ChasingBlueSky 0 #1 April 18, 2003 Finally setup my 802.11g network tonight. Have it nice and locked down with MAC filtering and 128bit WEP. Sitting on another floor with my laptop at the other end of the house from the AP listening to the music on my home PC system with full signal strength while surfing DZ.com (the house is actually an 80 year old two-flat wood frame with plaster walls). Think it took me about 20 minutes to get the whole thing up and working. Since I am new to the wireless world - I wanted to get some advice from my fellow techies out there. Outside of WEP and MAC filters, do you use anything else for wireless security? Also - what programs do you use for wireless network searching while on the road? Anything else cool you do with your setup? Any other power tools I should know of?_________________________________________ you can burn the land and boil the sea, but you can't take the sky from me.... I WILL fly again..... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Cornholio 0 #2 April 18, 2003 With consumer based wireless - 802.11a/b/g there isn't much available out there for security besides WEP And MAC filtering. However Cisco products have a security mechanism that is mostly used by them called LEAP. It is a form of EAP, that is not widely used - yet. It used NT domain authentication as one way of authenticating users. If you're using it at home, I wouldn't worry about security too much. Wep is actually pretty weak, but MAC filtering is your best bet unless someone sniffs your MAC and spoofs it. At home I use WEP and MAC filtering too. There is some software out there for wireless snooping - Boingo and netstumbler. NS is probably the most widely used for war chalking/driving but you need an Orinico or Lucent based Wireless card for it to work. Check out www.netstumbler.com for more info. I've recently been looking into helping start a wireless community where I live, so I may be able to provide some advice. Here's a good Yahoo group to get you started with more info and lots of links and good info...http://groups.yahoo.com/group/wirelesslan/ Butthead: Whoa! Burritos for breakfast! Beavis: Yeah! Yeah! Cool! bellyflier on the dz.com hybrid record jump Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ChasingBlueSky 0 #3 April 18, 2003 I'm thinking of setting up a 2000 Adv Server at home with VPN. Is there anyway to setup the AP for authentication within AD?_________________________________________ you can burn the land and boil the sea, but you can't take the sky from me.... I WILL fly again..... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Cornholio 0 #4 April 18, 2003 Sure. Buy a Cisco AP, and it uses LEAP that will interface with AD (server, right?) I am not sure how it is setup, but we use them all over campus at work. Butthead: Whoa! Burritos for breakfast! Beavis: Yeah! Yeah! Cool! bellyflier on the dz.com hybrid record jump Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
indyz 1 #5 April 18, 2003 Basically, WEP is only acceptable is you want to stop the kid down the street from sniffing your packets. Governments and corporate spies have the resources to break it in a rather short time period. I would consider setting up encrypted IP tunnelling over the wireless link. Intel's guide is targeted toward a coporate audience and is light on technical details, but is a good jumping off point. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ChasingBlueSky 0 #6 April 18, 2003 You mean set up IPSec? Eh, don't feel like messing with that too much yet. Gonna have to pass on the Cisco AP for now - costs too much and they only support a and b for the moment. They are scheduled to release the g stuff by the end of the year when it moves out of draft stage and bcomes an official spec. By the way - did you see that someone just came out with a dual a/g device?_________________________________________ you can burn the land and boil the sea, but you can't take the sky from me.... I WILL fly again..... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sangiro 4 #7 April 18, 2003 Hey Matt, I don't a damn thing about consumer based wireless but plan to make a little acquisition (maybe even this weekend) to get this going in my apt. What's the difference between a, b an g? Also, I have a few notebooks (no desk top) - should I expect to see 11 mbps only or is there hope for anything faster. Also, I heard a rumor that 2.4 Ghz cordless phones can interfere with these networks? Any truth to that?Safe swoops Sangiro Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Clownburner 0 #8 April 18, 2003 Here is a nice comparison of A vs. B vs. G. A and G can both do 53Mbps, and some B equipment can do 22Mbps in a proprietary 'turbo' mode. Yes, some 2.4Ghz phones (especially DSS phones) might cause interference with B or G, but it's unlikely to be a serious problem.7CP#1 | BTR#2 | Payaso en fuego Rodriguez "I want hot chicks in my boobies!"- McBeth Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
quade 3 #9 April 18, 2003 802.11g is the faster version and can support, in theory, 54mbps AND is backward compatable with 802.11b which is fairly widespread (places like airports and Starbucks) -- again, in theory, you could stream DV25 (the kind we use in our miniDV cameras) from a desktop server to a laptop. That'd be pretty freekin' cool if you could actually get it to do it.quade - The World's Most Boring Skydiver Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Craig 0 #10 April 18, 2003 Quote Hey Matt, I don't a damn thing about consumer based wireless but plan to make a little acquisition (maybe even this weekend) to get this going in my apt. What's the difference between a, b an g? Also, I have a few notebooks (no desk top) - should I expect to see 11 mbps only or is there hope for anything faster. Also, I heard a rumor that 2.4 Ghz cordless phones can interfere with these networks? Any truth to that? Hey big guy, did you search the archives? I am in the same situation of getting ready to go wireless in a few weeks. Here is a post with a little info http://www.dropzone.com/cgi-bin/forum/gforum.cgi?post=414025;search_string=wireless;#414025. Personally I think I am going to go with a 802.11b network using a wireless access point. With an access point you can upgrade it later. If you were to buy a Router, switch, AP combo, (such as Linksys for example) and upgrade, your paying for stuff that you don't need. If you have a router/switch it is not likely to need anything more than firmware upgrades. When the technology changes, just get the new access point and wireless card if needed. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sangiro 4 #11 April 19, 2003 Good deal. Thanks all. That's enough info for me to decide. Safe swoops Sangiro Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Cornholio 0 #12 April 19, 2003 Quote Good deal. Thanks all. That's enough info for me to decide. Yeah....um what they all said Butthead: Whoa! Burritos for breakfast! Beavis: Yeah! Yeah! Cool! bellyflier on the dz.com hybrid record jump Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
riddler 0 #13 April 19, 2003 I have 2.4 Gig phone (B&O - 3 of 'em Don't waste your time with A - it isn't supported much outside of Sony. The G standard looks promising. I would go with that if I was buying all new right now. It's pretty expensive, tho. Trapped on the surface of a sphere. XKCD Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jerm 0 #14 April 19, 2003 Quote And you will never see 11Mbs on your link. On a good day (sitting next to the AP) I see about 4-5 MBs. of course... the signal is half-duplex (only one side can speak at a time.. like a walkie-talkie)... So fi yuo're getting 5 out of it in one direction you're actually doing pretty well. Landing without injury is not necessarily evidence that you didn't fuck up... it just means you got away with it this time Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ChasingBlueSky 0 #15 April 19, 2003 Well, after looking at Linksys last night, I see that they have a few A and G solutions coming out. This would then cover all three protocols for you. Keep an eye on www.pricewatch.com or www.techbargains.com to find the cheapest place to buy them. The benifit to 802.11a is that it allows more connections in one room and has more bandwidth than 802.11b. A simple workgroup wouldn't need that, only if you were in a domain environment (with repeaters since the signal doesn't go very far). 802.11b has been adapted by most hotspots due to cost, but it doesn't do as well thru solid objects. 802.11b is great with high gain attenaes - Para Concepts has covered all of Skydive Chicago with 802.11b and it works great. However, flat metal surfaces (like a trailer) can be an issue if you do not have a direct line of site setup (more repeaters is the easiest way to fix this). You can also purchase 802.11b signal boosters for the retail stuff. 802.11g is still in draft form, and will become official by Q3 with Cisco shipping devices by the end of Q3. Howerver, it is pretty much a given that the draft is not going to change. ALL 802.11g devices MUST be bacwards compliant with 802.11b and be able to work in that mixed mode environment (which means at the least, you have an 802.11b network). 802.11g also has the faster bandwidth like 802.11a, and has the ability to go farther and thru more objects. I took my 802.11g laptop everywhere in my apartment and had an average of 46Mbps. For the most part, I get the full 54Mbps anywhere I want. Compared to my wired network, it only took a minute or two longer to download the new 1024*768 Matrix trailer via wireless. Just before sunset, I went into the backyard to surf the net while watching planes take off (yup, I live that close to Midway airport). I had a constant connection of 36Mbps connection despite the brick walls with siding on them and was able to play a video game over the internet as well. The 802.11b AP and routers should be upgradable via firmware in theory since they both work on the 2.4Ghz band. However, I am being told that most companies will not offer this upgrade to help increase sales of the newer devices._________________________________________ you can burn the land and boil the sea, but you can't take the sky from me.... I WILL fly again..... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ChasingBlueSky 0 #16 April 19, 2003 My 900mhz phone is finally about to give out on me. I think I will just get one of those new 5Ghz DSS phones with the expandable base to prevent any possible interferance._________________________________________ you can burn the land and boil the sea, but you can't take the sky from me.... I WILL fly again..... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Magistr8 0 #17 April 19, 2003 I'm sorry for the last reply as well. After reading through all these posts I thought I would mention that 802.11A while it is supposed to be more of a secure alternative requires an adapter to work properly in a networked enviornment. Furthermore since the A protocol doesn't seem to be moving along with the same enthuiasm as b or even G, it would probably be a bad idea to go and pick up one of those cards. As for G, I've read some docs and just saw a little set on tech tv about this Very Thing . "Impossible is a word to be found only in the dictionary of fools." Napoleon Bonaparte Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sangiro 4 #18 April 23, 2003 Thanks for all the advice guys. Got myself a "g" and it's humming along quite nicely. Safe swoops Sangiro Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
