This notebook computer is connected to a wireless access point using a PC Card wireless card.

An example of a Wi-Fi network

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A wireless LAN (WLAN) is a wireless computer network that links two or more devices using wireless communication to form a local area network (LAN) within a limited area such as a home, school, computer laboratory, campus, or office building. This gives users the ability to move around within the area and remain connected to the network. Through a gateway, a WLAN can also provide a connection to the wider Internet.

Most modern WLANs are based on IEEE 802.11 standards and are marketed under the Wi-Fi brand name.

Wireless LANs have become popular for use in the home, due to their ease of installation and use. They are also popular in commercial properties that offer wireless access to their employees and customers.

History[edit]

Norman Abramson, a professor at the University of Hawaii, developed the world's first wireless computer communication network, ALOHAnet. The system became operational in 1971 and included seven computers deployed over four islands to communicate with the central computer on the Oahu island without using phone lines.^[1]

54 Mbit/s WLAN PCI Card (802.11g)

Wireless LAN hardware initially cost so much that it was only used as an alternative to cabled LAN in places where cabling was difficult or impossible. Early development included industry-specific solutions and proprietary protocols, but at the end of the 1990s these were replaced by standards, primarily the various versions of IEEE 802.11 (in products using the Wi-Fi brand name). Beginning in 1991, a European alternative known as HiperLAN/1 was pursued by the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI) with a first version approved in 1996. This was followed by a HiperLAN/2 functional specification with ATM influences^{[citation needed]} accomplished February 2000. Neither European standard achieved the commercial success of 802.11, although much of the work on HiperLAN/2 has survived in the physical specification (PHY) for IEEE 802.11a, which is nearly identical to the PHY of HiperLAN/2.

In 2009 802.11n was added to 802.11. It operates in both the 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz bands at a maximum data transfer rate of 600 Mbit/s. Most newer routers are able to utilise both wireless bands, known as dualband. This allows data communications to avoid the crowded 2.4 GHz band, which is also shared with Bluetooth devices and microwave ovens. The 5 GHz band is also wider than the 2.4 GHz band, with more channels, which permits a greater number of devices to share the space. Not all channels are available in all regions.

A HomeRF group formed in 1997 to promote a technology aimed for residential use, but it disbanded at the end of 2002.^[2]

Architecture[edit]

Stations[edit]

All components that can connect into a wireless medium in a network are referred to as stations (STA).All stations are equipped with wireless network interface controllers (WNICs).Wireless stations fall into two categories: wireless access points, and clients.Access points (APs), normally wireless routers, are base stations for the wireless network. Pari mutuel betting software mac. They transmit and receive radio frequencies for wireless enabled devices to communicate with.Wireless clients can be mobile devices such as laptops, personal digital assistants, IP phones and other smartphones, or non-portable devices such as desktop computers, printers, and workstations that are equipped with a wireless network interface.

Basic service set[edit]

The basic service set (BSS) is a set of all stations that can communicate with each other at PHY layer.Every BSS has an identification (ID) called the BSSID, which is the MAC address of the access point servicing the BSS.

There are two types of BSS: Independent BSS (also referred to as IBSS), and infrastructure BSS.An independent BSS (IBSS) is an ad hoc network that contains no access points, which means they cannot connect to any other basic service set.

Independent basic service set[edit]

An IBSS is a set of STAs configured in ad hoc (peer-to-peer)mode.

Extended service set[edit]

An extended service set (ESS) is a set of connected BSSs. Access points in an ESS are connected by a distribution system. Each ESS has an ID called the SSID which is a 32-byte (maximum) character string.

Distribution system[edit]

A distribution system (DS) connects access points in an extended service set.The concept of a DS can be used to increase network coverage through roaming between cells.

DS can be wired or wireless. Current wireless distribution systems are mostly based on WDS or MESH protocols, though other systems are in use.

Types of wireless LANs[edit]

The IEEE 802.11 has two basic modes of operation: infrastructure and ad hoc mode. In ad hoc mode, mobile units transmit directly peer-to-peer. In infrastructure mode, mobile units communicate through a wireless access point (WAP) that serves as a bridge to other networks (such as the Internet or a local area network).

Since wireless communication uses a more open medium for communication in comparison to wired LANs, the 802.11 designers also included encryption mechanisms: Wired Equivalent Privacy (WEP, now insecure), Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA, WPA2, WPA3), to secure wireless computer networks. Many access points will also offer Wi-Fi Protected Setup, a quick (but now insecure) method of joining a new device to an encrypted network.

Infrastructure[edit]

Most Wi-Fi networks are deployed in infrastructure mode. In infrastructure mode, wireless clients, such as laptops and smartphones, connect to the WAP to join the network. The WAP usually has a wired network connection and may have permanent wireless connections to other WAPs.

WAPs are usually fixed, and provide service to their client nodes within range. Some networks will have multiple WAPs, using the same SSID and security arrangement. In that case connecting to any WAP on that network joins the client to the network and the client software will try to choose the WAP that gives the best service, such as the WAP with the strongest signal.

Peer-to-peer[edit]

Peer-to-Peer or ad hoc wireless LAN

An ad hoc network (not the same as a WiFi Direct network^[3]) is a network where stations communicate only peer to peer (P2P). There is no base and no one gives permission to talk.This is accomplished using the Independent Basic Service Set (IBSS).

A WiFi Direct network is another type of network where stations communicate peer to peer.

In a Wi-Fi P2P group, the group owner operates as an access point and all other devices are clients. There are two main methods to establish a group owner in the Wi-Fi Direct group. In one approach, the user

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