User Manual

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Cisco Aironet Wireless LAN Client Adapters Installation and Configuration Guide for Windows
OL-1394-06
Chapter 5 Configuring the Client Adapter
Setting Network Security Parameters
Using Static WEP
This section provides instructions for entering new static WEP keys or overwriting existing static WEP
keys.
Entering a New Static WEP Key
Follow the steps below to enter a new static WEP key for this profile.
Step 1 Select None from the Network Security Type drop-down box on the Network Security screen.
Step 2 Select Use Static WEP Keys under WEP.
Step 3 Select one of the following WEP key entry methods:
• Hexadecimal (0-9, A-F)—Specifies that the WEP key will be entered in hexadecimal characters,
which include 0-9, A-F, and a-f.
• ASCII Text—Specifies that the WEP key will be entered in ASCII text, which includes alpha
characters, numbers, and punctuation marks.
Note ASCII text WEP keys are not supported on the Cisco Aironet 1200 Series Access Points, so
you must select the Hexadecimal (0-9, A-F) option if you are planning to use your client
adapter with these access points.
Step 4 Select one of the following access point authentication options, which defines how your client adapter
will attempt to authenticate to an access point:
• Open Authentication—Enables your client adapter, regardless of its WEP settings, to authenticate
and attempt to communicate with an access point. Open Authentication is the default setting.
• Shared Key Authentication—Enables your client adapter to communicate only with access points
that have the same WEP key. This option is available only if Use Static WEP Keys is selected.
In shared key authentication, the access point sends a known unencrypted “challenge packet” to the
client adapter, which encrypts the packet and sends it back to the access point. The access point
attempts to decrypt the encrypted packet and sends an authentication response packet indicating the
success or failure of the decryption back to the client adapter. If the packet is successfully
encrypted/decrypted, the user is considered to be authenticated.
Note Cisco recommends that shared key authentication not be used because it presents a security
risk.
Step 5 For the static WEP key that you are entering (1, 2, 3, or 4), select a WEP key size of 40 or 128 on the
right side of the screen. 128-bit client adapters can use 40- or 128-bit keys, but 40-bit adapters can use
only 40-bit keys. If 128 bit is not supported by the client adapter, this option is unavailable.