What Does A Wireless Network Need?
1. An access point or a router...
Or simply wireless cards in each
computer. There are two different
configurations you can use for your
wireless network – infrastructure mode
and ad-hoc mode.
Infrastructure mode uses an access point
or a router to act as the link
between the wireless world and the wired
world.
Ad-hoc mode is a peer-to-peer wireless
network where the wireless computers are
joined to each other. From a security
perspective, infrastructure mode is the
recommended configuration because the
access point or router can provide some
security features.
An access point has many different
networking options and extends your
network’s access to wireless computers.
Routers, on the other hand, are
generally designed for home use and
whilst they won’t have such
sophisticated networking functionality,
they may have additional features
such as a print server and internet
gateway.
There are many different models of
router available for purchase. If you
are setting up your wireless network
yourself, do be sure to follow the
instructions that come with the access
point or router.
2. Wireless enabled computers
Any computers that are connected to your
wireless network will need to have
wireless network cards. Many modern
laptops have these built in, or you can
buy wireless network cards to fit into
the PCMCIA slot.
Microsoft Windows XP supports wireless
networks very well. Click Start,
choose Connect To and then right-click
on your wireless network connection
and choose Properties. Click on the
Wireless Networks tab.
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