Linksys WRT54GP2A-AT manual Introduction, Welcome

Wireless-G Broadband Router with 2 Phone Ports

Chapter 1: Introduction

Welcome

Thank you for choosing the Wireless-G Broadband Router with 2 Phone Ports. This Router can direct and control communications for your wired and wireless networks, sharing Internet access, files and fun, easily and securely. Plus, after you have set up your Internet phone service, make phone or fax calls using your Internet connection.

How does the Router do all of this? A router is a device that allows access to an Internet connection over a network. With the Wireless-G Broadband Router, this access can be shared over the four switched ports or via the wireless broadcast at either up to 11Mbps for Wireless-B or up to 54Mbps for Wireless-G. In addition, the WPA standard provides greater security opportunities while the whole network is protected through NAT technology. Full configurability, including these security features, are accessed through the easy-to-use, web-based utility.

But what does all of this mean?

Networks are useful tools for sharing Internet access and computer resources. Multiple computers can share Internet access, so you don’t need more than one high-speed Internet connection. After you set up your Internet phone service, you can also make Internet phone or fax calls, even while you’re surfing the Internet. Plus, you can access one printer from different computers and access data located on another computer’s hard drive. Networks are even used for playing multiplayer video games. All the while, the Router protects your networks from unauthorized and unwelcome users. So, networks not only are useful in homes and offices, but also can be fun.

PCs on a wired network create a LAN, or Local Area Network. They are connected with Ethernet cables, which is why the network is called “wired”.

PCs equipped with wireless cards or adapters can communicate without cumbersome cables. By sharing the same wireless settings, within their transmission radius, they form a wireless network, which is sometimes called a Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN). The Router bridges wireless networks of both 802.11b and 802.11g standards and wired networks, allowing them to communicate with each other.

To create your network, install and set up the Router. To guide you through the process, Linksys strongly recommends that you run the Setup Wizard on the Setup CD-ROM. If you prefer to manually set up the Router, use the instructions in the Quick Installation or this User Guide to help you. These instructions should be all you need to get the most out of the Wireless-G Broadband Router.

NOTE: If you want to sign up for Internet phone service or activate your account, visit http://www.att.com/linksys after you have installed and configured the Router. Refer to “Chapter 6: Signing up for AT&T CallVantagesm Service” for more information.

Chapter 1: Introduction

mbps: one million bits per second; a unit of measurement for data transmission

nat (network address translation): NAT technology translated IP addresses of a local area network to a different IP address for the Internet

wpa (wi-fi protected access): a wireless security protocol using TKIP (Temporal Key Integrity Protocol) encryption, which can be used in conjunction with a RADIUS server

browser: an application program that provides a way to look at and interact with all the information on the World Wide Web

lan (local area network): the computers and networking products that make up the network in your home or office

ethernet: an IEEE standard network protocol that specifies how data is placed on and retrieved from a common transmission medium

802.11b: an IEEE wireless networking standard that specifies a maximum data transfer rate of 11Mbps and an operating frequency of 2.4GHz

802.11g: an IEEE wireless networking standard that specifies a maximum data transfer rate of 54Mbps, an operating frequency of 2.4GHz, and backward compatibility with 802.11b devices

1

Welcome