Documente Academic
Documente Profesional
Documente Cultură
Whats New in
Wireless
Networking
and 802.11?
1-800-COURSES
www.globalknowledge.com
Introduction
Wireless networking has been around for a while, but what do we really know about it? I will explain what
802.11 is, whats new within the wireless world, and examine some changes to 802.11.
What Is 802.11?
The IEEE uses the number convention to identify groupings of standards for different types of technologies. The
IEEE 802 family of standards deals with LANs and metropolitan area networks. 802.1 is for bridging; 802.3 for
Ethernet; 802.5 for Token Ring; 802.11 for WLAN; and 802.15 for Personal Area Networks (PAN, such as
Bluetooth) to mention a few.
WLANs have been around since mid to late 1990s, with the IEEE accepting the specifications and starting 802.11
in 1997. We tend to use the term Wi-Fi today for devices that are capable of supporting wireless networking. The
802.11 specifies an over-the-air interface between a wireless client and a base station, or wireless access point
(AP), which is referred to as an infrastructure implementation. The interface can also occur between two wireless
clients, which is referred to as an ad hoc network.
Of these two methods, the infrastructure method is the most common; ad hoc is seen as a security risk and
therefore is frowned upon, but it can be used for temporary exchange of data. These specifications list how
devices interact, the methods of transmission between devices, and the possible need of security. The
implementation of a WLAN can be as simple as a client device and one AP, which is then connected to a wired
network (typically a switch) to something much more complex to support tens of thousands of client devices with
many APs with multiple controllers to support configuration control and security. In todays enterprise, wireless is
typical and due to this, security with wireless is a big concern, which is beyond the scope of this paper.
Later, we will look at some examples of how wireless networks could be used.
802.11a
In 1999, 802.11a is added as an extension to 802.11 that applies to WLANs and provides up to 54 Mbps
in the 5 GHz band. 802.11a uses an orthogonal frequency division multiplexing encoding scheme rather
than FHSS or DSSS.
802.11n
In 2009, 802.11n builds upon previous 802.11 standards by adding multiple-input multiple-output
(MIMO). The additional transmitter and receiver antennas allow for increased data throughput through
spatial multiplexing and increased range by exploiting the spatial diversity through coding schemes like
Alamouti coding. The real speed would be 100 Mbit/s (even 250 Mbit/s in PHY level), and so up to four
to five times faster than 802.11g.
These specifications are now considered common place within the wireless world. Most
laptops/notebooks/tablets/phone have one or more of these specification supported.
802.11ac
In 2012, 802.11ac is added and builds upon previous 802.11 standards (particularly the 802.11n
standard) to deliver data rates of 433 Mbps per spatial stream, or 1.3 Gbps in a three-antenna (three
stream) design. The 802.11ac specification operates only in the 5 GHz frequency range and features
support for wider channels (80 and 160 MHz) and beam forming capabilities by default to help achieve
its higher wireless speeds.
802.11ad
802.11ad was started in 2009 by the Wireless Gigabit Alliance and was turned over to the IEEE in 2013,
which is a specification under development, allowing wireless networking to operate in the 60GHz
frequency band and offering much higher transfer rates than previous 802.11 specs, with a theoretical
maximum transfer rate of up to 7Gbps (Gigabits per second).
These newer specifications are yet to be supported natively in the client devices. You can purchase an 802.11ac
adapter and there are routers and access points available from some vendors. The 802.11ad is not yet supported
in any device that I know of since that specification is considered to still be in work. Once the IEEE gets the
specification to a more complete state, Im sure well start seeing product for it.
Home/residential
Hotspots
Enterprise
Public access
Home wireless networks tend to be the simplest infrastructure network type. There may be one or more devices
you want to support as clients (a laptop, tablet, and/or a smartphone) and the network device may be an all in
one wireless router (like Linksys, Netgear, or Datalink). This wireless router could be your AP, router to the
Internet, firewall, translating devices, and the one allocating IP addressing within your home (DHCP server). The
configuration of the network is typically using a graphical user interface (GUI) and is usually a limited set of
configurations, such as the Service Set Identifier (SSID), for the AP; security settings for the wireless router (acting
as your firewall); and some basic information for connecting to your Internet Service Provider (ISP). The
configuration of the client would be to simply point yourself to the SSID that you just configured and configure a
common set of security parameters that match what you set within your wireless router.
A hotspot is typically a public wireless network that is open (or has limited security) that allows for the clients to
access the Internet. Although, some consider the home wireless network a private hotspot, but personally, I look
at it a little differently. Devices that makeup a hotspot may be consumer-grade equipment or something more
substantial. The scale (or number of clients) that will be expected to be supported will dictate the design of the
hotspot and could resemble a large enterprise network design. What you find in restaurants, bars, coffee shops,
and airports are considered to be hotspots. Most of the hotspots today offer free access to the Internet, but you
may have to put up with ads or a slow connection to the Internet. Some will offer premium connections, but at a
fee. Typically you have to accept the rules to use the hotspot, before youre allowed to access the Internet. Some
are timed, so that you can only access for a specific amount of time before your connection is shutdown. You
Copyright 2014 Global Knowledge Training LLC. All rights reserved.
would either then have to go through the process of accessing the hotspot again or pay for additional time. The
conveniences of hotspots are very attractive and the business owners recognize the benefit of having that service
for their customers. If you need access to the Internet temporarily, you could go to a coffee shop and
attachand while youre there, you might as well have a cup of coffee or three and a few scones to go with that
coffee. A personal hotspot is a newer concept that is the ability to light up a small area for your own use,
connecting through a smartphone or personal hotspot device on its cellular data network, to access the Internet.
With 4G networks and their data speeds, this can be an attractive alternativeassuming youre getting a good
signal on the cellular network.
The enterprise wireless, other than small business, is typically substantial in design and scope of devices. The
network, both wired and wireless, would have rules as to who can attach, so authentication would need to be
implemented. Other security steps would be taken to protect the enterprise network. The devices used are far
more robust and capable of supporting many more clients than the consumer-grade devices. Usually, the devices
are dedicated to their functionmeaning, there would be APs that only translate from radio to Ethernet and
back, there would be separate routers, switches, and firewalls that are doing their jobs.
A lot of enterprises have rules about having unauthorized APs and have counter measures to reduce their use or
help find these rogue devices. In the larger implementation, a single AP may not be able to adequately light up
an area, so the use of multiple APs would be needed. The added complexity of having multiple APs means more
configurations of more devices and the management of those devices. This could also add complexity to the
clients, since each AP could have its own configuration and SSID. To help with this, larger implementations use
wireless controllers that manage the APs. The configuration of the AP is done through the controller or
controllers and the SSID is set through controller, so the client sees only on SSID even though there may be
hundreds of APs, which also helps in the security of the network. The controller-based solution has the traffic
from the client enter the AP, and then it is tunneled to the controller, which then passes the traffic to the rest of
the network. This allows the network administrators to control what type of traffic can enter the network at the
controller, rather than at each of the access points. A distributed security policy is harder to maintain than one
implemented at a single point or a limited number of points of access.
Public access, or how I choose to use the term here, is where a community lights up the area for access to the
Internet. There are townships and small communities that will implement wireless networking for the residents of
those communities. I know of several that where done in combination of upgrading the wireless network for
emergency services. The infrastructure was being upgraded anyway, so why not add some additional access
points for the benefit of those that live in those communities? Unfortunately, I dont live in one of those
communities, so we have to buy our own access to the Internet.
Conclusion
Wi-Fi and 802.11 are important and constantly evolving. The specification started in the 1990s, but will be around
for a while. Wireless networking makes life easier for the end user and a bit more complicated for those that
support the network. Its becoming more common place to have wireless access wherever we go. Hotspots
frequently pop up at your fast food, coffee, restaurants, and bars. When Im traveling, I expect to have Wi-Fi
available at the airport and now in the air. Cant wait to see what comes next!
Learn More
Learn more about how you can improve productivity, enhance efficiency, and sharpen your competitive edge
through training.
Enterprise Wi-Fi Administration (CWNA)
Wireless LAN Foundations
CUWN - Cisco Unified Wireless Networking v7.2
IUWNE - Implementing Cisco Unified Wireless Networking Essentials v2.0
Visit www.globalknowledge.com or call 1-800-COURSES (1-800-268-7737) to speak with a Global Knowledge
training advisor.