver in wireless network
Channels are created by dividing up the
available RF spectrum
Each channel is capable of carrying a different
conversation.
Multiple APs can function in close proximity to
one another as long as they use different
channels for communication
each wireless conversation use separate
channel.
Wireless technology uses CSMA/CA access method to ensure
that collisions do not occur
CSMA/CA creates a reservation on the channel for use by
a specific conversation.
While a reservation is in place, no other device may transmit
on the channel thus possible collisions are avoided.
Channel Reservation Process
Request To Send (RTS)
Clear To Send(CTS): it is a broadcast message
Data
ACK (Acknowledgement): broadcast message
CONFIGURING THE ACCESS POINT
● Once the choice of wireless standard, layout and channel
assignment have been made it is time to configure the AP.
● Most integrated routers offer both wired and wireless
connectivity and serve as the AP in the wireless
network.
● Basic configuration settings such as passwords, IP
addresses, and DHCP settings are the same whether the
device is being used to connect wired or wireless
hosts.
● Basic configuration tasks, such as changing the default
password, Network Name, should be conducted before the
AP is connected to a live network.
GUI of LINKSYS Access
Point
WIRELESS MODE
● Wireless Network Mode determines the type of technology
that must be supported.
● Most home AP devices can support various modes,
mainly 802.11B, 802.11G and 802.11N.
● Although these all use the 2.4 GHz range, each uses a
different technology to obtain its maximum throughput.
● The type of mode enabled on the AP depends on the
type of host connecting to it.
● If only one type of host connects to the AP device, set
the mode to support it.
● If multiple types of hosts will connect, select Mixed
mode.
Service Set Identifier(SSID)
● The SSID is used to identify the WLAN.
● All devices that wish to participate in the WLAN must use
the same SSID.
● To allow easy detection of the WLAN by clients, the SSID
is broadcast.
● It is possible to disable the broadcast feature of the SSID. If
the SSID is not broadcast; wireless clients will not be
connected , so it needs manually configured.
Wireless Channel
● Wireless channel specifies the channel over which
communication will occur. The choice of channel for an
AP must be made relative to the other wireless
networks around it.
● Adjacent BSSs must use non-overlapping channels in
order to optimize throughput.
● Most APs now offer a choice to manually configure the
channel or allow the AP to automatically locate the least
congested channel or locate the one that offers maximum
throughput.
