1. Home
    2. /
  2. Manuals
    3. /
  3. Zyxel
    4. /
  4. P-870HN-51b
    5. /
  5. 23
Page 111 / 382 Scroll up to view Page 106 - 110
P-870HN-51b User’s Guide
111
C
HAPTER
7
Wireless LAN
7.1
Overview
This chapter describes how to perform tasks related to setting up and optimizing
your wireless network, including the following.
•
Turning the wireless connection on or off.
•
Configuring a name, wireless channel and security for the network.
•
Using WiFi Protected Setup (WPS) to configure your wireless network.
•
Using a MAC (Media Access Control) address filter to restrict access to the
wireless network.
See
Chapter 2 on page 27
for a tutorial showing how to set up your wireless
connection in an example scenario.
See
Section 7.10 on page 131
for advanced technical information on wireless
networks.
7.1.1
What You Can Do in this Chapter
This chapter describes the Device’s
Network > Wireless LAN
screens. Use these
screens to set up your Device’s wireless connection.
• The
General
screen lets you turn the wireless connection on or off, set up
wireless security and make other basic configuration changes (
Section 7.4 on
page 115
). You can also configure the MAC filter to allow or block access to the
Device based on the MAC addresses of the wireless stations.
• The
More AP
screen lets you set up multiple wireless networks on your Device
(
Section 7.5 on page 124
).
•
Use the
WPS
screen and the
WPS Station
screen to use WiFi Protected Setup
(WPS). WPS lets you set up a secure network quickly, when connecting to other
WPS-enabled devices.
Use the
WPS
screen (see
Section 7.6 on page 125
) to enable or disable WPS,
generate a security PIN (Personal Identification Number) and see information
about the Device’s WPS status.
Use the
WPS Station
(see
Section 7.7 on page 126
)
screen to set up WPS by
pressing a button or using a PIN.
Page 112 / 382
Chapter 7 Wireless LAN
P-870HN-51b User’s Guide
112
• The
WDS
screen lets you set up a Wireless Distribution System, in which the
Device acts as a bridge with other ZyXEL access points (
Section 7.8 on page
127
).
• The
Advanced Setup
screen lets you change the wireless mode, and make
other advanced wireless configuration changes (
Section 7.9 on page 129
).
You don’t necessarily need to use all these screens to set up your wireless
connection. For example, you may just want to set up a network name, a wireless
radio channel and some security in the
General
screen.
7.2
What You Need to Know
Wireless Basics
“Wireless” is essentially radio communication. In the same way that walkie-talkie
radios send and receive information over the airwaves, wireless networking
devices exchange information with one another. A wireless networking device is
just like a radio that lets your computer exchange information with radios
attached to other computers. Like walkie-talkies, most wireless networking
devices operate at radio frequency bands that are open to the public and do not
require a license to use. However, wireless networking is different from that of
most traditional radio communications in that there a number of wireless
networking standards available with different methods of data encryption.
Wireless Network Construction
Wireless networks consist of wireless clients, access points and bridges.
•
A wireless client is a radio connected to a user’s computer.
•
An access point is a radio with a wired connection to a network, which can
connect with numerous wireless clients and let them access the network.
•
A bridge is a radio that relays communications between access points and
wireless clients, extending a network’s range.
Traditionally, a wireless network operates in one of two ways.
•
An “infrastructure” type of network has one or more access points and one or
more wireless clients.
The wireless clients connect to the access points.
•
An “ad-hoc” type of network is one in which there is no access point. Wireless
clients connect to one another in order to exchange information.
Network Names
Each network must have a name, referred to as the SSID - “Service Set
IDentifier”. The “service set” is the network, so the “service set identifier” is the
Page 113 / 382
Chapter 7 Wireless LAN
P-870HN-51b User’s Guide
113
network’s name. This helps you identify your wireless network when wireless
networks’ coverage areas overlap and you have a variety of networks to choose
from.
Radio Channels
In the radio spectrum, there are certain frequency bands allocated for unlicensed,
civilian use. For the purposes of wireless networking, these bands are divided into
numerous channels. This allows a variety of networks to exist in the same place
without interfering with one another. When you create a network, you must select
a channel to use.
Since the available unlicensed spectrum varies from one country to another, the
number of available channels also varies.
Wireless Security
By their nature, radio communications are simple to intercept. For wireless data
networks, this means that anyone within range of a wireless network without
security can not only read the data passing over the airwaves, but also join the
network. Once an unauthorized person has access to the network s/he can either
steal information or introduce malware (malicious software) intended to
compromise the network. For these reasons, a variety of security systems have
been developed to ensure that only authorized people can use a wireless data
network, or understand the data carried on it.
These security standards do two things. First, they authenticate. This means that
only people presenting the right credentials (often a username and password, or a
“key” phrase) can access the network. Second, they encrypt. This means that the
information sent over the air is encoded. Only people with the code key can
understand the information, and only people who have been authenticated are
given the code key.
These security standards vary in effectiveness. Some can be broken, such as the
old Wired Equivalent Protocol (WEP). Using WEP is better than using no security at
all, but it will not keep a determined attacker out. Other security standards are
secure in themselves but can be broken if a user does not use them properly. For
example, the WPA-PSK security standard is perfectly secure if you use a long key
which is difficult for an attacker’s software to guess - for example, a twenty-letter
long string of apparently random numbers and letters - but it is not very secure if
you use a short key which is very easy to guess - for example, a three-letter word
from the dictionary.
Because of the damage that can be done by a malicious attacker, it’s not just
people who have sensitive information on their network who should use security.
Everybody who uses any wireless network should ensure that effective security is
in place.
Page 114 / 382
Chapter 7 Wireless LAN
P-870HN-51b User’s Guide
114
A good way to come up with effective security keys, passwords and so on is to use
obscure information that you personally will easily remember, and to enter it in a
way that appears random and does not include real words. For example, if your
mother owns a 1970 Dodge Challenger and her favorite movie is Vanishing Point
(which you know was made in 1971) you could use “70dodchal71vanpoi” as your
security key.
Signal Problems
Because wireless networks are radio networks, their signals are subject to
limitations of distance, interference and absorption.
Problems with distance occur when the two radios are too far apart. Problems with
interference occur when other radio waves interrupt the data signal. Interference
may come from other radio transmissions, such as military or air traffic control
communications, or from machines that are coincidental emitters such as electric
motors or microwaves. Problems with absorption occur when physical objects
(such as thick walls) are between the two radios, muffling the signal.
7.3
Before You Begin
Before you start using these screens, ask yourself the following questions. See
Section 7.2 on page 112
if some of the terms used here do not make sense to
you.
•
What wireless standards do the other wireless devices support (IEEE 802.11g,
for example)? What is the most appropriate standard to use?
•
What security options do the other wireless devices support (WPA-PSK, for
example)? What is the best one to use?
•
Do the other wireless devices support WPS (Wi-Fi Protected Setup)? If so, you
can set up a well-secured network very easily.
Even if some of your devices support WPS and some do not, you can use WPS to
set up your network and then add the non-WPS devices manually, although this
is somewhat more complicated to do.
•
What advanced options do you want to configure, if any? If you want to
configure advanced options, ensure that you know precisely what you want to
do. If you do not want to configure advanced options, leave them alone.
Page 115 / 382
Chapter 7 Wireless LAN
P-870HN-51b User’s Guide
115
7.4
The General Screen
Note: If you are configuring the Device from a computer connected to the wireless
LAN and you change the Device’s SSID or security settings, you will lose your
wireless connection when you press
Apply
to confirm. You must then change
the wireless settings of your computer to match the Device’s new settings.
Click
Network > Wireless LAN
to open the
General
screen.
Figure 51
Network > Wireless LAN > General
The following table describes the labels in this screen.
Table 25
Network > Wireless LAN > General
LABEL
DESCRIPTION
Active
Wireless LAN
Click the check box to activate wireless LAN.
Channel
Selection
Set the operating frequency/channel depending on your particular region.
Either select a channel or use
Auto
to have the Device automatically
determine a channel to use. If you are having problems with wireless
interference, changing the channel may help. Try to use a channel that is
as many channels away from any channels used by neighboring APs as
possible.
The channel number which the Device is currently using then
displays next to this field.

Rate

3.5 / 5 based on 2 votes.

Popular Zyxel Models

Famous Router IPs
Famous Router Companies
Bookmark Our Site

Press Ctrl + D to add this site to your favorites!

Share
Top