Chapter 12: Wireless Networkimg

Instructor: • Click to edit Master subtitle

style
 Chapter 12 Objectives
• The Following CompTIA Network+ Exam Objectives Are
Covered in This Chapter:
• 1.7 Differentiate between network infrastructure implementations
• WLAN
• o Hotspot
• PAN
• o Bluetooth
• o IR
• o NFC (near field communication)
• 2.7 Install and configure wireless LAN infrastructure and implement
the appropriate technologies in support of wireless capable devices
• Small office/home office wireless router
• Wireless access points
• o Device density
• o Roaming
• o Wireless controllers
• VLAN pooling
• LWAPP

2
 Chapter 12 Objectives
(Cont)
• The Following CompTIA Network+ Exam Objectives Are Covered in This
Chapter:
• Wireless bridge
• Site surveys
• o Heat maps
• Frequencies
• o 2.4 Ghz
• o 5.0 Ghz
• Channels
• Goodput
• Connection types
• o 802.11a-ht
• o 802.11g-ht
• Antenna placement
• Antenna types
• o Omnidirectional
• o Unidirectional
• MIMO/MUMIMO
• Signal strength
• o Coverage
• o Differences between device antennas
• SSID broadcast
• Topologies
• o Adhoc
• o Mesh
• o Infrastructure
• Mobile devices
• o Cell phones
• o Laptops
• o Tablets
• o Gaming devices
• o Media devices

3
 Chapter 12 Objectives
•
(Cont)
The Following CompTIA Network+ Exam Objectives Are Covered in
This Chapter:

• 3.3 Given a scenario, implement network hardening techniques

• Wireless security
• o WEP
• o WPA/WPA2
• Enterprise
• Personal
• o TKIP/AES
• o 802.1x
• o TLS/TTLS
• o MAC filtering
• 4.3 Given a scenario, troubleshoot and resolve common wireless issues
• Open networks
• Rogue access point
• MIMO
• AP placement
• AP configurations
• o LWAPP
• o Thin vs thick
• 5.3 Given a scenario, deploy the appropriate wireless standard
• 802.11a
• 802.11b
• 802.11g
• 802.11n
• 802.11ac

4
 Wireless Technologies

• Sipping coffee at a café or hanging out in an airport

until they finally fix the plane you’re waiting to board no
longer requires reading actual papers and magazines
to avoid numbing boredom and kill time. Now, you can
just connect to the local wireless network and catch up
on your emails, blog, do a little gaming.

• The basic wireless LANs (WLANs) most commonly

used today are similar to 10BaseT Ethernet with hubs.
– Typically run half-duplex communication.
– Everyone is sharing the same bandwidth.
– Only one user is communicating at a time.

5
Wireless Agencies and Standards

• WLANs transmit over radio frequencies, they’re regulated

by the same types of laws used to govern things like
AM/FM radios.
• In the United States, it’s the Federal Communications
Commission (FCC) that regulates the use of wireless
LAN devices
• Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE)
takes it from there and creates standards based on what
6
frequencies the FCC releases for public use.
 Frequencies Ranges

• The FCC has released three unlicensed bands for public use: 900MHz,
2.4GHz, and 5GHz.

– The 900MHz and 2.4GHz bands are referred to as the Industrial, Scientific,
and Medical (ISM) bands.

– The 5GHz band is known as the Unlicensed National Information

Infrastructure (UNII) band

7
 Wireless LAN History

• Use of the ISM band started in early 1990.

• The ISM band is deployed today in multiple
environments, including outdoor links, mesh networks,
office buildings, healthcare, warehousing, and homes.

8
 802.11 Committees and Subcommittees

• IEEE 802.11 was the first, original standardized WLAN at

1 and 2Mbps ratified in 1997.
9
 802.11b – 2.4gHz
• The problem with 802.11b lies in
how the Data Link layer is dealt
with. In order to solve problems in
the RF spectrum, a type of
Ethernet collision detection was
created called Carrier Sense
Multiple Access with Collision
Avoidance (CSMA/CA).

• CSMA/CA also has an optional implementation called

Request to Send, Clear to Send (RTS/CTS)
• For every packet sent, an RTS/CTS acknowledgment
must be received.

10
 802.11g
• The 802.11g standard was ratified in June 2003 and is
backward compatible to 802.11b.
• 802.11g delivers 54Mbps maximum data rate
• 802.11g operates in the 2.4GHz range (the same as 802.11b).

•There are 14 different channels (each 22Mhz wide) 2.4GHz range.

•Only 11 channels are configurable in the U.S.

•Channels 1, 6, and 11 are non-overlapping.
•Three access points can be in the same area
without experiencing interference.
11
 802.11a

• The IEEE ratified the 802.11a standard in 1999,

but the first 802.11a products didn’t begin appearing on the
market until late 2001.
• 802.11a delivers a maximum data rate of 54Mbps
• 802.11a provides 12 non-overlapping frequency channels.
• 802.11a uses the UNII bands.

12
 802.11h
• The FCC added 11 new channels in February 2004 and
2008 we get to begin using these channels based on
releases 802.11a 5GHz products. This means that we
gain access to up to 23 non-overlapping channels.
• And there are even two new features to the 5GHz radio
that are part of the 802.11h specification:

– Dynamic Frequency Selection (DFS)

– Transmit Power Control (TPC)

13
 802.11n
• 802.11n builds on previous 802.11 standards by adding
Multiple-Input Multiple-Output (MIMO), which employs
multiple transmitters and receiver antennas to increase
data throughput.
• 802.11n can have up to eight antennas, but most of
today’s access points use four.
• 802.11n uses smart antennas; if you did have four of them,
two would be used for transmitting simultaneously with the
other two receiving simultaneously.
• Smart Antennas allow for much higher data rates than
802.11a/b/g, some claim it will provide about 250Mbps.

14
 Comparing 802.11 Standards

802.11 802.11b 802.11a 802.11g 802.11n 802.11ac

Ratified 1997 1999 1999 2003 2010 2013
Frequency
Band
2.4Ghz 2.4Ghz 5Ghz 2.4Ghz 2.4Ghz-5Ghz 5Ghz
No. of channels 3 3 Up to 23 3 Varies Varies
IR, FHSS, DSSS, CCK,
Transmission
DSSS
DSSS OFDM DSSS OFDM
OFDM OFDM
6, 9,
Data Rates 1, 2, 5.5, 6, 9, 12, 18, 24, 1, 2,
(Mbps)
1, 2
11 36, 48, 54 5.5, 11
12, 100+ 1000+
5.5, 11

• It’s interesting to see the evolution over the years each

standard was ratified, the frequency of each, the number
of non-over lapping channels, the physical layer
transmission technique and the data rates for each of the15
IEEE standards in use today.
Wireless LAN Modulation Techniques
• Direct-Sequence Spread-Spectrum (DSSS)
– The modulation techniques specified by the original
IEEE 802.11 standard
– The standard used for the IEEE 802.11b standard.
• IEEE 802.11b uses Differential Binary Phase Shift
Keying (DBPSK) for 1Mbps DSSS
• IEEE 802.11b and Differential Quadrature Phase
Shift Keying (DQPSK) for 2Mbps DSSS.
• Frequency-Hopping Spread Spectrum (FHSS)
– Original modulation technique specified by the IEEE
802.11 standard.
– Isn’t the technique of choice for vendors of 802.11
• Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM)
– 802.11a/g uses OFDM with a system of 52 carriers
(sometimes referred to as subcarriers)
– Modulated by BPSK or QPSK.
– OFDM’s spread-spectrum technique distributes the
data over these 52 carriers
16
 Range Comparisons
11Mbps
5.5Mbps
802.11b
2Mbps
1Mbps

54Mbps
48Mbps
36Mbps
802.11g 24Mbps
18Mbps
12Mbps
9Mbps
6Mbps

54Mbps
48Mbps
36Mbps
802.11a 24Mbps
18Mbps
12Mbps
9Mbps
6Mbps

50 ft. 100 ft. 150 ft. 200 ft. 250 ft. 300 ft. 350 ft.

• The range comparisons show of each 802.11 standard and

shows these different ranges using an indoor open-office
17
environment as a factor (using default power settings).
 Wireless Access Points

• Wireless networks have a component connecting all wireless devices

together, the device is known as a wireless access point (WAP), or just AP.
• Wireless access points have at least one antenna (sometimes two for better
reception—called diversity) and a port to connect them to a wired network.

18
Wireless Network Interface Card
(Wireless NIC)

• A wireless NIC does the same job as a traditional NIC; but

instead of having a socket to plug some cable into, the
wireless NIC has a radio antenna. 19
 Wireless Networks
Ad-Hoc Mode: Independent Basic Service Set (IBSS)

• In ad-hoc mode, the wireless devices communicate directly

without the need for an AP.
• An example of this is two laptops with wireless NICs installed.
If both cards were set up to operate in ad-hoc mode, they
could connect and transfer files as long as the other network
settings, like protocols, were set up to enable this as well.
– This is an independent basic service set (IBSS) 20
 Wireless Networks
Infrastructure Mode: Basic Service Set (BSS)

Internet

DS*

Access point

Wireless clients

*DS=Distribution System
21
 Wireless Networks
Infrastructure Mode: Extended Service Set (ESS)
“Wireless Cell” “Wireless Cell”

Channel 1 Channel 6

LAN Backbone

Overlapping
20%
SSID Sales SSID Sales

Wireless clients Wireless clients

22
Standalone and controller based
Networks
Figure 12.13
Figure 12:14 LWAPP
Figure 12:15 Mobile
Hotspot
Figure 12:16 iPhone Hotspot
Chapter 12
Computer-to-computer (Ad-hoc)
Graphic c12uf001.tif
Chapter 12
Computer-to-computer (Ad-hoc)
Graphic c12uf002.tif
 Installing and Configuring Hardware
Installing 802.11 equipment is actually fairly simple
Two main types of components in 802.11 networks:
• APs
– The AP is fairly simple; take it out of the box, connect the
antenna(e) if necessary, connect the power, and then place the
AP where it can reach the highest number of clients.
– Walls obstruct the signal means putting the AP out in the open
—even indoors—works better.
– The AP should be placed away from sources of RF interference
(putting it next to the microwave or phone system is really bad
idea)
• NICs
– Wireless NIC installation is just like installing any other
network card; but today, most, laptops have wireless cards
preinstalled, and that’s as easy as it gets!

• Just like connecting an Ethernet card to a LAN switch, you

need the wireless network card to connect to an access point.

29
 NIC Configuration – Wireless
• Windows includes
software to
automatically
configure a wireless
connection, and it
does so automatically
when you install a
wireless NIC.

30
 NIC Configuration - Encryption
• In addition to the general
configuration, you may have
to configure the encryption for
the connection (if the wireless
connection you are using
requires it).

• To set up how your

workstation uses encryption
for a particular connection
click the SSID of the wireless
network you want to configure
in the “Wireless Network
Connection” dialog box and
then click “Configure”.
Configuring encryption

31
NIC Configuration Windows 7

32
 AP Configuration
• There are literally hundreds of different APs out there, and of
course, each uses a different method to configure its internal
software. The good news is that for the most part, they all follow
the same general patterns.

33
 Wireless Security
• War Driving
• Open Access
• Service Set Identifiers (SSIDs)
• Wired Equivalent Privacy (WEP)
• Media Access Control (MAC) Address Authentication
• Remote Authentication Dial In User Service (RADIUS)
• Temporal Key Integrity Protocol (TKIP)
• Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA) or WPA 2 Pre-Shared Key

34
Figure 12:17 Basic coverage
Figure 12:18 Enterprise design
Figure 12:19 multiple floors

Channel 1 Channel 11
2nd Floor

Channel 6 Channel 1

Channel 1 Channel 6
1st Floor

Channel 1 Channel 11
Figure 12:20 heatmap
Chapter 12
RADIUS authentication server
Figure 12.21

802.11 Network Enterprise Edge Enterprise Network

Supplicant Authenticator Authentication Server

802.1x Traffic Only

Access point EAP plug-in goes
Operates on a client
acts as authenticator In RADIUS server
Chapter 12
AP configuration
Graphic c12uf007.tif
 Summary

• Summary
• Exam Essentials Section
• Written Labs
• Review Questions

41