Netgear WG311 User Manual download pdf (Page 50)

Installation Guide for the NETGEAR 54 Mbps Wireless PCI Adapter WG311

B-2 Wireless Networking Basics

Ad-Hoc Mode (Peer-to-Peer Workgroup)

In an ad-hoc network, computers are brought together as needed; thus, there is no structure or fixed

points to the network - each node can generally communicate with any other node. There is no

Access Point involved in this configuration. This mode enables you to quickly set up a small

wireless workgroup and allows workgroup members to exchange data or share printers as

supported by Microsoft networking in the various Windows operating systems. Some vendors also

refer to ad-hoc networking as peer-to-peer group networking.

In this configuration, network packets are directly sent and received by the intended transmitting

and receiving stations. As long as the stations are within range of one another, this is the easiest

and least expensive way to set up a wireless network.

Network Name: Extended Service Set Identification (ESSID)

The Extended Service Set Identification (ESSID) is one of two types of Service Set Identification

(SSID). In an ad-hoc wireless network with no access points, the Basic Service Set Identification

(BSSID) is used. In an infrastructure wireless network that includes an access point, the ESSID is

used, but may still be referred to as SSID.

An SSID is a thirty-two character (maximum) alphanumeric key identifying the name of the

wireless local area network. Some vendors refer to the SSID as network name. For the wireless

devices in a network to communicate with each other, all devices must be configured with the

same SSID.

Authentication and WEP

The absence of a physical connection between nodes makes the wireless links vulnerable to

eavesdropping and information theft. To provide a certain level of security, the IEEE 802.11

standard has defined two types of authentication methods, Open System and Shared Key. With

Open System authentication, a wireless PC can join any network and receive any messages that are

not encrypted. With Shared Key authentication, only those PCs that possess the correct

authentication key can join the network. By default, IEEE 802.11 wireless devices operate in an

Open System network.

Wired Equivalent Privacy (WEP) data encryption is used when the wireless devices are configured

to operate in Shared Key authentication mode. There are two shared key methods implemented in

most commercially available products, 64-bit and 128-bit WEP data encryption.

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Netgear WG311 User Manual Page 50