Consultant

The basic advantages of wireless internet are the lack of cables and the freedom that the wireless communication itself offers.The wireless networks are a wonderful idea, appealing in many different respects. Of course, the first and foremost advantage is the lack of any cables, creating inconvenience for the users with the need for installation and their presence overall.

Indeed, the advantages of the wireless networks are many, but until recently there was uncertainty about it because of the expensiveness of the hardware. Luckily, with time there has been a decrease of the price of such popular and necessary technological components. Currently, the prices have reached a low range which allows the “wireless” to be a considerable option for a home network.

In order to start building your wireless network at your home, you will not only need two computers with already installed system Windows in them, but a few other devices as well.

1. Router (Access Point can also be used, but it is recommended that you use a router for a home network because of the ability to share internet and because of its better security).
2. Wireless network adapter for every computer, which you would have to connect to the router. (If you are including a laptop in the system it might already have a built-in wireless adapter so you wouldn’t have to connect it to the router).

Current wireless standards:

Currently there are a few standards, from which the most common and most utilized are 802.11b and 802.11g. The first one was ratified in 1999 and works on 2.4 GHz frequency with nominal speed of 11 Mbit/s. The better version of it, 802.11g, was certified for 54 MBit/s and 2.4 GHz frequency. 802.11g uses the method for transferring of information called OFDM, which allows for parallel transferring of data, divided into small block. The outdated standard 802.11a is hardly ever used today and works on a 5 GHz frequency and its speed can reach up to 54 Mbit/s.

Although for the moment the standards 802.11a/b/g offer favorable efficiency, the future would require the wireless networks to have higher admittance ability and a bigger range. These necessities would be fulfilled by the standard IEEE 802.11n, which would allow the speed to go beyond 200 Mbit/s. It is expected that it would replace the current and future network standards. Although more devices have been created to maintain this standard, IEEE 802.11n is still a draft standard.

Each one of the mentioned standards has its pros and cons:

• 802.11a maintains a high speed and gives ability to many users to utilize the network at the same time. However, it has a narrow range which allows the signal to weaken.

• 802.11b offers good coverage with high quality signal, but maintains a lower speed which allows for fewer users at the same time.

• 802.11g is characterized with high speed and ability to maintain multiple users at the same time. Unfortunately, unwanted interactions within the devices can occur with this standard.

• 802.11n impresses with its high speed and wide range. However, the devices that maintain it are very expensive at the moment. Also, it holds a certain risk because it is still a draft standard and there is a possibility that different devices from different manufacturers may not interact properly with each other. This problem can be avoided by buying all the equipment from the same manufacturer.

Installation of the wireless network

The first thing you have to do is to install wireless adapters in each individual computer. If you are connecting a desktop computer to a PCI wireless adapter, turn off the machine, open up the computer case and place the internet card in an empty slot. Afterwards, start up the computer and when it asks you for драйвери, put the disk in. If you decide to use USB wireless adapter instead, just plug it in an empty USB port while the computer is on and then install the drivers when asked to.

Keep in mind, that you can save money with the wireless card for the desktop system. If your computer has an Ethernet adapter and is placed close to the router then it would be cheaper for you to connect it with a cable.

With the laptops that do not have a built in WiFi, you can use PCMCIA or USB adapter. The PCMCIA is more preferable than the USB adapter. Both of these can be connected to the computer while it is still working, although it is recommended that the laptop is turned off for the PCMCIA. Install drivers only if necessary. Keep in mind that many laptops already maintain some of the wireless standards on their own and it would be unnecessary for you to buy new equipment.

After you have finished with the preparation for the installation, you need to choose a place for the router. If you also desire to have wired communication with the desktop system, try to place both devices as close to each other as possible.

If your home has several floors, it is a good idea to place the router on the middle floor in order to ensure the most effective communication. Of course, you can also place it elsewhere if the signal is problematic.

Check if the WLAN indicator on the router is lighted. To test the efficiency of the network, open up a web browser on one of the wireless-connected computers and type in the IP address indicated from the router. If you are not sure what the IP address is, read the instructions that come with the router to figure out how to find it. If everything is set up properly a web page would open up with instructions for router setup.

From now on, there are several things you have to do. If you happen to have a DSL Internet connection, it is very important that you type in your username and password in order to obtain internet access.

Your router automatically distributes IP addresses to each client that connects wirelessly to the network. This function is called DHCP server. You can choose to block it by disabling the option DHCP server. If you do that, however, you would have to manually determine each individual client and their IP addresses in the same network that the router is in. For example, if the IP address on your router is 192.168.1.1, you would have to give the client an IP address in the range 192.168.1.2-254 in order to allow them to connect to the network.

After you have completed all of these tasks, check the signal on each one of the wirelessly connected computers. If the signal is low, you would have to change the location of the router to ensure a better signal for all of the computers in the network.

Security of the wireless network

By self-understanding, the wireless network is open for any user with appropriate equipment that would allow the computer to connect to that network. If you have set up your router to automatically distribute IP addresses through the DHCP server, it would give an IP address to any laptop with a WiFi that is within its range. Even if this option is not enabled, any user can easily detect the IP address of the router with programs for network finding.

There are several ways to protect your network: WEP, WPA, and filtering of the MAC address. The MAC address (A.K.A. physical address) is a unique hardware ID for every network device and looks like this, for example: 00-EF-78-C6-34-56.

The filtering of the MAC address is related to the manual typing of lists of IP addresses of the devices in your local network. This way, the router would allow only these IP addresses to access your network. You can easily find the MAC address of your network adapter, by typing in the command prompt ipconfig /all.

The filtering of MAC addresses is a good way to secure your network. The disadvantage of this process is the necessity to manually type certain information. Also, it is not very hard for the address to be catched and afterwards appointed as a separate network adapter.

Another way to secure your network is the encryption system WEP. With this system, a secret key is shared for the encryption of the packets, before their connection to the wireless devices. The packets are observed during their transfer, which allows for the location of any effort of modification.

WEP guarantees adequate protection for your home network, with a goal to not allow the neighbor to find out what exactly you are downloading and monitoring. The secure keys are set in the settings of the wireless adapter on each computer in the wireless network. The length of the keys could be 64, 128, or 256 bytes. This option, however, does not guarantee 100% protection for your network. With the help of specific software and a little bit of time, the secret keys could be discovered.

WPA is a fairly new standard of protection for your network and is created to better the security which WEP offers. This technology includes improved encryption of the information through the protocol Temporal Key Intergrity Protocol (TKIP). TKIP “shuffles” the secret keys, while the function for the verification of the integrity guarantees that the keys have not been falsified somehow. Also, WPA can regulate the access to the wireless network through the MAC addresses.