Octopus Series Wireless LAN Card
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There are two encryption methods available. The IEEE 802.11 specification defines Wired Equivalent
Privacy (WEP) using a 64-bit key. This capability was extended by the industry to allow a 128-bit key.
If you specify an encryption method, you will only be able to communicate with Access Points and
stations that use the same encryption method and keys.
Disabling encryption
To disable encryption, click the down arrow at the right of the Encryption field, select Disabled, and
click the Apply button.
Enabling encryption
To enable encryption, click the down arrow at the right of the Encryption field, select either 64 bit or 128
bit, and click the Apply button. After enabling an encryption method, you must then specify encryption
keys, as described in the following sections.
Creating Encryption Keys Manually
When you specify either 64-bit or 128-bit encryption, the Configuration Utility selects
Create Keys
Manually
, and allows you to enter keys as either alphanumeric or hexadecimal characters. When you
click one of these buttons, the cursor appears in the field for Key 1. For 64-bit encryption, you must type
exactly 5 alphanumeric or 10 hexadecimal characters in each of the four key fields; for 128-bit
encryption, you must type exactly 13 alphanumeric or 26 hexadecimal characters. You then click the
Apply
button to create your encryption keys. After you click the
Apply
button, the Configuration Utility
uses asterisks to mask your keys.
The
Use WEP Key
field lets you specify which of the four encryption keys you use to transmit data on
your wireless LAN. You can change the default key by clicking on the down arrow at the right of this
field, selecting the number of the key you want to use, and then clicking the
Apply
button. As long as the Access Point or station with which you are communicating has the same
key in the same position, you can use any of the keys as the default.
Creating Encryption Keys Using a Passphrase
To create encryption keys using a passphrase, click the radio button next to
Create Key with
Passphrase
and type a character string in the Passphrase field. As you type, the Configuration Utility
displays asterisks to mask your passphrase and uses an algorithm to generate four keys used for
encryption.Using a passphrase to generate the four keys makes it easy to set the same keys for all
members of your wireless LAN.
