User's Manual

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Appendix A Glossary
Access Point - An internetworking device that seamlessly connects wired and wireless networks
together.
Ad Hoc - A peer- to-peer wireless network without Access Point. A group of wireless clients
consistent an independent wireless LAN.
backbone - The core infrastructure of a network, the portion of the network that transports
information from one central location to another central location. The information is then
off-loaded onto a local system.
BSS - Basic Service Set. An Access Point associated with several wireless stations.
ESS - Extended Service Set. More than one BSS can be configured as an Extended Service Set. An
ESS is basically a roaming domain.
ESSID –Extended Service Set Identifier. The length of the ESSID information is between 0 and 32
octets. A 0 length identifier indicates the broadcast SSID.
Ethernet - A popular local area data communications network, originally developed by Xerox
Corp., which accepts transmission from computers and terminals. Ethernet operates on 10/100
Mbps transmission rate over shielded coaxial cable or over shielded twisted pair telephone wire.
infrastructure - An integrated wireless and wired LAN is called an infrastructure configuration.
Roaming - A function that allows one to travel with a mobile end system (wireless LAN mobile
station, for example) through the territory of a domain (an ESS, for example) while continuously
connecting to the infrastructure.
SSID – Same as ESSID.
WEP –Wired Equivalent Privacy. The optional cryptographic confidentiality algorithm specified
by IEEE 802.11 used to provide data confidentiality that is subjectively equivalent to the
confidentiality of a wired local area network (LAN) medium that does not employ cryptographic
techniques to enhance privacy.