How WLANs Work?

In a typical WLAN, a transmitter/receiver (transceiver) device, called an access point,

is normally physically connected to the wired network using standard cabling. At a

minimum, the access point receives, buffers, and transmits data between the WLAN and

the wired network infrastructure, using radio frequencies to transmit data to each user.

A single access point can support a small group of users, normally within a range of up

to 100 meters depending on the local environment.

To access a WLAN via the access point, users need a computer with a wireless

network interface card (NIC) either built in or installed. A wireless NIC can be inserted

into the PCMCIA slot of a computer, laptop, or handheld device. Wireless NIC cards can

also be installed into the PCI expansion slot of a desktop computer. In either case,

the necessary software drivers should also be installed. It is also possible to create a

peer-to-peer network—joining two or more computers together simply by installing a

wireless NIC in each machine. Equally, it is possible for one of the computers in the

peer-to-peer network to be joined to a LAN and to provide Internet access for the other

computers in the network.

How WLANs Work