Components Review

1
Components Review
2
WLAN Devices

• In-building Infrastructure
• 1200 Series (802.11a and 802.11b)
• 1100 Series (802.11b)
• 350 Series (802.11b) not shown

• Bridging
• 350 Series (802.11b)
• BR350
• WGB350
• 1400 Series (802.11a)

3
Antennas

• Antenna
• 2.4GHz Antennas
• 5 GHz Antennas

4
Cable, Accessories, Wireless IP Phone

• Cable and Accessories
• Low Loss Cable
• Antenna Mounts
• Lightening Arrestor
• Wireless IP Phone

5
Client Adapters

• Clients (NICs)
• 350 Series (802.11b)
• 5 GHz client adapter (802.11a)

Drivers are supported for all popular operating
systems, including Windows 95, 98, NT 4.0,
Windows 2000, Windows ME, Windows XP, Mac OS
Version 9.x, and Linux.
6
Cisco Aironet 350 Series Mini PCI Adapter

• 2.4 GHz/802.11b embedded wireless for notebooks
• 100 mW transmit power
• Must order through PC manufactures (not orderable
  directly through Cisco)

7
Cisco Aironet 1100 Series Access Point

• Aironet 1100 supports 802.11b
• 802.11b is upgradeable to 802.11g with a mini-PCI
  replacement.

8
1200 Series Access Point

• An access point (AP) acts as the center point of
  a stand-alone wireless network or as the
  connection point between wireless and wired
  networks.
• May provide roaming functionality with multiple
  APs.
• Aironet 1200 is a dual-band AP that supports both
  802.11b and 802.11a.
• 802.11b is upgradeable to 802.11g with a mini-PCI
  replacement.

9
Cisco Aironet WLAN Solutions for the Enterprise
Cisco Aironet 1100 Series Cisco Aironet 1200 Series
Intelligent Enterprise Services at a Lower Total Cost Outstanding Enterprise Performance and Greatest Flexibility
Single 802.11b radio (upgradable to 802.11g with Advanced Encryption Standard (AES)) Dual-mode 802.11a and 802.11b support (upgradable to 802.11g with Advanced Encryption Standard (AES))
Integrated diversity dipole antennas for simplified deployment Two 2.4 GHz antenna connectors for high gain diversity antennas integrated 5 GHz antennas
Indoor environmental specifications, durable plastic case Industrial environmental specifications, rugged metal case
Extra memory and system capacity for future releases Extra memory and system capacity for future releases
Inline and Local Power Inline and Local Power
Cisco IOS-based operating system Cisco IOS operating system
QOS, VLANs, and Proxy Mobile IP QOS, VLANs, and Proxy Mobile IP
10
Bridges BR350

• BR350 is designed to connect two or more
  networks, typically located in different
  buildings.
• The BR350 wireless bridges provide up to 11 Mbps
  speed.
• The bridge is ideal for indoor or outdoor
  installations subject to plenum rating and harsh
  environments.

11
Bridges WGB350

• Cisco Aironet 350 Series Workgroup Bridge
  (WGB350) quickly connects up to eight
  Ethernet-enabled laptops or other portable
  computers to a wireless WLAN, providing an 11
  Mbps link from these devices to any Cisco Aironet
  802.11b AP or Wireless Bridge.
• This bridge is for indoor use only.

12
Bridges 1400

• Cisco Aironet 1400 Series Bridge operates at
  speeds up to 54 Mbps.
• High-performance 801.11a wireless bridge designed
  to connect multiple LANs in a metro area.
• The 1400 can only operate outdoors in a fixed
  point-to-point or point-to-multipoint
  application.

13
Cisco Aironet Wireless Bridging Solutions
Cisco Aironet 350 Series Cisco Aironet 1400 Series
Wireless Bridging at a Lower Total Cost Wireless Bridging with high performance
Single 802.11b radio with data rates up to 11 Mbps Single 802.11a radio with data rates up to 54 Mbps
3 miles typical point to point range with directional antennas at 11 Mbps 7.5 miles typical point to point range with directional antennas at 54 Mbps
Two 2.4 GHz antenna connectors for high gain diversity antennas Single 5.8 GHz integrated patch array antenna or antenna connector for remote antennas
Indoor industrial environmental specifications, rugged metal case Outdoor environmental specifications, tested to NEMA 4
Inline and Local Power Inline Power via Power Injector LR
VxWorks based operating system Cisco IOS operating system
QOS, VLANs, and Proxy Mobile IP QOS, VLANs, and Proxy Mobile IP
Statistics via telnet Antenna Alignment feedback via LEDs and RSSI port and statistics via telnet
14
Antennas

• A variety of optional 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz antennas
  are available for Cisco wireless devices.
  Antennas should be chosen carefully to ensure
  that optimum range and coverage is obtained
• Coupling the right antenna with the right AP
  allows for efficient coverage in any facility, as
  well as better reliability at higher data rates.
• A detailed coverage of antennas will be provided
  later in the course.

15
Antennas

• Indoor and Outdoor
• WLAN and Bridging

• Outdoor
• Bridging

• 2.4 GHz

• 5 GHz

16
Beyond LaptopsOther 802.11-Enabled Devices
HP iPAQ 5450 PDA
Epson Printer

• PDAs
• Phones
• Printers
• Projectors
• Tablet PCs
• Security Cameras
• Barcode scanners
• Custom devices for vertical markets
• Healthcare
• Manufacturing
• Retail
• Restaurants

Compaq Tablet PC
SpectraLink Phone
HHP Barcode Scanner
Sharp M25X Projector
17
Business-Classvs Consumer WLAN

• Industry has segmented consumer vs. business
• Cisco offers only business-class products
• Security
• Upgradeability
• Network management
• Advanced features
• Choice of antennas
• Highest throughput
• Scalability

18
Consumer wireless products

• There is a real difference in functionality and
  administrative capabilities between
  Business-class and Consumer wireless products.

19
Wireless LAN Topologies
20
Wireless LAN Topologies

• Without a wireless alternative, organizations
  frequently resort to wide area networking (WAN)
  technologies to link together separate
  facilities.
• Contracting for leased-line or other wide-area
  services often presents a variety of drawbacks
• Installation is typically expensive and rarely
  immediate
• Monthly fees are often quite high for bandwidth
• A wireless bridge can typically be purchased and
  installed in a day with no recurring charges.

21
Wireless LAN Market
22
Implications

• Over the last decade, the networking and wireless
  communities expected each year to become the year
  of the WLAN.
• WLAN technology had some false starts in the
  1990s, for a variety of reasons. Immature
  technology, security concerns, and slow
  connectivity speeds kept WLAN technology from
  becoming a viable alternative to wired LANs.

23
WLAN growth and applications
Dont know the source of this and there is
considerable debate whether 802.11a will win out
over 802.11b/g
24
Momentum is Building in Wireless LANs

• Wireless LANs are an addictive technology
• Strong commitment to Wireless LANs by technology
  heavy-weights
• Cisco, IBM, Intel, Microsoft
• Embedded market is growing
• Laptop PCs with wireless inside
• PDAs are next
• The WLAN market is expanding
  from Industry-Specific Applications,
  to Universities, Homes, Offices
• Professional installers and technicians
  will be in demand

25
Wireless LANs Are Taking Off

• Future Growth Due To
• Standards
• High Bandwidth Needs
• Low Cost
• Embedded in Laptops
• Variety of Devices
• Voice Data
• Multiple Applications
• Security Issues Solved
• Ease of Deployment
• Network Mgmt. Tools
• Enterprise Adoption

Worldwide WLAN Market
includes embedded clients, add-on client cards,
infrastructure equipment for both the business
and consumer segments
( Billions)
CAGR 43
Source Forward Concepts, 2003
26
Four main requirements for a WLAN solution

• High availability High availability is achieved
  through system redundancy and proper
  coverage-area design.
• Scalability Scalability is accomplished by
  supporting multiple APs per coverage area, which
  use multiple frequencies. APs can also perform
  load balancing, if desired.
• Manageability Diagnostic tools represent a
  large portion of management within WLANs.
  Customers should be able to manage WLAN devices
  through industry standard APIs, including SNMP
  and Web, or through major enterprise management
  applications like CiscoWorks 2000, Cisco Stack
  Manager, and Cisco Resource Monitor.
• Open architecture Openness is achieved through
  adherence to standards such as 802.11a and
  802.11b, participation in interoperability
  associations such as the Wi-Fi Alliance, and
  certification such as U.S. FCC certification.

27
Other requirements

• Security It is essential to encrypt data
  packets transmitted through the air. For larger
  installations, centralized user authentication
  and centralized management of encryption keys are
  also required.
• Cost Customers expect continued reductions in
  price of 15 to 30 percent each year, and
  increases in performance and security. Customers
  are concerned not only with purchase price but
  also with total cost of ownership (TCO),
  including costs for installation.

28
Challenges and Issues
29
Radio Signal Interference

• Network managers must ensure that different
  channels are utilized.
• Interference cannot always be detected until the
  link is actually implemented.
• Because the 802.11 standards use unlicensed
  spectrum, changing channels is the best way to
  avoid interference.
• If someone installs a link that interferes with a
  wireless link, the interference is probably
  mutual.

30
Radio Signal Interference

• Many other devices such as portable phones,
  microwave ovens, wireless speakers, and security
  devices, also use these frequencies.
• It is possible for electromagnetic interference
  (EMI) to be generated by non-radio equipment
  operating in close proximity to the Cisco Aironet
  WLAN equipment.
• While it is theoretically possible for this
  interference to directly affect the reception and
  transmission of signals, it is more likely to
  affect the components of the transmitter.
• To minimize the possible effects of EMI, the best
  course of action is to isolate the radio
  equipment from potential sources of EMI.

31
Power Consumption

• Power consumption is always an issue with
  laptops, because the power and the battery have
  limited lives.
• 802.11a uses a higher frequency (5 GHz) than
  802.11a/g (2.4 GHz) which requires higher power
  and more of a drain on batteries.

32
Interoperability

• Non-standard (for now) 802.11 devices include
• Repeater APs
• Universal Clients (Workgroup Bridges)
• Wireless Bridges
• Cisco bridges, like many other vendor bridges,
  are proprietary implementations of the 802.11
  standard and therefore vendor interoperability
  cannot be attained.

33
Wireless LAN Security Lessons
War Driving
Hacking into WEP
Lessons

• Security must be turned on (part of the
  installation process)

• Employees will install WLAN equipment on their
  own (compromises security of your entire network)

• WEP keys can be easily broken (businesses need
  better security)

34
Wireless LAN Security

• Security in the IEEE 802.11 specificationwhich
  applies to 802.11b, 802.11a, and 802.11ghas come
  under intense scrutiny.
• Researchers have exposed several vulnerabilities.
• As wireless networks grow, the threat of
  intruders from the inside and outside is great.
• Attackers called war drivers are continually
  driving around searching for insecure WLANs to
  exploit.

35
Wireless LAN Security

• The IEEE enhanced Wired Equivalent Privacy (WEP)
  with Temporal Key Integrity Protocol (TKIP) which
  provides robust authentication options with
  802.1x to make 802.11-based wireless LANs secure.
  
• We will also look at WPA (WiFi Protected Access,
  TKIP MIC)
• At the same time, the IEEE is looking for
  stronger encryption mechanisms.
• The IEEE has adopted the use of the Advanced
  Encryption Standard (AES) to the data-privacy
  section of the proposed 802.11i standard.

36
Reliability and Connectivity

• Wireless LANs include mechanisms to improve the
  reliability of the packet transmissions to be at
  least the same level as wired Ethernet.
• Using the TCP/IP protocols will help protect the
  network against any loss or corruption of data
  over the air.
• Most WLAN systems use spread-spectrum technology
  or orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing
  (OFDM).We will look at these in much more detail
  later.
• Too much to go into right now.

37
Installation and Site Design IssuesBridging
38
Installation and Site Design IssuesWLAN
39
Health Issues
40
IEEE 802.11 Standards Activities

• 802.11a 5GHz, 54Mbps
• 802.11b 2.4GHz, 11Mbps
• 802.11d Multiple regulatory domains
• 802.11e Quality of Service (QoS)
• 802.11f Inter-Access Point Protocol (IAPP)
• 802.11g 2.4GHz, 54Mbps
• 802.11h Dynamic Frequency Selection (DFS) and
  Transmit Power Control (TPC)
• 802.11i Security
• 802.11j Japan 5GHz Channels (4.9-5.1 GHz)
• 802.11k Measurement