ZyXEL Communications PRESTIGE 650H -, User Manual

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Prestige 650 Series User’s Guide
Wireless LAN Setup 5-1
Chapter 5
Wireless LAN Setup
This chapter discusses how to configure Wireless LAN on the Prestige. This chapter is only
applicable to the Prestige 650H and Prestige 650HW.
5.1 Wireless LAN Overview
This section introduces the wireless LAN and some basic configurations. Wireless LANs can be as simple as
two computers with wireless LAN cards communicating in a peer-to-peer network or as complex as a
number of computers with wireless LAN cards communicating through access points which bridge network
traffic to the wired LAN.
The WLAN screens are only available when a WLAN card is installed.
5.1.1 Additional Installation Requirements for Using 802.1x
A computer with an IEEE 802.11b wireless LAN card and equipped with a web browser (with
JavaScript enabled) and/or Telnet.
A wireless station computer must be running IEEE 802.1x-compliant software. Currently, this is
offered in Windows XP.
An optional network RADIUS server for remote user authentication and accounting.
5.1.2 Channel
The range of radio frequencies used by IEEE 802.11b wireless devices is called a “channel”. Channels
available depend on your geographical area. You may have a choice of channels (for your region) so you
should use a different channel than an adjacent AP (access point) to reduce interference. Interference occurs
when radio signals from different access points overlap causing interference and degrading performance.
Adjacent channels partially overlap however. To avoid interference due to overlap, your AP should be on a
channel at least five channels away from a channel that an adjacent AP is using. For example, if your region
has 11 channels and an adjacent AP is using channel 1, then you need to select a channel between 6 or 11.
5.1.3 ESS ID
An Extended Service Set (ESS) is a group of access points or wireless gateways connected to a wired LAN
on the same subnet. An ESS ID uniquely identifies each set. All access points or wireless gateways and their
associated wireless stations in the same set must have the same ESSID.