Jim Geier

Most wireless applications make use of unicast packets for transporting information directly from one point to another. For example, an interaction with the Internet makes use of unicast packets when you browse the Web or synchronize email. There are instances where the transmission of information using multicast packets, however, makes more sense. A multicast packet […]

With wireless LANs, a service set identifier (SSID) is a label that distinguishes one wireless LAN from another. An SSID contains up to 32 alphanumeric characters, which are case sensitive. The SSID is configured in the access point. Typically, a company will set all access points to the same SSID to enable effective roaming. As […]

In the "old days," wireless LANs (WLANs) were primarily only supporting lower-end, wireless bar code applications in warehouses and retail stores. These types of applications don’t require much performance, and they often aren’t very complex. Everything seemed to work fairly well, except for an occasional coverage issue. Most of these systems employed radio cards and […]

Wi-Fi networks are becoming well-known and readily available in electronics and office supply stores. A couple of years ago you had to look hard to find wireless LAN products on store shelves. Now, there are full-length aisles full of wireless adapters and routers. With this growing popularity, lots of homes and small offices are deploying […]

In my previous tutorial, I discussed how to setup a home wireless LAN. Let’s take a closer look at the range and performance that you can expect from a single access point in a home environment. For this testing, I setup a typical home variety dual-band wireless LAN router in the center of the first […]

Model: CSD Engine and CSD Agent Pros: Integrated platform, flexible, easy to deploy. Cons: No encryption, rogue AP detection not fully integrated. Roving Planet’s Central Site Director (CSD) is a comprehensive wireless LAN management, control and integration platform fitting for just about any enterprise or public hotspot. The CSD brings together all wireless management functions […]

Most wireless LANs consist of a sea of access points installed within a building that provide overlapping radio cells. One issue with this approach, however, is that it involves careful access point positioning and assignment of radio channels. A site survey also becomes an essential step. Furthermore, the installation of access points requires a distribution […]

As I’ve been discussing lately, radio frequency (RF) interference causes lower throughput in wireless LANs (WLANs). It’s important that you learn as much as possible about what causes interference and what to do to minimize its impacts in order to maximize performance. Here we’ll focus on the interference generated by 2.4GHz cordless phones. Today, you […]

Radio frequency (RF) interference causes wireless clients and access points to hold off transmitting, which causes delay and lower throughput. This resulting decrease in performance can make browsing websites and downloading files sluggish. In cases where interfering signals are strong enough, the wireless clients may not be able to access the LAN at all for […]

The use of encryption and authentication mechanisms can certainly improve the security of a wireless LAN; however, smart hackers can still find vulnerabilities due to the way that networking protocols operate. A definite weakness is the common address resolution protocol (ARP) that all TCP/IP networks utilize. A hacker with the right tools can exploit ARP […]

A help desk provides first level support for users. It’s the first stop for users having difficulties with the network. Thus when a problem arises, a user should know how to reach the help desk. The mission of the help desk is to solve relatively simple problems that users may be having and act as […]

A company having a wireless LAN should establish a reengineering function that assesses needs for changes and defines corresponding solutions. Engineering of course is a critical task when initially designing a WLAN, but it’s also very important to have available on an ongoing basis. Engineering and maintenance plays together in a way that lengthens the […]