Dell 2300 Wireless Broadband Router - Manual (Page 134)

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Wireless Networking Overview:
Dell™ TrueMobile™ 2300 Wireless Broadband Router User's
Guide
Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN)
Identifying a WLAN
Encryption
Automatic Rate Selection and Rate Scaling
Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN)
A Local Area Network (LAN) is a network in one location. Users at that location can share files, printers, and other services. In
a LAN, a networked computer that requests services is called a client. A Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN) is a type of LAN
that uses high frequency radio waves rather than wires to communicate and transmit data among the network clients and
devices. It is a flexible data communication system implemented as an extension to, or as an alternative for, a wired LAN.
In a WLAN, wireless adapters are installed in clients, also called wireless clients. The adapter allows the wireless client to
communicate with the WLAN without cables. Instead, wireless clients send and receive information through a path in the air
called a channel.
The standards for a WLAN are based on the IEEE 802.11b standard and proposed 802.11g standard. All Dell 802.11b/g-
compliant devices interoperate with other 802.11b/g -compliant wireless devices from other vendors. The WiFi certification logo
indicates that the wireless device has been tested by an independent organization.
A wireless client operates in either infrastructure mode or peer-to-peer mode.
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Identifying a WLAN
An ESSID and BSSID are both Service Set Identifiers (SSID) that identify and control the wireless client’s access to a given
WLAN. The SSID is sometimes referred to as the network name. The SSID indicates what WLAN you are referring to. In most
cases, the user interface displays the SSID.
When installing an access point or wireless adapter in a wireless client, the installation program asks you to enter the SSID.
Dell cannot provide you with this information, as it is specific to your network; although, you may choose to use the default
SSID, "wireless", for your Wireless Broadband Router. All wireless clients and access points in a WLAN must use the same
network name.
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Encryption
In a WLAN, wireless clients and access points send and receive information through the air. Without implementing security, it is
possible for an unauthorized person to intercept the information.
A common way of implementing security and protecting information is encryption. Encryption applies a set of instructions, called
an algorithm, to information. The instructions combine the plain or clear text of information with a sequence of hexadecimal