User Manual

Professional Access Point
Administrator Guide
Wireless Distribution System - 145
a primary path via Ethernet and a secondary (backup) wireless path via a WDS link. If the Ethernet
connection goes down, STP would reconfigure its map of the network and effectively fix the down network
segment by activating the backup wireless path.
The Professional Access Point does not provide STP. Without STP, it is possible that both connections, or
paths, may be active at the same time, resulting in an endless loop of traffic on the LAN.
Therefore, be sure not create loops with either WDS bridges or combinations of Wired (Ethernet)
connections and WDS bridges.
For more information, see the "Do not create loops" note under “Configuring WDS Settings” on page 146.
Security Considerations Related to WDS Bridges
Static Wired Equivalent Privacy (WEP) is a data encryption protocol for 802.11 wireless networks. Both
access points in a given WDS link must be configured with the same security settings. For static WEP,
either a static 64-bit (40-bit secret key + 24-bit initialization vector (IV)) or 128-bit (104-bit secret key + 24-
bit IV) Shared Key is specified for data encryption.
You can enable Static WEP on the WDS link (bridge). When WEP is enabled, all data exchanged between
the two access points in a WDS link is encrypted using a fixed WEP key that you provide.
Static WEP is the only security mode available for the WDS link, and it does not provide effective data
protection to the level of other security modes available for service to clients. If you use WDS on a LAN
intended for secure wireless traffic you are putting your network at risk. Therefore, USRobotics
recommends using WDS to bridge the Guest network only. Do not use WDS to bridge access points on the
Internal network unless you are not concerned about the security risk for data traffic on that network.
For more information about the effectiveness of different security modes, see “Security” on page 91. This
topic also covers use of None as the security mode for access-point-to-station traffic on the Guest network,
which is intended for less sensitive data traffic.
Navigating to WDS Settings
To specify the details of traffic exchange from this access point to others, click the Advanced menu’s
Wireless Distribution System tab, and update the fields as described below.