are usually the cause of dead spots. See also coverage area.
802.11
A category of WLAN standards defined by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
(IEEE).
802.11a
An IEEE standard for WLANs that operate at 5 GHz, with data rates up to 54 Mbps.
802.11b
An IEEE standard for WLANs that operate at 2.4 GHz, with data rates up to 11 Mbps.
802.11g
An
IEEE
standard
for
WLANs
that
operates
at
2.4
GHz,
with
data
rate
of
300
Mbps.
The
new
standard
also
raises
the
encryption
bar
to
WPA2.
The
40
HT
option
can
be
added
to
increase
the
data
rate.
Encryption
Translates data into a secret code to achieve data security. To read an encrypted file, you must
have a secret key or password for decryption. Unencrypted data is referred to as plain text;
encrypted data is referred to as cipher text
ESS
ID
The
unique
identifier
for
an
ESS.
All
Access
Points
and
their
associated
wireless
stations
in
the
same
group
must
have
the
same
ESSID.
Footprint
Geographical
areas
where
an
entity
is
licensed
to
broadcast
its
signal.
Gateway
A
computer
system
or
other
device
that
acts
as
a
translator
between
two
systems
that
use
different
communication
protocols,
data
formatting
structures,
languages,
and/or
architecture.
HT mode
In
the
802.11n
system,
two
new
formats,
called
High
Throughput
(HT),
are
defined
for
the
Physical
Layer,
Mixed
Mode,
and
Green
Field.
If
a
system
runs
40
HT,
two
adjacent
20
MHz
channels
are
used.
The
larger
40
MHz
bandwidth
can
provide
better
transmit
quality
and
speed.
Keys
Like
passwords,
keys
open
(decrypt)
and
close
(encrypt)
messages.
While
many
encryption
algorithms
are
commonly
known
and
public,
the
key
must
be
kept
secret.
Local
‐
Area
Network
(LAN)
A
small
data
network
covering
a
limited
area,
such
as
a
building
or
group
of
buildings.
Most
LANs
connect
workstations
or
personal
computers.
LANs
let
many
users
share
devices
such
as
printers
as
well
as
data.
LANs
also
facilitate
communication
through
e
‐
or
chat
sessions.
Media
Access
Control
(MAC)
Address
Address
associated
with
every
hardware
device
on
the
network.
Every
802.11
wireless
device
has
its
own
specific
MAC
address.
This
unique
identifier
is
hard
‐
coded
into
the
device
and
can
be
used
to
provide
security
for
WLANs.
When
a
network
uses
a
MAC
table,
only
the
802.11
radios
