ALFA NETWORK 3668 802.11n long range USB adapter User Manual

ALFA NETWORK Inc. 802.11n long range USB adapter

user manual

               User Guide   AWUS036NHA   150Mbps Wireless High Gain USB Adapter
   FCC STATEMENT    This equipment has been tested and found to comply with the limits for a Class B digital device, pursuant  to  part  15  of  the  FCC  Rules.  These  limits  are  designed  to  provide  reasonable protection against harmful interference in a residential installation. This equipment generates, uses and can radiate radio frequency energy and, if not installed and used in accordance with the instructions, may cause harmful interference to radio communications. However, there is no guarantee  that  interference  will  not  occur  in  a  particular  installation.  If  this  equipment  does cause harmful interference to radio or television reception, which can be determined by turning the equipment off and on, the user is encouraged to try to correct the interference by one or more of the following measures: • Reorient or relocate the receiving antenna.  • Increase the separation between the equipment and receiver.  • Connect  the  equipment  into  an  outlet  on  a  circuit  different  from  that  to  which  the receiver is connected. • Consult the dealer or an experienced radio/ TV technician for help.  This device complies with part 15 of the FCC Rules. Operation is subject to the following two conditions:  1)  This device may not cause harmful interference.  2)  This device must accept any interference received, including interference that may cause undesired operation.  Any changes or modifications not expressly approved by the party responsible for compliance could void the user‟s authority to operate the equipment   󰜁  &ZĂĚŝĂƚŝŽŶdžƉŽƐƵƌĞ^ƚĂƚĞŵĞŶƚ͗ dŚŝƐĞƋƵŝƉŵĞŶƚĐŽŵƉůŝĞƐǁŝƚŚ&ƌĂĚŝĂƚŝŽŶĞdžƉŽƐƵƌĞůŝŵŝƚƐƐĞƚĨŽƌƚŚĨŽƌĂŶƵŶĐŽŶƚƌŽůůĞĚĞŶǀŝƌŽŶŵĞŶƚ͘dŚŝƐĞƋƵŝƉŵĞŶƚƐŚŽƵůĚďĞŝŶƐƚĂůůĞĚĂŶĚŽƉĞƌĂƚĞĚǁŝƚŚŵŝŶŝŵƵŵĚŝƐƚĂŶĐĞϮϬĐŵďĞƚǁĞĞŶƚŚĞƌĂĚŝĂƚŽƌΘLJŽƵƌďŽĚLJ͘
    CE Mark Warning      This is a class B product. In a domestic environment, this product may cause radio interference, in which case the user may be required to take adequate measures.  National restrictions  This  device  is  intended  for  home  and  office  use  in  all  EU  countries  (and  other  countries following the EU directive 1999/5/EC) without any limitation except for the countries mentioned below:  Country Restriction Reason/remark   Bulgaria   None  General authorization required for outdoor use and public service    France  Outdoor  use  limited  to  10 mW  e.i.r.p.  within  the  band 2454-2483.5 MHz  Military  Radiolocation  use.  Refarming  of  the  2.4  GHz band has been ongoing in recent years to allow current relaxed regulation. Full implementation planned 2012   Italy   None  If used outside of own premises, general authorization is required   Luxembourg   None  General authorization required for network and service supply(not for spectrum)   Norway   Implemented  This subsection does not apply for the geographical area within a radius of 20 km from the centre of Ny-Ålesund  Russian Federation  None  Only for indoor applications   Note: Please don‟t use the product outdoors in France.
      CONTENT Package Contents ....................................................................................................................... 1  Chapter 1. Introduction ................................................................................................................ 2 1.1 Overview of the product .......................................................................................... 2 1.2 Features .................................................................................................................... 2 1.3 LED Status ................................................................................................................ 3  Chapter 2. Installation Guide ...................................................................................................... 4 2.1 Hardware Installation ............................................................................................... 4 2.2 Software Installation ................................................................................................ 4 2.2.1   Overview ....................................................................................................... 4 2.2.2   Software Installation for Windows XP ...................................................... 4  Chapter 3. Configuration for Windows XP ................................................................................ 9 3.1 Current Status .......................................................................................................... 9 3.2 Profile Management .............................................................................................. 11 3.2.1   Add or Modify a Configuration Profile ..................................................... 11 3.2.2   Remove a profile ........................................................................................ 15 3.2.3   Switch another Profile ............................................................................... 16 3.2.4   Export a Profile ........................................................................................... 16 3.2.5   Import a Profile ........................................................................................... 16 3.2.6   Scan Available Networks .......................................................................... 17 3.2.7   Auto Profile Selection Management ....................................................... 17 3.3 Diagnostics ............................................................................................................. 18 3.3.1   Check Driver Information .......................................................................... 19 3.3.2   Check Receive and Transmit Statistical Information ........................... 20  Appendix A: Specifications ...................................................................................................... 21  Appendix B: Glossary ............................................................................................................... 22
1    Package Contents   The following contents should be found in your box:    One AWUS036NHA 150Mbps Wireless High Gain USB Adapter    One USB extension cable    One Installation CD for AWUS036NHA, including:  • Atheros Wireless Client Utility and Drivers  • User Guide  • Other Helpful Information   ) Note:  Make sure that the package contains the above items. If any of the listed items are damaged or missing, please contact with your distributor.  Conventions:   The „Adapter‟ mentioned in this user guide stands for  AWUS036NHA 150Mbps Wireless High  Gain USB Adapter without any explanations.
2     Chapter 1. Introduction   Thank  you  for  choosing  AWUS036NHA  150Mbps  Wireless  High  Gain  USB Adapter.   1.1  Overview of the product   The adapter is designed to provide a high-speed and unrivaled wireless performance for your notebook and PC. With a faster wireless connection, you can get a better Internet experience, such as downloading, gaming, video streaming and so on.  The AWUS036NHA‟s auto-sensing capability allows high packet transfer rate of up to 150Mbps for  maximum  throughput. It  has  good capability on  anti-jamming;  it can  also  interoperate with other wireless (802.11b/g) products. The adapter supports WEP, WPA and WPA2 encryption to prevent outside intrusion and protect your personal information from being exposed.  The Quick Setup Wizard guides you step-by-step through the installation process; the Atheros Wireless Client Utility helps you create a wireless connection immediately.  With unmatched wireless performance, reception, and security protection, the AWUS036NHA is the best choice for easily adding or upgrading wireless connectivity.  1.2  Features     IEEE 802.11n, IEEE802.11g, IEEE802.11b standards    Supports  WPA/WPA2  data  security,  IEEE802.1x  authentication,  TKIP/AES  encryption, WEP encryption    Make use of IEEE 802.11n wireless technology to provide a wireless data rate of up to 150Mbps    supports automatically adjust to lower speeds due to distance or other operating limitations    Provides USB interface    Supports Ad-Hoc and Infrastructure modes    Good capability on anti-jamming    Supports roaming between access points when configured in Infrastructure mode    Ease to configure and provides monitoring information    Supports Windows 2000, XP, Vista, and Windows 7
3   1.3  LED Status   LED Indications  Status  Working Status  Status Green   Flashing Alternately  The   adapter   is   trying   to   scan   a   networking connection.  Activity Green  Status Green   Intermittently  The   adapter   is   already   connected   but   is   not transmitting or receiving data.  Activity Green  Status Green   Flashing   The adapter is transmitting or receiving data.  Activity Green
4   Chapter 2. Installation Guide   2.1  Hardware Installation   There are two ways to install the Adapter:  1.   Plug the Adapter directly to the USB port on your computer.  2.   Connect the Adapter and your computer through the USB cable attached in package. The LED will light up when the Adapter is installed successfully and the PC is on.  2.2  Software Installation   2.2.1  Overview  The Adapter‟s Setup Wizard will guide you through the Installation procedure for Windows XP. The Setup Wizard will install the Atheros Wireless Client Utility (ACU) and drivers.  When you install the hardware prior to before installing the software, the system will prompt “Found  New  Hardware  Wizard”,  click  Cancel,  and  run  the  Setup  Wizard  program  on  the CD-ROM.  The Setup steps for Windows 2000 and XP are similar with each other. This user guide takes Windows XP for example.  2.2.2  Software Installation for Windows XP  1.  Insert  the  Resource  CD  into  your  CD-ROM  drive,  and  the  Figure  2-1  will  appear.  To continue, select the AWUS036NHA.There will be a menu including: Windows (Driver & Utility), and User Guide.    Figure 2-1  2.    Click  AWUS036NHA  to  load  the  following  screen  and  select  your  language.  Click  Next  to continue.
5     Figure 2-2  3.  Soon, Figure 2-3 will display after a moment. Click Next to continue.    Figure 2-3   4.  After  License  Agreement,  you  should  choose  a  Setup  type.  It is  recommended  that you  select  Install Client Utilities and Driver. Select Install Driver Only to install driver only,  select  Make  Driver  Installation  Diskette(s)  to  make  the  diskette(s)  as  the installation driver (shown in Figure 2-4). Click Next to continue.
6     Figure 2-4  5.  Click Browse to change the destination location for the software, then click Next  in the screen below (shown in Figure 2-5).    Figure 2-5  6.  After that, select the program folder, you should create a new folder name or select one from the Existing Folders list. It is recommended that you keep the default setting. Click Next to continue the installation.
7     Figure 2-6  7.  Choose configuration tool, if you are not sure, please leave it default. Then click Next to continue.    Figure 2-7  8.  Click OK to continue the Installation. Wait a while for the setup as shown in Figure 2-8.
8           Figure 2-8   9.  After all the steps above, you will see the screen below, click Finish to reboot the system.    Figure 2-10  Now, carefully insert the device into the USB port of your computer. Windows will automatically detect the device and display the icon  and  below in the taskbar.
9           Chapter 3. Configuration for Windows XP   Alfa  AWUS036NHA  can  be  configured  by  Atheros  Wireless  Client  Utility  (ACU)  in Windows  XP  &  2000.  This  chapter  describes  how  to  configure  your  Adapter  for  wireless connectivity on your Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN) and use the data security encryption features.  The configuration of the adapter in Windows XP is similar with that of Windows 2000. This User  Guide takes Windows XP for example.   After  Installing  the  Adapter,  the  Adapter‟s  tray  icon    will  appear  in  your  system  tray.  It appears at the bottom of the screen, and shows the signal strength using color and the received signal strength indication (RSSI).    If the icon is gray, there is no connection.    If the icon is red, there is poor signal strength and the RSSI is less than 5dB.    If the icon is yellow, there is poor signal strength and the RSSI is between 5dB and 10dB.    If the icon is green, there is good signal strength and the RSSI is between 10dB and 20dB.    If the icon is green, there is excellent signal strength and the RSSI is more than 20dB.   Double-click the icon and the ACU will run. You can also run the utility by clicking the Start→ All  Programs→Atheros→ Atheros  Wireless  Client  Utility.  The  ACU  provides  some integrated and easy tools to:    Display current status information    Edit and add configuration profiles    Display current diagnostics information  The section below introduces these above capabilities.   3.1  Current Status   The Current Status tab contains general information about the program and its operations. The  Current Status tab needn‟t any configurations.
10     Figure 3-1 The following table describes the items found on the Current Status screen.   Profile  Name  -  This  shows  the  name  of  current  selected  configuration  profile.  The configuration of Profile name will be described on the General tab of Profile Management.   Link Status - This shows whether the station is associated to the wireless network.   Wireless Mode - Here displays the wireless mode.   Network Type - The type of network and the station currently connected are shown here.  The options include:  • Infrastructure (access point)  • Ad Hoc   ) Note: You  can  configure  the  network  type  and  wireless  mode  on  the  Advanced  tab  of  Profile Management.   IP Address - This displays the computer‟s IP address.   Control Channel - This shows the currently connected channel.   Data Encryption - Here displays the encryption type the driver is using. You can configure it on the Security tab of Profile Management.   Server Based Authentication - This shows whether the server based authentication is used.   Signal Strength - This shows the strength of the signal.   Click Advanced on the screen above, you can see advanced information about the program and its operations.
11   3.2  Profile Management  Click the  Profile Management tab  of the  ACU and the  next screen  will appear  (shown in Figure 3-2). The Profile Management screen provides tools to:    Add a new profile    Modify a profile    Remove a profile    Activate a Profile    Import a Profile    Export a Profile    Scan Available Networks    Order profiles    Figure 3-2  3.2.1  Add or Modify a Configuration Profile  To add a  new configuration  profile, click  New  on the  Profile Management tab.  To modify a configuration profile, select the configuration profile from the Profile list and click Modify. Then you will see the Management dialog box (shown in Figure 3-3).  1.  Edit the General tab   Profile Name - Please enter the Profile name which identifies the configuration profile. This name must be unique. Note that the profile names are not case-sensitive.   Client  Name  -  Please  enter  the  Profile  name  which  identifies  the  client machine.
12      Network Names (SSIDs) - Please enter the IEEE 802.11 wireless network name. This field has a maximum limit of 32 characters.    Figure 3-3  2.  Edit the Security tab  Select the Security tab in the screen above, and then you can edit the fields to configure the profile. To define the security mode, select the radio button of the desired security mode as follows.    Figure 3-4
13        WPA/WPA2: Wi-Fi Protected Access   WPA/WPA2 Passphrase: Wi-Fi Protected Access Passphrase   802.1x: Enables 802.1x security.   Pre-Shared Key (Static WEP): Enables the use of shared keys that are defined on both the access point and the station. To define shared encryption keys, choose the Shared Key radio button and click Configure to fill in the Define Shared Keys window (shown in Figure3-5).   None: No security (not recommended).   ) Note:  If the access point which the Adapter is associated has WEP set and the client has WEP enabled, make  sure  that Allow  Association  to  Mixed  Cells  is  checked  on the  Security  tab  to  allow association.   To   complete   WEP   encryption   configuration,   you   must   select   the   802.11 Authentication Mode as appropriate on the Advanced tab of this Profile Management dialog. To configure the Encryption Keys under the Pre-Shared keys (Static WEP) Security mode:                      Figure 3-5   ) Note:  Select  different  Security  Options,  the  configurations  are  different;  you  can  select  the appropriate security option and configure the exact key as your need.  3.  Edit the Advanced tab  This screen below allows you to make advanced configuration for the profile.
14       Figure 3-6   Power Save Mode - Please select the power save mode in the drop-down list.  • Maximum  -  Selects  maximum  mode  to  let  the  access  point  buffer  incoming messages for the Adapter. The Adapter will detect the access point if any messages are waiting periodically.  • Normal  -  Normal  mode  uses  maximum  when  retrieving  a  large  number  of packets, then switches back to power save mode after retrieving the packets.  • Off  -  Turns  power  saving  off,  thus  powering  up  the  Wireless  USB  Adapter continuously for a short message response time.   Network Type: There are basically two modes of networking:  • Infrastructure - All wireless clients will connect to an access point or wireless router.  • Ad-Hoc  -  Directly  connecting  to  another  computer,  for  peer-to-peer communication, using wireless network adapters on each computer, such as two or more AWUS036NHA wireless adapters.  ) Note:  1) An  Infrastructure  network  contains  an  Access  Point  or wireless  router.  All  the  wireless devices or clients will connect to the wireless router or access point.  2) An Ad-Hoc network contains only clients, such as laptops with wireless desktop adapters. All the adapters must be in Ad-Hoc mode to communicate.   Wireless Mode: Specifies 2.4 GHz 150 Mbps, 2.4 GHz 54 Mbps or 2.4 GHz 11 Mbps operation in an access point network. The Wireless adapter must match the wireless mode
15     of the access point with which it associates.   Wireless  Mode  when  Starting  an Ad  Hoc  Network:  Specifies  2.4  GHz  54/11 Mbps  to  start  an  Ad  Hoc  network  if no  matching  network  name  is  found  after scanning all available modes. This mode also allows the selection of the channel that the Wireless Adapter uses. The channels available depend on the regulatory domain. If the adapter finds no other ad hoc adapters, the channel that the adapter starts the ad hoc  network  with  will  be  selected  automatically.  The  Adapter  must  match  the wireless mode and channel of the clients it associates.   802.11 Authentication Mode: Select which mode the Adapter uses to authenticate to an access point:  • Auto  -  Automatic  causes  the  adapter  to  attempt  authentication  using  shared, but switches it to open authentication if shared fails.  • Open  -  Open System enables an adapter to attempt authentication regardless of  its WEP settings. It will only associate with the access point if the WEP keys on both the adapter and the access point match.  • Shared - Shared-key only allows the adapter to associate with access points that have the same WEP key.  For infrastructure (access point) networks, click Preferred APs… to specify four access points at most  to the  client adapter  that attempts to be  associated to  the  access points. The four access points have different priorities; the frontal has the higher priority.    Figure 3-7   3.2.2  Remove a profile  1. Go to the Profile Management tab (shown in Figure 3-2).  2.  Select the profile name in the Profiles List.  3.  Click Remove.
16   ) Note:   The profile being used can‟t be removed.  3.2.3   Switch another Profile  1. Go to the Profile Management screen (shown in Figure 3-2).  2.  Select the profile name required in the Profiles List.  3.  Click Activate.  3.2.4  Export a Profile  1.  From the Profile Management screen (shown in Figure 3-2), highlight the profile to export.  2.  Click Export…, the Export Profile window will then appear below.  3.  Browse the directory to export the profile to.  4.  Click Save. The profile should then be exported to the specified location.     Figure 3-8  3.2.5  Import a Profile  1.  From  the  Profile  Management  screen  (shown  in  Figure  3-2),  click  Import….  Then  the Import Profile will appear below.  2.  Browse to the directory where the profile is located.  3.  Highlight the profile name.  4.  Click Open, the imported profile will then appear in the Profiles List.
17     Figure 3-9  3.2.6  Scan Available Networks  1.  Click  Scan  on  the  Profile  Management  screen  (shown  in  Figure  3-2),  the  Available Infrastructure and Ad Hoc Networks window will appear below.  2.  Click Refresh to refresh the list at any time.  3.  Highlight  a  network  name  and  click  Activate  to  connect  to an  available  network.  If  no configuration profile exists for that network, the Profile Management window will open the General tab screen. Fill in the Profile name and click OK to create the configuration profile for that network.    Figure 3-10  3.2.7  Auto Profile Selection Management  The auto selection feature allows the adapter to automatically select a profile from the list of profiles  and use it to  connect to  the  network.  To  add  a  new  profile  into  the  Auto  Selected Profiles list, please follow these steps.   1. On the Profile Management screen (shown in Figure 3-2), click Order Profiles….  2.  The Auto Profiles Selection management window will appear (shown in Figure 3-11) with a list of all created profiles in the Available Profiles.
18      Figure 3-11  3.  Highlight the profiles to add to auto profile selection, and click Add. The profile will appear in the Auto Selected Profiles box.  4.  Highlight a profile in the Auto Selected Profiles box.  5.  Click Move Up or Move Down as appropriate.   ) Note:  The first profile in the Auto Selected Profiles box has highest priority, while the last profile has the lowest priority.  6.  Click OK.  7.  Check  the  Auto  Select  Profiles  checkbox  on  the  Profile  Management  tab (shown  in Figure 3-2).   ) Note:  When  auto  profile  selection  is  enabled  by  checking  Auto  Select  Profiles  on  the  Profile Management  tab,  the  client  adapter  will  scan  for  an  available  network.  The  profile  with  the highest priority and the same SSID as one of the found networks will be used to connect to the network.  If  the  connection  fails,  the  client  adapter  will  try the  next  highest  priority  profile  that matches the SSID until an available network is found.   3.3  Diagnostics   The  Diagnostics  tab of  the  Atheros Wireless  Client Utility  (ACU)  provides  buttons  used  to retrieve  receiving  and  transmitting  statistics.  The  Diagnostics  tab does not  require  any configuration.  The  Diagnostics  tab  lists  the  following  receiving  and  transmitting  diagnostics  for  frames
19   received or transmitted by the wireless network adapter:    Multicast frames transmitted and received    Broadcast frames transmitted and received   Unicast frames transmitted and received    Total bytes transmitted and received    Figure 3-12  3.3.1  Check Driver Information  Click the Adapter Information button in the screen above, you will see the adapter information, including  general  information  about  the  wireless  network  adapter  and  the  Network  Driver Interface Specification (NDIS) driver. Access the adapter information from the Diagnostics tab.    Card Name - The name of the wireless network adapter.    MAC Address - The MAC address of the wireless network adapter.   Driver - The driver name and path of the wireless network adapter driver.   Driver Version - The version of the wireless network adapter driver.   Driver Date - The creation date of the wireless network adapter driver.
20      Client Name - The name of the client computer.  3.3.2  Check Receive and Transmit Statistical Information  The  Advanced  Statistics  show  receiving  and  transmitting  statistical  information  about  the following receiving and  transmitting diagnostics for  frames received by or transmitted  to the wireless network adapter.    Figure 3-13
21    Appendix A: Specifications   Normal  Interface  USB 2.0 Interface  Standards  IEEE802.11n, IEEE802.11g; IEEE802.11b;  Operating System  Windows 2000/ Windows XP/ Windows Vista/Windows 7   Radio Data Rate 11b:Up to11Mbps 11g:Up to 54Mbps 11n:Up to 150Mbps    Modulation  11b:CCK,QPSK,BPSK;  11n/11g:OFDM;  Media Access Protocol  CSMA/CA with ACK  Data Security  WPA/WPA2; 64/128-bit WEP; TKIP/AES  Frequency  2.412 ~ 2.462GHz  Spread Spectrum  Direct Sequence Spread Spectrum (DSSS)  Safety & Emissions  FCC, CE     Environmental and Physical  Operating Temp.  0℃~55℃ (32℉~104℉)  Storage Temp.  -40℃– 70℃ (-40℉~158℉)  Working Humidity  10% - 90% RH, Non-condensing  Storage Humidity  5% - 90% RH, Non-condensing
22   Appendix B: Glossary   802.11b - The 802.11b standard specifies a wireless product networking at 11 Mbps using direct-sequence spread-spectrum (DSSS) technology and operating in the unlicensed radio spectrum at 2.4GHz, and WEP encryption for security. 802.11b networks are also referred to as Wi-Fi networks.   802.11g   -   specification   for   wireless   networking   at   54   Mbps   using   direct-sequence spread-spectrum  (DSSS)  technology,  using  OFDM  modulation  and  operating  in  the unlicensed radio spectrum at 2.4GHz, and backward compatibility with IEEE 802.11b devices, and WEP encryption for security.   802.11n - 802.11n builds upon previous 802.11 standards by adding MIMO (multiple-input multiple-output). MIMO uses multiple transmitter and 3receiver antennas to allow for increased data throughput via spatial multiplexing and increased range by exploiting the spatial diversity, perhaps through coding schemes like Alamouti coding. The Enhanced Wireless Consortium (EWC)  was formed to help accelerate the IEEE 802.11n development process and promote a technology specification for interoperability of next-generation wireless local area networking (WLAN) products.   Ad-hoc Network - An ad-hoc network is a group of computers, each with a Wireless Adapter, connected as an independent 802.11 wireless LAN. Ad-hoc wireless computers operate on a peer-to-peer basis, communicating directly with each other without the use of an access point. Ad-hoc  mode  is  also  referred  to  as  an  Independent  Basic  Service  Set  (IBSS)  or  as peer-to-peer mode, and is useful at a departmental scale or SOHO operation.   DSSS - (Direct-Sequence Spread Spectrum) - DSSS generates a redundant bit pattern for all data transmitted. This bit pattern is called a chip (or chipping code). Even if one or more bits in the chip are damaged during transmission, statistical techniques embedded in the receiver can recover the original data without the need of retransmission. To an unintended receiver, DSSS appears as low power wideband noise and is rejected (ignored) by most narrowband receivers. However, to an intended receiver (i.e. another wireless LAN endpoint), the DSSS signal is recognized as the only valid signal, and interference is inherently rejected (ignored).   FHSS  -  (Frequency  Hopping Spread  Spectrum)  -  FHSS continuously changes  (hops)  the carrier  frequency  of  a  conventional  carrier  several  times  per  second  according  to  a pseudo-random  set  of  channels.  Because  a  fixed  frequency  is not  used,  and  only  the transmitter and receiver know the hop patterns, interception of FHSS is extremely difficult.   Infrastructure Network - An infrastructure network is a group of computers or other devices, each with a Wireless Adapter, connected as an 802.11 wireless LAN. In infrastructure mode, the  wireless  devices  communicate with  each  other and to  a  wired  network  by  first  going through an access point. An infrastructure wireless network connected to a wired network is referred to as a Basic Service Set (BSS). A set of two or more BSS in a single network is referred to as an Extended Service Set (ESS). Infrastructure mode is useful at a corporation scale, or when it is necessary to connect the wired and wireless networks.   Spread Spectrum - Spread Spectrum technology is a wideband radio frequency technique developed by the military for use in reliable, secure, mission-critical communications systems. It is designed to trade off bandwidth efficiency for reliability, integrity, and security. In other words, more bandwidth is consumed than in the case of narrowband transmission, but the
23   trade off produces a signal that is, in effect, louder and thus easier to detect, provided that the receiver knows the parameters of the spread-spectrum signal being broadcast. If a receiver is not  tuned  to  the  right  frequency,  a  spread-spectrum  signal  looks  like  background  noise. There are two main alternatives, Direct Sequence Spread Spectrum (DSSS) and Frequency
24     Hopping Spread Spectrum (FHSS).   SSID  -  A  Service Set Identification is a thirty-two character  (maximum) alphanumeric key identifying  a  wireless  local  area  network.  For  the  wireless  devices  in  a  network  to communicate with each other, all devices must be configured with the same SSID. This is typically the configuration parameter for a wireless PC card. It corresponds to the ESSID in the wireless Access Point and to the  wireless network  name. See  also Wireless Network Name and ESSID.   WEP - (Wired Equivalent Privacy) - A data privacy mechanism based on a 64-bit or 128-bit or 152-bit shared key algorithm, as described in the IEEE 802.11 standard. To gain access to a WEP network, you must know the key. The key is a string of characters that you create. When  using  WEP,  you  must  determine  the  level  of  encryption.  The  type  of  encryption determines the key length. 128-bit encryption requires a longer key than 64-bit encryption. Keys are defined by entering in a string in HEX (hexadecimal - using characters 0-9, A-F) or ASCII  (American  Standard  Code  for  Information  Interchange  –  alphanumeric  characters) format. ASCII format is provided so you can enter a string that is easier to remember. The ASCII string is converted to HEX for use over the network. Four keys can be defined so that you can change keys easily.   Wi-Fi - A trade name for the 802.11b wireless networking standard, given by the Wireless Ethernet  Compatibility  Alliance  (WECA,  see  http://www.wi-fi.net),  an  industry  standards group promoting interoperability among 802.11b devices.   WLAN  -  (Wireless  Local  Area  Network)  -  A  group  of  computers  and  associated  devices communicate with each other wirelessly, which network serving users are limited in a local area.   WPA  -  (Wi-Fi Protected  Access)  -  A  wireless  security  protocol use  TKIP  (Temporal Key Integrity Protocol) encryption, which can be used in conjunction with a RADIUS server.

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