What is wireless networking?
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Simply put wireless networks are networks without wires. They use radio transmitters and receivers that work in the atmosphere to allow the network components to communicate.
Wireless networks are a collection of IEEE 802.11x radio devices that are able to establish ethernet communications. The various types of devices are the same as for a wired network only there are not any wires. For instance, there are routers, bridges, access points, and host adaptors. Depending on the protocol, they will operate in the 2.4GHz or 5Ghz bandwidth.
The current standards are:
802.11a - 56MB per second protocol on the 5GHz band
802.11b - 11MB per second protocol on the 2.4GHz band
802.11g - 56MB per second protocol on the 2.4GHz band
There are some new devices emerging that allow for all three protocols on the same device.
Some of the different wireless devices that are readily avialable today are:
Wireless routers are devices that allow other wireless devices have access to either a gatway to the internet or other wired network services or devices.
Wireless access points are devices that allow wireless devices to communicate with devices on a wired network.
Wireless bridges are a two or more wireless access points that have been bound by their MAC address to allow wireless communition between wired Local Area Network (LAN) segments.
Host adaptors are PCI or PCMCIA or USB devices that allow workstations to communicate with a LAN over wireless connections.
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