CIS 272 Study Guide #1

History of WLANs and Standards – Standards - 802.11 (Wi-Fi), 802.16 (WiMax), 802.15
(Bluetooth), 802.15.4 (ZigBee), Certified Wireless USB.
History- ALOHANET in 1971 – 7 campuses throughout Hawaii communicate via central cpu
1980 – HAM Radios – used Terminal Node Controllers (TNC), like a modem
1985 – FCC authorized LAN based component devices, IEEE working on WLAN by the late 80s
802.11 – 1997, direct-sequence & frequency-hopping spread-spectrums for 1-2mbps in 2.4gHz,
supported applications for use in bar codes. Cost a lot, vendors were resistant to switch to it
802.11a – 1999, 54mbps in 5GHz, uses Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM),
APs/radio cards delayed for several years due to developing 5GHz hardware, it did not
interoperate with 2.4Ghz WLANs. Used for high performance applications, high capacity, more
RF channels that don’t overlap, free from RF interference, lower retransmission, high throughput
802.11b – 1999, higher rates in 2.4GHz, enhanced DSSS physical layer to include 5.5mbps and
11mbps, quick to market, easy modification from 802.11 to 802.11b, upgrade existing APs/radio
cards with firmware, became most commonly-installed WLAN hardware, RF interference is a
problem (microwaves) which degrade throughput, prevent medium access, cause transmit erros,
limited to 3 non-overlapping radio cells, channels 1, 6, 11 (US), limited capacity and data rates
802.11g – 2004, upgraded 802.11b to 54mbps in 2.4GHz using OFDM, backwards compatible =
802.11b/g mixed mode operation, 802.11b radio card can associate with 802.11g AP, higher
performance then 802.11b, has same 3 channels 1, 6, 11 (US), and has limited capacity.
802.11n – 2009, current standard, higher performance, availability, predictability to the ntwk,
uses multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) operations, channel-bonding, packet aggregation,
wireless usage comparable to Ethernet usage, MIMO overcomes interference and improves
reliability, speeds over 100mbps, more throughput, vendors provided 802.11n-draft and Draft 2.0
models before it was standardized, so draft products aren’t intercompatible and can’t be
upgraded. Supports 2.4GHz and 5GHz, backwards compatible 802.11g and 802.11a, protection
mechanisms needed to coordinate access (like b/g mixed mode) which slows speed/throughput
802.11ac – 2014, enhancement to 802.11n in 5GHz band, increases data rates to Gbps for gigabit
ethernet, higher data rates through wider RF channels, more spatial streams, higher-order
modulation, dual-band APs use both 802.11n in 2.4 GHz and 802.11ac in 5 GHz, combo offers
good performance for a variety of wireless applications of today and the near future

802.11b/g Mixed Mode Operation – 802.11b card that associates with an 802.11g AP needs
protection mechanisms, 11b and 11g use different modulation, can’t interoperate, coordinate
transmissions according to 802.11 protocol, all stations start using protected mechanisms which
slows down the WLAN, so some 802.11g ntwks prohibit 802.11b devices from connecting to it

Radio Wave Attributes – EM signal, info through air medium, long distance, called RF signals,
RF signals oscillate as waves at a high frequency, used long time, carries music to radios, video
to TVs, data over a WLAN, radio wave has amplitude, frequency, and phase elements
Amplitude – strength of RW, measure the amplitude by power, which is energy required to push
signal over distance, as power increases so does range, RWs have amplitudes with units of watts,
represents amount of power in signal, dBm units used to represent amplitude of RWs, dBm =
amount of power in watts, comparable to milliwatts (mW),
Frequency - # of times p/s signal repeats itself, unit is Hertz (Hz), which is # of cycles p/s,
802.11 WLANs use frequencies of 2.4GHz-5.0Ghz, which is 2.4 million-5.0 million cycles p/s,
frequencies are too high to hear and to low to be seen by humans. Frequency impacts RW
propagation, higher frequency propagates over shorter range compared to low frequencies, which
means higher freq range is same or greater than low freqs due to less interference at high ranges.
(there’s more interference in the 2.4GHz range than 5GHz range, 5GHz range is shorter than 2.4)
Phase – how far signal is offset from a reference point, each signal cycle spans 360°, this means
that a signal that has phase shift of 90° would have an offset ¼ of the signal (90/360)
RF System Components - Transceiver, Modulation, Spread Spectrum, OFDM (see above too)
RF Transceiver – key component of WLAN, has transmitter and receiver, is hardware, contains
an amplifier to increase amplitude of RW to desired transmit power for transmission, receiver
contains demodulator – turns weak RF to data types that can be used by the computer
RF Modulation – transmits digital data (binary) into an RF signal, converts digital signal into an
analog one, necessary begins data transmission isn’t practical in normal form, a modulator mixes
the source data signal with a carrier signal (radio wave) Types – Amplitude Key-Shifting –
simpler form of modulation, varies amplitude to represent data, prone to interference
Frequency Key-Shifting – modulation represents a 1 or 0 bit with a positive or negative shift in
frequency, if negative = 0, if positive = 1, receiver can detect the shift and demodulate it
Phase Key-Shifting – data causes change in signal’s phase, frequency remains constant, phase
shift can correspond to a specific pos/neg amount relative to reference, receiver detects the shifts
Quadrature Amplitude Modulation (QAM) – causes both amplitude and phase to change
according to data, referred to as symbols, can represent large groups of bits as a signal amplitude
and phase combination, uses 64 different amplitude/phase combinations, has 6 data bits per
signal, QAM makes it possible for 802.11n and 802.11ac to support higher data rates
Spread Spectrum – after digital signal is modulated into an analog signal, some VLAN
transceivers spread carrier RF over wider spectrum to comply with regulations, this reduces
possibility of inward/outward interference, but is not needed to obtain licenses, was developed
by military, and it spreads a signal’s power over a wide band of frequencies, uses direct sequence
or frequency hopping to spread signal, direct sequence modulates a carrier RW by using digital
code with a higher bit rate than the information signal bandwidth, frequency hopping spreads the
signal by hopping into carrier RW from one frequency to another within a specified range
Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) – used by higher speed WLANs, divides
modulated signal across multiple sub-carriers in a certain channel, very efficient, provides higher
data rates, minimizes multi-path propagation problems, OFDM also supports DSL (old tech)
RF Signal Propagation – RW travels freely thru air, resists obstacles like walls and furniture,
WLAN implementation requires awareness of attenuation, noise, and multipath propagation
Attenuation – as RW propagates, experiences decrease in amplitude which is called attenuation,
free space loss occurs as signals attenuate exponentially, exacerbated by physical options, each
time RW passes through walls/ceilings they lose about -3dBm to -5dBm per wall/ceiling, when
doubling distance between transmitter and receiver, amplitude of RW will be ¼ of its initial
value, the effective range might be greater in 5GHz band due to less noise and interference
Multipath Propagation – occurs when portions of RWs take different paths, can go straight, or
bounce on the way to receiver, some signals can experience delay and reach receiver later
Noise and Signal-to-Noise Ratio (dBm and SNR) – noise is the presence of other nearby
waves/interfering signals, they’re calculated in dBm, noise can distort comms which makes data
assembly harder, microwaves, phones, and other wireless devices can cause interference. The
SNR (Signal Power minus Noise Power) is used to calculate the RF environment. -95dBm is the
noise floor, and -75dBm is the maximum floor for a signal, calculated by taking signal dBm
and subtracting from -90dBm, it is important for the SNR of receiver to be at least 15dBm-
20dBm as a safety margin for avoiding retransmissions. Conversions – 0dBm = 1mW, 10dBm =
10mW, 20dBm = 100mW, 30dBm = 1000mW (which is 1 watt)
Types of Wireless LANs – physical architectures include Ad Hoc, Infrastructure, and Mesh
Ad Hoc WLANs – “peer-to-peer LANs,” only need 802.11 client radios in client devices
connecting to network, don’t need access point or WLAN controller because they’re within
range of each other, source data travels directly to destination, Ad Hoc allows spontaneous
WLAN setup by users, easy to setup and take down, no admin, little config, only have to set
802.11 radio to Ad Hoc mode, good for WLAN among few end use devices where WLAN isn’t
already in place, useful for public safety and search and rescue operations, the first Ad Hoc
station establishes IBSS and sends beacon frames as a “Hello” and maintains synch among peers,
other stations can join after receiving a beacon and accepting the IBSS parameters, Independent
Basic Service Set (IBSS) – Ad Hoc group of roaming units, can communicate without a LAN,
each station must send periodic beacons if not heard from, if not heard within delay period the
station assumes no other stations are active and beacon is sent, each station updates internal
clock with timestamp from the beacon frame and ensures all stations operate simultaneously
Infrastructure WLANs – what most companies, hotspots, and homeowners utilize, offers means
to extend to a wired network, one or more APs interface wireless devices to distribution system,
each AP forms a radio cell (or Basic Service Set - BSS), which enables connectivity, allows
users to communicate with other wireless users, and also with servers and network applications
that are connected to the distribution system, each AP broadcasts beacon frames which ID
WLAN presence and synchs events, each AP forms a radio cell with variable coverage area,
overlapping radio cells allow roaming without data loss, data range typically 100 feet, cards auto
connect to APs with stronger signals, VoIP phones drop connections if roaming delay exceeds
150 seconds, lower data rates offer longer range than higher data rates do, data transmission
don’t occur directly between clients, user-to-user traffic must travel through an AP, significant
user-to-user traffic decreases throughput, if traffic is going to a wired destination, no
retransmission is needed, if there’s a controller-based WLAN, the AP hands data over to
controller, and the controller delivers it to the distribution system, infrastructure WLANs also
support collocated and disjointed radio cells
Collocated Radio Cells – two or more APs are set up so their RWs overlap significantly, must be
set up on non-conflicting radio channels, boosts capacity of area, sometimes called a “supercell”
Disjointed Radio Cells – works well when complete coverage is not needed, conference room
deployment, users temp lose connection when roaming, then connect to the next AP in range
Mesh WLANs – use mesh nodes like APs, nodes connect wirelessly unlike ethernet, mesh avoid
need or ethernet connections, can be installed anywhere there’s power, used for residential and
city-wide Wi-Fi network deployment, mesh nodes are actually Wi-Fi APs adapted to
communicate wirelessly with each other using mesh protocols, Cisco APs have mesh capability,
WLAN controllers manage and monitor mesh nodes, mesh nodes implement routing protocols to
route packets between clients and wired connections, Cisco uses Adaptive Wireless Path
Protocol (AWPP), mesh networks offer multiple paths from source to destination, and intelligent
routing algorithms allow each node to make decision on which path to use, if path is “clogged”
algorithms establish another path, latency can vary based on number of users and hops, roaming
and routing delays affect performance especially when using VoIP
WLAN Components – Client devices, client radios, APs, Wi-Fi, mesh nodes, antennas, RF
amplifiers, repeaters, bridges
Client Devices – interface between user and network, device type impacts usability, choose
rugged CDs, there’s laptops, tablets, PDAs, phones, and scanners
Client Radio – implements 802.11 MAC layer functions with a specific physical layer like a, b,
g, n, or ac, radio firmware implements MAC functions, transceiver provides transmission and
reception, multimode radios are available and 802.11n is backwards compatible with 802.11g,
client radio device couples a digital signal to the air, also generally takes the shape of a NIC that
facilitates the modulation and communication protocols, radio card conforms to form factors that
define physical and electrical bus that enables card to communicate, standard form factors –
Industry Standard Architecture (ISA), Peripheral Component Interconnect (PCI), Mini-PCI,
ExpressCard, Compact Flash, and Universal Serial Bus (USB)
Access Points (APs) – similar to client radio, primary component of infrastructure WLAN,
there’s Autonomous APs and Controller-Based APs, often both have 2.4GHz and 5.0GHz
APs versus Wi-Fi Routers – APs allow clients access to one network, router does several
Network Infrastructure Components – network distribution system, Power over Ethernet, and
application connectivity software, switches main component, make sure to use proper data rate
and create a separate IP domain for the WLAN, fiber optic best for bandwidth demanding apps,
Power over Ethernet (POE) – eliminates need for outlets, requires only one ethernet connection
to an AP to provide power and data, 802.3af is most common, provides 15.4 watts of power,
perfect to support an AP, additional might be needed for more connections or APs running dual-
band, 802.3at (2009) provides 25 watts of power, it’s more powerful but less common, CDP
detects presence of powered device and injects power into cable, an AP using PoE can operate
from the power coming through the data cable, saves money, flexible AP locations, higher
reliability, enhanced support, simpler international deployment
Security Vulnerabilities – 3 areas – passive monitoring, unauthorized access, denial of service
Passive Monitoring – person grabs info with a laptop from WLANs, can “war drive” using a car,
laptop, and packet sniffers, gain unauthorized access, WLANs not as secure as LANs for Passive
Monitoring. Way to fix – implement encryption between all client devices and APs, utilize WPA
Unauthorized Access – hacker accesses through backdoors, brute force, or other loopholes, can
use things like a port scanner to find an open port, which allows info capture and reconfiguring,
can also use man in the middle attacks to compromise TCP/IP ARP functions
Rogue APs – unauthorized AP on a network, often doesn’t conform to security policies, putting
entire enterprise network at risk, can also be innocently installed by employees. Prevention – use
auth system with username and password for all devices, separate WLAN from LAN, use a
separate VLAN for the WLAN, and install the WLAN outside the firewall and use a VPN
Denial of Service – can cripple a WLAN, and they’re extremely vulnerable to DoS attacks, can
cause a WLAN to slow down or stop completely, achieved through brute force, stronger radio
signals are actually at higher risk since they can be pinpointed, not common, done over air, some
not intentional (like through regular interference), combat with a wired connection just in case
Interference – unwanted RWs disrupt regular WLAN operation, causes transmissions to be held
off, causes sluggish throughput, APs can switch to lower data rates to compensate, causes
latency, microwaves cause interference up to 25 feet, can occupy 1/3 to the whole band of 2.4,
only present upon operation, don’t cause major impact, can use 802.11ac to avoid interference,
cordless phones can crowd up airwaves for devices on same bands, most phones use DSS and
choose least congested band, several being used at once can saturate spectrum, 802.11ac again,
Bluetooth interference occurs on 2.4GHz when BT device and 802.11 transmit simultaneously,
neighboring WLANs – cause interference when APs nearby are set to same RF channel,
multipath propagation can cause interference with their delay, causes symbols to smear, receiver
can’t read them, so symbols have to be retransmitted which slows down the network
Roaming – device goes from AP to AP seamlessly, 802.11 ntwk client radio makes handoff to
next AP, premature handoff causes bouncing between APs, occurs only when absolutely
necessary, every device model behaves differently, some cards do better than others, load on
radio card can drain device battery life, so most vendors use power management methods like
sleep mode or standby, doze mode is default, keeps radio off most of the time and wakes
periodically to check for messages, sleep mode causes the radio to remain in transmit-only mode
by waking and sending if necessary, but it cannot receive info. Roaming further complicated by
interoperability issues – when one vendor device doesn’t “play nice” with another. WLAN
planning is harder than LAN planning because of attenuation. On-site survey is recommended.