12 Wireless network terms and concepts

Specifying your network

SSID (Service Set Identifier) and channels

You need to configure the SSID and a channel to specify the wireless network you want to connect to.

SSID

Each wireless network has its own unique network name and it is technically referred to as an SSID or ESSID (Extended Service Set Identifier). The SSID is a 32-byte or less value and is assigned to the access point. The wireless network devices you want to associate to the wireless network should match the access point. The access point and wireless network devices regularly send wireless packets (referred to as a beacon) which has the SSID information. When your wireless network device receives a beacon, you can identify the wireless network that is close enough for the radio waves to reach your device.

Channels

Wireless networks use channels. Each wireless channel is on a different frequency. There are up to 14 different channels that can be used when using a wireless network. However, in many countries the number of channels available are restricted.

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