3Com 3CRWE20096A User Guide - Page 21

A WIRELESS LAN BASICS 3Com wireless systems let you simply and confidently extend network information and applications to difficult-to-wire locations and to your mobile workforce, making your business more productive, competitive and successful. How Does a Wireless LAN Work? In a traditional local area network (LAN), computers communicate through wires. Instead of wires, a wireless LAN uses radio signals to communicate. Network Association Computers that are equipped for wireless LAN communication are called wireless LAN clients. The wireless communication is called network association. Clients associate through one or more access points, which are wireless base stations that act as wireless hubs. An access point can be connected to a wired network device such as an Ethernet hub, switch, or router to give clients access to the wired network where they can share files and printers and gain access to the Internet. Roaming If the office space is large, you can set up multiple access points on the same network to increase coverage. When a wireless client begins to lose the signal as it moves away from an access point, it can reassociate seamlessly with another access point. This is called roaming. Security You can set up security to encrypt your wireless transmissions so that your data cannot be deciphered if it is intercepted, and to prevent access to the network by unauthorized clients. Ad Hoc Networks Wireless clients can associate among themselves at close range without an access point by using ad hoc (temporary) networks. You may wish to set up an ad hoc network, for example, if a group is working away from the office, or if a group in the office needs to share files apart from the LAN.