Wireless Networking 1: Integration & Troubleshooting — A 5 Day Course

 Open Public Course Closed In-House Course

Synopsis

During this 5 day instructor led course delegates will learn how to extend the network and support mobile users through wireless networking. Students will cover delivering and supporting wireless networks through detailed course discussion and a broad range of hands-on configuration and testing exercises, basic security principles and troubleshooting techniques, whilst gaining a full understanding of how radio frequency affects networking so you can perform site surveys, enable wireless access to the LAN, and deploy wireless mesh networks.

Course Objectives

On completion, delegates will understand:

• Radio frequency properties, behaviours, regulations and how they affect networking
• Wireless standards, including 802.11 extensions a, b, g, e, f, i, and n
• Security principles for eliminating unauthorized access and ensuring data privacy, including Wi-Fi Protected Access 2 (WPA2) & 802.1x/EAP
• Troubleshooting tips to common real-world 802.11a/b/g issues
• Applications, devices & infrastructure driving wireless network implementation
• Feasibility, benefits, potential problems with Wi-Fi mesh networking
• General parameters for performing a successful site survey, along with software tools that reduce time and expense

Intended Audience

This course is aimed at Administrators, Support professionals, Designers, Developers, Consultants and Decision makers.

Pre-Requisites

The skills and knowledge required for a delegate to sit this course are as follows

• TCP/IP Networking

Publicly scheduled dates, locations, and prices

Contents

Wireless Data Communications

• The need for wireless applications
• Wireless technologies
• Infared, Bluetooth, Zigbee
• Wireless USB
• RFID, Wi-Fi & WiMAX
• Proprietary technologies
• Access methods

Wi-Fi Basics

• Organizations
• 802.11 and Wi-Fi
• DSSS & OFDM, MIMO antennas
• Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA)
• Wi-Fi Multimedia (WMM)
• Equipment and software
• Access point, Controller
• Wireless router
• Other infrastructure equipment
• Mini-PCI adapter & PC card adapter
• Other end-user adapters
• Residential end-user devices
• Native OS
• Specific adapter
• Third-party
• Channel options

Network Integration

• Extending the network wirelessly
• Industry-specific Wi-Fi applications
• Public access

Connection Problems

• Signal strength
• Milliwatts
• dBm & dBi
• Roaming
• Predictive loss measurements
• Omnidirectional & Directional
• Service Set Identifier (SSID) configuration
• SSID hiding

Issue Resolution

• Supporting remote users
• Basic software tools
• Available access points
• Security requirements
• Signal strength
• Co-channel and adjacent channel interference
• Infrastructure optimization

Security Standards

• Legacy 802.11 standards
• 802.11i standards

Additional Security Methods

• SSID hiding
• MAC address filtering
• Push-button

Link Budgets

• Composition of a link budget
• Determining a theoretical link budget
• RF simulation software
• Relationship of link budgets to data rates

Radio Frequency Math

• Transmitter power
• Milliwatt-to-dBm conversion
• The rule of 10s and 3s

Antennas

• Antenna operation & Antenna types
• Coverage patterns, Mounting
• Multiple Input/Multiple Output (MIMO) operation

RF Attenuation

• Free Space Path Loss (FSPL)
• Obstructions
• Fresnel Zone blockage

Environmental Effects

• Interference / Multipath

Modulation and Coding

• DSSS and OFDM

Channel Selection

• 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz

CSMA/CA (Collision Avoidance)

• Half-duplex, shared wireless medium
• Backoff operation to avoid collisions
• Acknowledgments, Retransmissions

Increasing Performance

• Data rate selection, Picocells
• Multi-radio access points, Virtual cells

Site Survey

• Preparation, Simulation tools
• Live surveying tools & Reporting
• Spot checks

End-User Devices

• Device limitations
• Handling 802.11b-only devices
• Auditing and accounting of devices

Access Points

• Basic access point operation
• Association and disassociation
• Standalone & Controller-managed

Controllers (WLAN Switches)

• Controller types
• Security and performance enhancements

Mesh Routers

• Outdoor & Indoor

Site Survey Software

• Simulation tools & Live surveying

Monitoring Software

• Intrusion protection systems
• Protocol analyzers
• Connection & performance problems
• Security evaluation
• Handheld & Laptop
• Distributed, Spectrum analyzers