DATA SHEET
Key Benefits
Full Standards Support
With 3Com
®
, the freedom of wireless
networking includes the freedom of
choice. The 3Com Wireless LAN
Access Points 8200, 8500, and 8700
offer a dual-mode architecture that
supports both 802.11a and 802.11b
wireless users on a single device. This
means you can mix and match radio
bands to meet different coverage and
bandwidth needs within the same
area. Different access point models
give you the flexibility to choose to
support both radio modes immedi-
ately or choose one radio mode now
and upgrade to newer standards later
as they become available with an
easy-to-install optional Mini PCI
upgrade kit.
Security
3Com offers one of the most robust
suite of standards-based security on
the market today. To protect sensitive
data broadcast over the wireless LAN,
3Com supports Wireless Equivalent
Privacy (WEP) RC4 40/ 64-bit, 128-bit
and 154-bit shared-key encryption.
3Com strengthens this basic security
mechanism with additional security
features, including MAC address
access control lists, IEEE 802.1x
per-port user authentication with
RADIUS server authentication
support, Temporal Key Integrity
Protocol (TKIP), Wireless Protected
Access and Extensible Authentication
Protocol (EAP) support: EAP-MD5,
EAP-TLS, EAP-TTLS, and PEAP.
Performance and Reliability
3Com wireless access point perfor-
mance features ensure reliable and
seamless connections for users
wherever they roam. Clear Channel
Select automatically finds the least
loaded channel for interference-free
communication. Auto network
connect and dynamic rate shifting
keep users connected through a wide
variety of conditions by changing to
the optimum connection speed as
they move through the network.
Manageability
3Com offers a wide range of standards-
based management support, from
SNMP to 3Com Network Supervisor
and HP OpenView for seamless inte-
gration with your wired network.
Wireless Infrastructure Device
Manager and Wireless LAN Device
Discovery tools let you configure
parameters, run diagnostics, and
monitor performance from anywhere
on the network using an embedded
web server browser. You can also repli-
cate wireless device configurations
from one access point to another using
the save and load feature to simplify
and reduce network administration.
Power over Ethernet Flexibility
With Power over Ethernet (PoE)
support, the same Category 5 cable
that connects your access point to the
data network also provides its power.
A single cable installation dramati-
cally improves your choice of
mounting configurations because you
no longer need to consider AC power
outlet locations. PoE support makes it
easier than ever to overcome installa-
tion problems with difficult-to-wire
or hard-to-reach locations.
3Com
®
Wireless LAN Access Points
8200/8500/8700
