CONTENTS

 INTRODUCTION
 HISTORY
 MOTIVATION
 LITERATURE SURVEY
 CONCEPT
 ADVANTAGES
 DISADVANTAGES
 APPLICATIONS
 FUTURE SCOPE
 CONCLUSION
 REFERENCES

INTRODUCTION

Conventional Internet users have been bound to wired connections. Wireless

communications, however, have broken this restriction and provide ubiquitous access to the
Internet. In addition, increased flexibility strongly motivates wireless network technologies.
Today, the deployment of wireless local area networks (WLANs) is sometimes even more
economical and efficient than installing wired networks in a whole building. With promotion
of wireless networking technologies and their market, services and applications are growing
tremendously. The IEEE 802.11 standard for WLANs is one of the most widely adopted
standards for broadband wireless Internet access. However, security over a wireless
environment is more complicated than in a wired environment. Due to the wide open nature
of wireless radio, many attacks could make the network insecure. The IEEE 802.11 standard
has defined the following two basic security mechanisms for secure access to IEEE 802.11
networks:
• Entity authentication, including open system and shared key authentication
• Wired Equivalent Privacy (WEP) Both have proved to be vulnerable.
Wi-Fi, also spelled Wifi or WiFi, is a popular technology that allows an electronic device to
exchange data or connect to the internet wirelessly using radio waves. The Wi-Fi
Alliance defines Wi-Fi as any "wireless local area network (WLAN) products that are based
on the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers' (IEEE) 802.11 standards". However,
since most modern WLANs are based on these standards, the term "Wi-Fi" is used in general
English as a synonym for "WLAN". Only Wi-Fi products that complete Wi-Fi
Alliance interoperability certification testing successfully may use the "Wi-Fi CERTIFIED"
trademark.
Many devices can use Wi-Fi, e.g. personal computers, video-game consoles, smartphones,
some digital cameras, tablet computers and digital audio players. These can connect to a
network resource such as the Internet via a wireless network access point. Such an access
point (or hotspot) has a range of about 20 meters (65 feet) indoors and a greater range
outdoors. Hotspot coverage can comprise an area as small as a single room with walls that
block radio waves, or as large as many square miles achieved by using multiple overlapping
access points.

Wi-Fi can be less secure than wired connections (such as Ethernet) because an intruder does
not need a physical connection. Web pages that use SSL are secure but unencrypted internet
access can easily be detected by intruders. Because of this, Wi-Fi has adopted various
encryption technologies. The early encryption WEP, proved easy to break. Higher quality
protocols (WPA, WPA2) were added later. An optional feature added in 2007, called Wi-Fi
Protected Setup (WPS), had a serious flaw that allowed an attacker to recover the router's
password. The Wi-Fi Alliance has since updated its test plan and certification program to
ensure all newly certified devices resist attacks.
In order to enhance security of IEEE 802.11, a new standard called IEEE 802.11i is being
developed. The objective of 802.11i is to enhance the 802.11 security aspects. In addition to
introducing key management and establishment, it also defines encryption and authentication
improvements. In order to manage security keys automatically, 802.11i defines key
management and establishment algorithms, which are first introduced in the 802.11
standards. As conventional WEP is known to be vulnerable, 802.11i is specifying enhanced
encryption to provide stronger privacy. 802.11i also incorporates IEEE 802.1X as its
authentication enhancement. 802.1X is now widely deployed in many IEEE 802 series
standards with the Remote Authentication Dial In User Service (RADIUS, Internet
Engineering Task Force, IETF, RFC 2865) as the authentication server.
History
Back in 1991 Wi-Fi was invented by NCR Corporation/AT&T (later on Lucent & Agere
Systems) in Nieuwegein, the Netherlands. Initially meant for cashier systems the first
wireless products were brought on the market under the name Wave LAN with speeds of
1Mbps/2Mbps. Vic Hayes who is the inventor of Wi-Fi has been named 'father of Wi-Fi' and
was with his team involved in designing standards such as IEEE 802.11b, 802.11a and
802.11g. In 2003, Vic retired from Agere Systems. Agere Systems suffered from strong
competition in the market even though their products were cutting edge, as many opted for
cheaper Wi-Fi solutions. Agere's 802.11abg all-in-one chipset (code named: WARP) never
hit the market, Agere Systems decided to quit the Wi-Fi market in late 2004.
The term Wi-Fi, commercially used at least as early as August 2000, was coined by a brand-
consulting firm called Interbrand Corporation. The Wi-Fi Alliance had hired Interbrand to
determine a name that was "a little catchier than 'IEEE 802.11b Direct Sequence'". Phil
Belanger, a founding member of the Wi-Fi Alliance who presided over the selection of the
name "Wi-Fi," also stated that Interbrand invented Wi-Fi as a play on words with Hi-Fi (high
fidelity), and also created the Wi-Fi logo.
The Wi-Fi Alliance initially used the advertising slogan, "The Standard for Wireless
Fidelity ,for Wi-Fi but later removed the phrase from their marketing. Despite this, some
documents from the Alliance dated 2003 and 2004 still contain the term Wireless Fidelity.
There was no official statement related to the dropping of the term.
The yin-yang Wi-Fi logo indicates the certification of a product for interoperability.
Non-Wi-Fi technologies intended for fixed points such as Motorola Canopy are usually
described as fixed wireless. Alternative wireless technologies include mobile phone standards
such as 2G, 3G or 4G.

MOTIVATION

• Pursuing Engineering in Electronics and communication branch ,I wanted to learn

more about the wireless networks.
• Easy to use
• Low manufacturing costs
• Wide range of applications
LITERATURE SURVEY

S.NO TITLE OF THE PAPER ADVANTAGES LIMITATIONS

1 Syed Mushhad ,M. Gilani, Tang High-speed and It has traffic

Hong,Wenqiang Jin, Guofeng Zhao, H. compressed testing disruptions.
Meng Heang &  volume 2017, protocols
Article number: 67 (2017)
www.jwcn-
eurasipjournals.springeropen.com

2 B.T.Vijay, B. Malarkodi “ Improved - -

QoS in WLAN Using IEEE
802.11e”www.sciencedirect.com

3 - -
Understanding IEEE 802.11 and Wi-Fi
Standards, September 11, 2020,Scott
Blanchard,
Vaunix,www.microwavwejournal.com
CONCEPT

Wi-Fi Certification
The IEEE does not test equipment for compliance with their standards. The non-profit Wi-Fi
Alliance was formed in 1999 to fill this void — to establish and enforce standards for
interoperability and backward compatibility, and to promote wireless local-area-network
technology. As of 2010, the Wi-Fi Alliance consisted of more than 375 companies from
around the world. The Wi-Fi Alliance enforces the use of the Wi-Fi brand to technologies
based on the IEEE 802.11 standards from the IEEE. This includes wireless local area
network (WLAN) connections, device to device connectivity (such as Wi-Fi Peer to Peer aka
Wi-Fi Direct), Personal area network (PAN), local area network (LAN) and even some
limited wide area network (WAN) connections. Manufacturers with membership in the Wi-Fi
Alliance, whose products pass the certification process, gain the right to mark those products
with the Wi-Fi logo.
Specifically, the certification process requires conformance to the IEEE 802.11 radio
standards, the WPA and WPA2 security standards, and the EAP authentication standard.
Certification may optionally include tests of IEEE 802.11 draft standards, interaction with
cellular-phone technology in converged devices, and features relating to security set-up,
multimedia, and power-saving.
Not every Wi-Fi device is submitted for certification. The lack of Wi-Fi certification does not
necessarily imply that a device is incompatible with other Wi-Fi devices. If it is compliant or
partly compatible, the Wi-Fi Alliance may not object to its description as a Wi-Fi device
though technically only certified devices are approved. Derivative terms, such as Super Wi-
Fi, coined by the US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to describe proposed
networking in the UHF TV band in the US, may or may not be sanctioned.

Wi-Fi Alliance logo

IEEE 802.11 Architecture
The components of an IEEE 802.11 architecture are as follows −

 Stations (STA) − Stations comprises of all devices and equipment that are
connected to the wireless LAN. A station can be of two types−
o Wireless Access Point (WAP) − WAPs or simply access points (AP) are
generally wireless routers that form the base stations or access.
o Client. Clients are workstations, computers, laptops, printers, smartphones,
etc.
 Each station has a wireless network interface controller.

 Basic Service Set (BSS) − A basic service set is a group of stations communicating at
the physical layer level. BSS can be of two categories depending upon the mode of
operation−
o Infrastructure BSS − Here, the devices communicate with other devices
through access points.
o Independent BSS − Here, the devices communicate in a peer-to-peer basis in
an ad hoc manner.
 Extended Service Set (ESS) − It is a set of all connected BSS.

 Distribution System (DS) − It connects access points in ESS.

Frame Format of IEEE 802.11
The main fields of a frame of wireless LANs as laid down by IEEE 802.11 are −
 Frame Control − It is a 2 bytes starting field composed of 11 subfields. It contains
control information of the frame.
 Duration − It is a 2-byte field that specifies the time period for which the frame and
its acknowledgment occupy the channel.
 Address fields − There are three 6-byte address fields containing addresses of source,
immediate destination, and final endpoint respectively.
 Sequence − It a 2 bytes field that stores the frame numbers.
 Data − This is a variable-sized field that carries the data from the upper layers. The
maximum size of the data field is 2312 bytes.
 Check Sequence − It is a 4-byte field containing error detection information.

Wi-Fi Working Concepts

There are three most important items which makes Wi-Fi working in your laptop or desktop.
These are:

 Radio Signals

 Wi-Fi Card which fits in your laptop or computer.

 Hotspots which create Wi-Fi Network.

Radio Signals:

Radio Signals are the keys which make WiFi networking possible. These radio signals
transmitted from Wi-Fi antennas are picked up by WiFi receivers such as computers and cell
phones that are equipped with WiFi cards. Whenever a computer receives any of the signals
within the range of a WiFi network which is usually 300 - 500 feet for antennas, the WiFi
card will read the signals and thus create an internet connection between the user and the
network without the use of a cord.

Access points which consist of antennas and routers are the main source which transmit and
receive radio waves.

Antennas work stronger and have a longer radio transmission with a radius of 300-500 feet
which are used in public areas while the weaker yet effective router is more suitable for
homes with a radio transmission of 100-150 feet.
Wi-Fi Cards:

You can think WiFi card as being an invisible cord that connects your computer to the
antenna for a direct connection to the internet.

WiFi cards can be external or internal, meaning that if a WiFi card is not installed in your
computer, you may purchase a USB antenna attachment and have it externally connect to
your USB port, or have an antenna-equipped expansion card installed directly to the
computer. For laptops, this card will be a PCMCIA card in which you insert to the PCMCIA
slot on the laptop.

Wi-Fi Hotspots:

A Wi-Fi hotspot is created by installing an access point to an internet connection. The access
point transmits a wireless signal over a short distance . typically covering around 300 feet.
When a Wi-Fi .enabled device, such as a Pocket PC, encounters a hotspot, the device can
then connect to that network wirelessly.

Most hotspots are located in places that are readily accessible to the public, like airports,
coffee shops, hotels, book stores and campus environments. 802.11b is the most common
specification for hotspots worldwide. The 802.11g standard is backwards compatible with .
11b but .11a uses a different frequency range and requires separate hardware such as an a,
a/g, or a/b/g adapter. The largest public Wi-Fi networks are provided by private internet
service providers (ISPs) that charge a fee for users to connect to the internet.

Hotspots are increasingly developing around the world. In fact, T-mobile USA controls more
than 4,100 hotspots located in public locations such as Starbucks, Borders, Kinko.s, and the
airline clubs of Delta, United, and US Airways. Even select McDonald.s restaurants now
feature Wi-Fi hotspot access.

Any notebook computer with integrated wireless, a wireless adapter attached to the
motherboard by the manufacturer, or a wireless adapter such as a PCMCIA card can access a
wireless network. Furthermore, all Pocket PCs or Palm units with Compact Flash, SD I/O
support, or built-in Wi-Fi, can access hotspots.

Some Hotspots require WEP key to connect that is the connection is considered to be private
or secure. As for open connections, anyone with a WiFi card can gain access to that hotspot.
So in order for a user to gain access to the internet under WEP, the user must input the WEP
key code.
Basic Components of a Wireless Network

The basic devices in a wireless network are:

 The Wired Network

 Access Point or Wireless Router
 Client Device
 Client Bridge
 Repeater
Each component has a specific function, and while some devices can operate in more than
one function, they often have specific attributes that best suit them for a given function. Here
are the details on each device/function:

The Wired Network

While the wired network isn’t a simple “device”, it is critical to the wireless network; because
without it there is really no function to the wireless portion. The wired network can provide
several functions:

 Internet connectivity – Your ISP likely provides you with an Ethernet connection to

their router or modem, so your wireless network will need to connect to that. Ethernet
is a common network standard used in homes and businesses, it generally uses CAT5,
CAT5e, or CAT6 cables for connectivity in the LAN (Local Area Network).
 Connection to a server – If you use a media server or file server at home you probably
need to connect to it via Ethernet.
 Connection to other network devices – You might have other computers at home or
other network devices to connect to.
Access Point or Wireless Router
Both of these devices perform the same wireless functions, however their network functions
are different. We’ll get into the network differences in a future article, for now lets talk about
the wireless function. The point of the AP (Access Point) or Router is to authorize
and control the access that Client Devices have to the wireless network, and to connect those
client devices to the wired network.

It controls the speed, security requirements, allowed devices, and many other functions of the
wireless network. It’s the “center” of your WiFi network.
Client Device
Client devices are really anything that wirelessly connects to the AP or wireless router. These
can be anything from an Apple or Dell laptop, to your iPhone, even your refrigerator. The
other devices below (client bridge and repeater) are also client devices, just unique ones.

The client devices have the same wireless systems built into them as an AP or wireless router,
they just use them in a different way. There can even be client-device to client-device
networks that operate without an AP or router, these are called “ad-hoc” networks. Since
they’re unique (and rare) we’ll talk about ad-hoc networks in some other articles.

Client Bridge
A client bridge is a type of client device that bridges the wireless network with the wired
network. It’s basically like a reverse AP. The function of the AP is to bridge the wired
network onto a wireless network, and the client bridge takes that and re-reverses into another
wired segment. This can be useful if you have a device such as a printer or Xbox that doesn’t
support wireless, but you want to connect it to the network without using CAT5 Ethernet
cable. You simply get a client bridge device, connect it to the wireless network, then connect
the wired device to the bridge

Repeater
Repeaters are often a barely-necessary evil. I think of them as a “hack”, something that sort-
of does the job, but doesn’t do it well. Repeaters act sort-of like a client bridge, but instead of
bridging the wireless network to a wired network segment, they bridge it to another area of
the wireless network. This extends the range of the wireless network to devices that are near
the repeater, but it does it at the cost of bandwidth and speed. The repeater uses up twice the
bandwidth of a normal client device because it has to capture information then re-send it back
out on the same channel that it just received it on.

What is the IEEE?

The IEEE (The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) creates and finalizes
standards for computer
networks, amongst other technologies. The IEEE 802.11 specification defines how wireless
networks
communicate. As a comparison, most wired networks based on Ethernet and CSMA/CD
(defined later)
technology conform to the 802.3 standard.
The Wi-Fi Alliance, to which all enterprise product manufacturers belong, guides the
development of standards
through product testing.

Wi-Fi IEEE Standards

The 802.11 standard is defined through several specifications of WLANs. It defines an over-
the-air interface between a wireless client and a base station or between two wireless clients.

There are several specifications in the 802.11 family:

 802.11-1997 (802.11 legacy)

Main article: IEEE 802.11 (legacy mode)
The original version of the standard IEEE 802.11 was released in 1997 and clarified in 1999,
but is today obsolete. It specified two net bit rates of 1 or 2 megabits per second(Mbit/s),
plus forward error correction code. It specified three alternative physical layer technologies:
diffuse infrared operating at 1 Mbit/s; frequency-hopping spread spectrum operating at 1
Mbit/s or 2 Mbit/s; and direct-sequence spread spectrum operating at 1 Mbit/s or 2 Mbit/s.
The latter two radio technologies used microwave transmission over the Industrial Scientific
Medical frequency band at 2.4 GHz. Some earlier WLAN technologies used lower
frequencies, such as the U.S. 900 MHz ISM band.
Legacy 802.11 with direct-sequence spread spectrum was rapidly supplanted and popularized
by 802.11b.

 802.11a OFDM Waveform

Main article: IEEE 802.11a-1999
Originally described as clause 17 of the 1999 specification, the OFDM waveform at 5.8GHz
is now defined in clause 18 of the 2012 specification and provides protocols that allow
transmission and reception of data at rates of 1.5 to 54Mbit/s. It has seen widespread
worldwide implementation, particularly within the corporate workspace. While the original
amendment is no longer valid, the term "802.11a" is still used by wireless access point (cards
and routers) manufacturers to describe interoperability of their systems at 5.8 GHz, 54Mbit/s
(54x10^6 bits per second).
The 802.11a standard uses the same data link layer protocol and frame format as the original
standard, but an OFDM based air interface (physical layer). It operates in the 5 GHz band
with a maximum net data rate of 54 Mbit/s, plus error correction code, which yields realistic
net achievable throughput in the mid-20 Mbit/s.
 802.11b
Main article: IEEE 802.11b-1999
802.11b has a maximum raw data rate of 11 Mbit/s and uses the same media access method
defined in the original standard. 802.11b products appeared on the market in early 2000,
since 802.11b is a direct extension of the modulation technique defined in the original
standard. The dramatic increase in throughput of 802.11b (compared to the original standard)
along with simultaneous substantial price reductions led to the rapid acceptance of 802.11b as
the definitive wireless LAN technology.
802.11b devices experience interference from other products operating in the 2.4 GHz band.
Devices operating in the 2.4 GHz range include microwave ovens, Bluetooth devices, baby
monitors, cordless telephones and some amateur radio equipment.

 802.11g
Main article: IEEE 802.11g-2003
In June 2003, a third modulation standard was ratified: 802.11g. This works in the 2.4 GHz
band (like 802.11b), but uses the same OFDM based transmission scheme as 802.11a. It
operates at a maximum physical layer bit rate of 54 Mbit/s exclusive of forward error
correction codes, or about 22 Mbit/s average throughput.[13] 802.11g hardware is fully
backward compatible with 802.11b hardware and therefore is encumbered with legacy issues
that reduce throughput when compared to 802.11a by ~21%.
The then-proposed 802.11g standard was rapidly adopted by consumers starting in January
2003, well before ratification, due to the desire for higher data rates as well as to reductions
in manufacturing costs. By summer 2003, most dual-band 802.11a/b products became dual-
band/tri-mode, supporting a and b/g in a single mobile adapter card or access point. Details of
making b and g work well together occupied much of the lingering technical process; in an
802.11g network, however, activity of an 802.11b participant will reduce the data rate of the
overall 802.11g network.
Like 802.11b, 802.11g devices suffer interference from other products operating in the
2.4 GHz band, for example wireless keyboards.
 802.11-2007
In 2003, task group TGma was authorized to "roll up" many of the amendments to the 1999
version of the 802.11 standard. REVma or 802.11ma, as it was called, created a single
document that merged 8 amendments (802.11a, b, d, e, g, h, i, j) with the base standard. Upon
approval on March 8, 2007, 802.11REVma was renamed to the then-current base
standard IEEE 802.11-2007.
 802.11n
Main article: IEEE 802.11n-2009
802.11n is an amendment which improves upon the previous 802.11 standards by
adding multiple-input multiple-output antennas (MIMO). 802.11n operates on both the
2.4 GHz and the lesser used 5 GHz bands. Support for 5 GHz bands is optional. It operates at
a maximum net data rate from 54 Mbit/s to 600 Mbit/s. The IEEE has approved the
amendment and it was published in October 2009.[15][16] Prior to the final ratification,
enterprises were already migrating to 802.11n networks based on the Wi-Fi Alliance's
certification of products conforming to a 2007 draft of the 802.11n proposal.

 802.11-2012
In 2007, task group TGmb was authorized to "roll up" many of the amendments to the 2007
version of the 802.11 standard. REVmb or 802.11mb, as it was called, created a single
document that merged ten amendments (802.11k, r, y, n, w, p, z, v, u, s) with the 2007 base
standard. In addition much cleanup was done, including a reordering of many of the clauses.
[17]
 Upon publication on March 29, 2012, the new standard was referred to as IEEE 802.11-
2012.

 802.11ac
Main article: IEEE 802.11ac
IEEE 802.11ac is a standard under development which will provide throughput in the 5 GHz
band. This specification will enable higher multi-station WLAN throughput of at least
1 gigabit per second and a maximum single link throughput of at least 500 megabits per
second, by using wider RF bandwidth (80 or 160 MHz), more streams (up to 8), and high-
density modulation (up to 256 QAM).

 802.11ad
Main article: IEEE 802.11ad
IEEE 802.11ad "WiGig" is a published standard that is already seeing a major push from
hardware manufacturers. On 24 July 2012 Marvell and Wilocity announced a new
partnership[18] to bring a new tri-band Wi-Fi solution to market. Using 60 GHz, the new
standard can achieve a theoretical maximum throughput of up to 7 Gbit/s.[19] This standard is
expected to reach the market sometime in early 2014.
Wi-Fi Network Topology
A basic topology of an 802.11 networks in its simplest form consists of two or more wireless
nodes,or stations (STAs),which have recognized each other and have established
communications.
There are two different cases:
Independent Basic Service Set (IBSS): An IBSS consists of a group of 802.11 stations
communicating directly with one another. An IBSS is also referred to as an ad-hoc network
because it is essentially a simple peer-to-peer WLAN. Figure 2-1 illustrates how two stations
equipped with 802.11 network interface cards (NICs) can form an IBSS and communicate
directly with one another.

Basic Service Set (IBSS):Abbreviated as BSS, Basic Service Set is a component of

the IEEE 802.11WLAN architecture. This network architecture is built around a Basic
Service Set (BSS), which is actually a set of STAs (the component that connects to the
wireless medium such as a network adapter or NIC) that communicate with each other. When
one access points (AP) is connected to wired network and a set of wireless stations it is
referred to as a Basic Service Set (BSS)

Extended Service Set (ESS) : An extended service set (ESS) is one or more interconnected
basic service sets (BSSs) and their associated LANs. Each BSS consists of a single access
point (AP) together with all wireless client devices (stations, also called STAs) creating a
local or enterprise 802.11 wireless LAN (WLAN). To the logical link control layer (part of
layer 2 of the 7-layer OSI Reference Model) the ESS appears as a solitary BSS at any one of
the STAs.
Wireless Security 

Wireless security is the prevention of unauthorized access or damage to computers

using wireless networks. The most common types of wireless security are Wired Equivalent
Privacy (WEP) and Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA). WEP is a notoriously weak security
standard. The password it uses can often be cracked in a few minutes with a basic laptop
computer and widely available software tools. WEP is an old IEEE 802.11 standard from
1999 which was outdated in 2003 by WPA or Wi-Fi Protected Access. WPA was a quick
alternative to improve security over WEP. The current standard is WPA2; some hardware
cannot support WPA2 without firmware upgrade or replacement. WPA2 uses an encryption
device which encrypts the network with a 256 bit key; the longer key length improves
security over WEP

Advantages of Wi-Fi

 The main advantages of using Wi-Fi technology is the lack of wires. This is a wireless
connection that can merge together multiple devices.
 Wi-Fi network is particularly useful in cases where the wiring is not possible or even
unacceptable. For example, it is often used in the halls of conferences and international
exhibitions. It is ideal for buildings that are considered architectural monuments of
history, as it excludes the wiring cables.
 Wi-Fi networks are widely used to connect a variety of devices, not only between
themselves but also to the Internet. And almost all modern laptops, tablets, and some
mobile phones have this feature. It is very convenient and allows you to connect to the
internet almost anywhere, not just where the cables are laid. Today, you canaccess the
network, for example, being in the park for a walk across the street or in an airport
lounge. The main thing that was available near the point of Wi-Fi.

 Another advantage can be pretty easy to create a mesh Wi-Fi. To connect a new device to
your network, simply turn on the Wi-Fi and do the simple setting in the software. In the
case of wire technologies still need to pull the wire. Therefore, many modern offices are
switching to this technology.

Wi-Fi Major Issues

There are following issues which are assumed to be the cause of the sluggish adoption of
Wi-Fi technology:
  Security Problems: Security concerns have held back Wi-Fi adoption in the
corporate world. Hackers and security consultants have demonstrated how easy it can
be to crack the current security technology, known as wired equivalent privacy
(WEP), used in most Wi-Fi connections. A hacker can break into a Wi-Fi network
using readily available materials and software.

 Compatibility and Interpretability: One of the bigger problems with Wi-Fi is

compatibility and interpretability, for example 802.11a products are not compatible
with 802.11b products, due to the different operating frequencies, and 802.11a
hotspots would not help a 802.11b client. Due to lack of standardization,
harmonization and certification, different vendors come out with products that do not
work with each other.

 Billing Issues: Wi-Fi vendors are also looking for ways to solve the problem of back-
end integration and billing that has dogged the roll-out of commercial Wi-Fi hotspots.
Some of the ideas under consideration for Wi-Fi billing include per day, per hour and
unlimited monthly connection fees.

Wi-Fi Summary

WiFi is a universal wireless networking technology that utilizes radio frequencies to transfer
data. WiFi allows for high speed Internet connections without the use of cables or wires.

The term Wi-Fi is a contraction of "wireless fidelity" and commonly used to refer to wireless
networking technology. The Wi-Fi Alliance claims rights in its uses as a certification mark
for equipment certified to 802.11x standards.

Wi-Fi is a freedom, freedom from wires. It allows you to connect to the Internet from just
about anywhere - a coffee shop, a bed in a hotel room or a conference room at work without
wires. And the best thing of all, it's super fast - almost 10 times faster than a regular dial-up
connection. Wi-Fi networks operate in the unlicensed 2.4 radio bands, with an 11 Mbps
(802.11b) or 54 Mbps (802.11a) data rate, respectively.

To access Wi-Fi, you need enabled devices (laptops or PDAs). These devices can send and
receive data wirelessly from any location equipped with Wi-Fi access.

ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES

There are some important advantages of IEEE 802.11 are given below,
o The IEEE 802.11 is easy to installation.
o It has higher frequency range.
o It has efficient coding technique.
o The IEEE 802.11 has reduced wiring expense.
o It is less cost effective.
o Simultaneously use of equipment.
 o It use unlicensed part of the radio spectrum.
There are some disadvantages of IEEE 802.11 are given below,
o It has traffic disruptions.
o Network security and the maintenance needed to stay secured.
o It is required periodic maintenance.
o Data transmitted over radio waves can be captured by any Wi-Fi ready devices in
the area.
o Unauthorized use.
o It has unauthorized uses.
o Frame spoofing.
o Session hijacking.

APPLICATIONS
1. Deploying HD video over Wi-Fi
 Large enterprises that rollout HD video conferencing.
 Hospitals or medical clinics utilizing Wi-Fi for HD medical imaging and surgical
procedures.
 Universities or other higher-education facilities deploying campus-wide IPTV and
video streaming.
2. Projecting HD images and video from mobile devices
 Large enterprises utilizing Apple TV/Bonjour gateways in conference rooms and
other gathering spaces.
 Education (primary/K-12 schools and higher-education facilities) to promote active
learning spaces/collaboration/distance learning.
3. High client-dense Wi-Fi environments
 Enterprise networks with large common areas / conference rooms that need additional
capacity.
 Large public venues (LPVs)/hotspot operators – stadiums, movie theaters, shopping
arcades where large numbers of consumers/guests congregate and utilize publicly
available Wi-Fi.
 Education (primary/K-12 /universities) accommodating large numbers of students and
devices in auditoriums and common gathering areas.
4. Deploying interactive applications
 LPVs – movie theaters/shopping arcades/sporting stadiums that are adopting point-of-
view (POV) applications for greater interaction with guests and VIPs.
5. Adoption of the All Wireless Office
  Large enterprises migrating away from static computing environments, opening their
floor plans and utilizing Ethernet strictly for PoE+/transport with Wi-Fi as the only
medium for edge connectivity.
6. 802.11a/b/g migration and greenfield Wi-Fi opportunities
 Enterprises migrating off legacy technology and bypassing 802.11n to deploy the
latest Wi-Fi standard.
 Organizations looking to deliver better RF management and traffic prioritization
while future-proofing the network.
7. Increasing performance and reliability of mission-critical applications
 Large enterprises looking to overcome performance issues and reliability concerns for
rolling out large scale Microsoft Lync, VDI, mobile CRM, and other applications over
Wi-Fi.

FUTURE SCOPE
1. 5G
The next generation of wireless connectivity is 5G, and it’s already here, although not yet in
full force. Telecom companies have started to roll out their 5G networks, and they should be
fully available within the next five years or so.
2. 6G
Even though 5G is just now being introduced, the industry is already preparing for the next
generation of technology, 6G. The Center for Converged TeraHertz Communications and
Sensing (ComSenTer), part of the Semiconductor Research Corporation, is researching the
radio technologies that will enable the sixth generation of wireless tech.
3. Massive MIMO Antennas
Massive multiple input, multiple output (MIMO) antennas will be an important technology
for enabling 5G and eventually 6G networks. Instead of having just a few antennas at each
end of a link, a Massive MIMO system has a much larger number of antennas. This enables
multiple signals to travel over the same radio channel at the same time, meaning that the
capacity of the system is much higher.
4. The Future of LTE
LTE is a standard used for high-speed wireless communications and describes the path
toward achieving true 4G speeds. LTE is today, along with LTE Advanced (LTE-A) and
LTE-A Pro, part of the 4G LTE system. These technologies help handle capacity demands
and increase speed. They will also act as a stepping stone to 5G by inching speeds closer to
what will be possible with the fifth generation of wireless connectivity tech. As 5G begins to
roll out, LTE technologies will fill in the gaps where coverage doesn’t exist yet. 4G will play
a similar role.
5. Li-Fi
Another exciting future wireless technology is Li-Fi, which is similar to Wi-Fi but uses
visible light waves instead of radio waves to send data. Researchers at the University of
Edinburgh have worked to develop the technology, and it has been tested at a factory in
Estonia.
6. Wireless Charging
Our world is also becoming wireless in ways that go beyond communications. Wireless
charging has now become available, and the technology is quickly improving. Current
wireless charging isn’t truly wireless, as it requires plugging the charger into the wall. You
can then lay your device on the charging mat or plate without having to use wires to connect
it to the charger. The devices still need to be in contact with the charger though.

Conclusion
We started by showing that, in the presence of rate diversity, the throughput-based fairness
notion implemented by the 802.11's popular MAC protocol and the traditional queuing
schemes at the APs leads to a situation in which the aggregate throughput is determined
largely by the slowest node.

We next presented a time-based notion of fairness that provides an equal amount of long-term
channel occupancy time to each competing node. This prevents faster nodes from being
dragged down by slower ones. Moreover, it satisfies what we called the baseline property,
i.e., the achieved throughput of any competing node in a multi-rate WLAN is equal to what it
would achieve in a single-rate WLAN in which all competing nodes transmit at its data rate.
In the presence of rate diversity, using this definition of fairness can lead to vastly improved
aggregate network throughput, more than 100% in some realistic scenarios.

We next described a practical scheme called TBR that works in conjunction with any MAC
protocol to provide long-term time-based fairness in AP-based WLANs by appropriately
scheduling packet transmissions. We showed that TBR can be implemented in an AP driver
in a way that is backwards compatible with existing 802.11 standard. We implemented our
scheme in the Linux Hostap driver running on a PC used as the AP, and evaluated it through
a series of experiments. In the absence of rate diversity, the performance of our
implementation is equivalent to the standard implementation. In the presence of rate
diversity, it achieves the predicted gains.

In today's AP-based 802.11b WLANs, rate diversity is already common as our trace analyses
show. As newer standards such as 802.11g are deployed, the problem will become worse. For
an extended period of time 802.11 WLANs will run in a mixed mode, and if 802.11g clients
are slowed down to run at the rate of 802.11b clients, there will be little incentive to upgrade.
Already, some vendors, e.g., D-Link and Netgear, are beginning to implement ad
hoc proprietary mechanisms to give their 802.11g priority over 802.11b cards in accessing
the channels. A more systematic cross-manufacturer solution would be preferable. We
believe that switching to time-based fairness is a good option.

REFERENCES
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