NETGEAR WPN111 user manual WEP Overview, WEP Authentication, 802.1x, Cisco LEAP

Models: WPN111

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•802.1x

User Manual for the NETGEAR RangeMax™ Wireless USB 2.0 Adapter WPN111

802.1x

802.1x defines port-based, network access control used to provide authenticated network access and automated data encryption key management.

Cisco LEAP

Light Extensible Authentication Protocol (LEAP) is a proprietary 802.1x EAP method developed by Cisco for use on wireless networks that use Cisco 802.11 wireless devices. It features dynamic per user per session WEP keys.

These security technologies are discussed below.

WEP Overview

The absence of a physical connection between nodes makes the wireless links vulnerable to eavesdropping and information theft. To provide a certain level of security, the IEEE 802.11 standard has defined two types of authentication methods, Open System and Shared Key. With Open System authentication, a wireless PC can join any network and receive any messages that are not encrypted. With Shared Key authentication, only those PCs that possess the correct authentication key can join the network. By default, IEEE 802.11 wireless devices operate in an Open System network. Recently, Wi-Fi, the Wireless Ethernet Compatibility Alliance  (http://www.wi-fi.net) developed the Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA), a new strongly enhanced Wi-Fi security. WPA will soon be incorporated into the IEEE 802.11 standard. WEP and WPA are discussed below.

WEP Authentication

An access point must authenticate a station before the station can associate with the access point or communicate with the network. The IEEE 802.11 standard defines two types of WEP authentication: Open System and Shared Key.

Open System Authentication allows any device to join the network, assuming that the device SSID matches the access point SSID. Alternatively, the device can use the “ANY” SSID option to associate with any available access point within range, regardless of its SSID.

Shared Key Authentication requires that the station and the access point have the same WEP Key to authenticate. These two authentication procedures are described below.

The WEP Open System authentication process is illustrated in below.

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NETGEAR WPN111 user manual WEP Overview, WEP Authentication, 802.1x, Cisco LEAP