IgniteNet SkyFire AC1200, Quick Start Manual

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Chapter 4
| Wireless Settings
Radio Settings
Security Settings
◆
Method — Sets the wireless security method for each VAP, including
association mode, encryption, and authentication. (Default: No Security)
■
No Security — The VAP broadcasts a beacon signal including the
configured SSID. Wireless clients with an SSID setting of “any” can read the
SSID from the beacon and automatically set their SSID to allow immediate
connection.
■
WEP Open System — The VAP broadcasts a beacon signal including the
configured SSID. Wireless clients with an SSID setting of “any” can read the
SSID from the beacon and automatically set their SSID to allow immediate
connection.
■
Key — WEP is used to encrypt data transmitted between wireless
clients and the VAP. WEP uses static shared keys (fixed ‐ length
hexadecimal or alphanumeric strings) that are manually distributed to
all clients that want to use the network.
WEP is the security protocol initially specified in the IEEE 802.11
standard for wireless communications. Unfortunately, WEP has been
found to be seriously flawed and cannot be recommended for a high
level of network security. For more robust wireless security, the access
point provides Wi ‐ Fi Protected Access (WPA) and WPA2 for improved
data encryption and user authentication.
Be sure that the WEP shared keys are the same for each client in the
wireless network. All clients share the same keys, which are used for
data encryption.
For 64 ‐ bit WEP, string length must be 5 ASCII characters (letters and
numbers) or 10 hexadecimal digits. For 128 ‐ bit WEP, string length must
be 13 ASCII characters (letters and numbers) or 26 hexadecimal digits.
■
WPA ‐ PSK — For enterprise deployment, WPA requires a RADIUS
authentication server to be configured on the wired network. However, for
small office networks that may not have the resources to configure and
maintain a RADIUS server, WPA provides a simple operating mode that uses
just a pre ‐ shared password for network access. The Pre ‐ Shared Key mode
uses a common password for user authentication that is manually entered
on the access point and all wireless clients. The PSK mode uses the same
TKIP packet encryption and key management as WPA in the enterprise,
providing a robust and manageable alternative for small networks.
■
Encryption — Data encryption uses one of the following methods:
■
CCMP (AES) — AES ‐ CCMP is used as the multicast encryption
cipher. AES ‐ CCMP is the standard encryption cipher required for
WPA2. (This is the default setting.)
■
TKIP — TKIP is used as the multicast encryption cipher.