3Com 3CRWE20096A User Guide - Page 22

22 CHAPTER A: WIRELESS LAN BASICS Setting Up a 3Com Wireless LAN The type of network you decide to set up depends on the size of your office and whether or not you require connection to a wired LAN. You can also set up security for each of the different types of networks. Your setup will probably resemble one or more of the following examples. (The illustrations in the examples show a 3Com Access Point 6000, but they apply to any 3Com 11 Mbps Wireless LAN access point.) All Wireless Networks The simplest 3Com wireless LAN consists of several clients associating in an ad hoc network without an access point. A simple configuration consists of one access point and several clients. The clients can associate with the wireless network anywhere within the coverage area of the access point. The access point is not connected to any other network segments. POWER WIRELESS ETHERNET For more complex requirements, you can configure several access points as separate networks at the same site. The access points use different network identifiers called wireless LAN service areas (WLAN service areas, also called Extended Service Set Identities or ESSID). Clients can roam within the coverage areas of access points that have the same WLAN service areas. They cannot roam to the coverage areas of access points that are configured with different WLAN service areas. Wired/Wireless Networks An access point can be connected to a wired LAN with an Ethernet cable to create a mixed wired/wireless network. In this configuration, the access point provides the link between the wired network and wireless clients. Clients can move freely throughout the service area of the access point and remain associated with the larger network for services such as printing and Internet access.