TABLE OF CONTENTS The deployment of a wireless local area network (WLAN) requires very little hardware. An ad hoc network only needs two computing devices, each equipped with a wireless network interface card (NIC). Add an access point (AP), and a bit of cabling, and you have a simple wireless infrastructure setup. Even a corporate WLAN, which may need sophisticated antenna equipment or an additional "box" here and there, still has the access point as its centerpiece.
However, as with many things in life, when the needs are few, sometimes making the right choice can be difficult. Only the WLAN deployment team knows which of the following components (including their various permutations) are necessary in order for the users of a specific WLAN to obtain an optimal wireless networking experience.
Selecting access points for deployment within a corporate WLAN system is complex. These devices, which are about the size of the typical office telephone, provide a wireless interface to the client devices and a wireline to the LAN. Up until the year 2002 or so, the technical differences between various vendors' access point products were minor. That's all changed. Today, access points run the gamut, including the following:
Simple RF receivers.
Sophisticated devices that provide RF excellence.
Intelligent instruments that not only offer great RF transmission and reception, but also can connect two network segments and keep traffic local by filtering...
