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Chapter 5: Configuring the Wireless-B Broadband Router
The Wireless Tab - Wireless Security
Wireless-B Broadband Router
The Wireless Tab - Wireless Security
The Wireless Security settings configure the security of your wireless network. Click the radio button next to
Enable
to enable Wireless Security before choosing your options. Click the radio button next to
Disable
if you
need to disable Wireless Security.
There are four wireless security mode options supported by the Router, WPA, RADIUS, and WEP. These four are
briefly discussed here.
WPA Pre-Shared Key. WPA gives you two encryption methods, TKIP and AES, with dynamic encryption keys.
Select the type of algorithm,
TKIP
or
AES
, enter a Pre-Shared key of 8-32 characters, and enter a Group Key
Renewal period, which instructs the Router how often it should change the encryption keys.
WPA Radius. WPA used in coordination with a RADIUS server. (This should only be used when a RADIUS server is
connected to the Router.) First, select the type of WPA algorithm,
TKIP
or
AES
. Enter the RADIUS server’s IP
Address and port number, along with a key shared between the Router and the server. Last, enter a Group Key
Renewal period, which instructs the Router how often it should change the encryption keys.
Radius. WEP used in coordination with a RADIUS server. (This should only be used when a RADIUS server is
connected to the Router.) First, enter the RADIUS server’s IP Address and port number, along with a key shared
between the Router and the server. Then, select a level of WEP encryption, and either generate a WEP key
through the Passphrase or select a WEP key and a enter the WEP key manually.
•
WEP Encryption Level. An acronym for Wired Equivalent Privacy, WEP is an encryption method used to protect
your wireless data communications. WEP uses 64-bit or 128-bit keys to provide access control to your
network and encryption security for every data transmission. To decode data transmissions, all devices in a
network must use an identical WEP key. Higher encryption levels offer higher levels of security, but due to the
complexity of the encryption, they may decrease network performance. To enable WEP, select
64 bits (10
hex digits)
(see Figure 5-16) or
128 bits (26 hex digits)
. To disable WEP encryption, keep the default
setting,
No Encryption
.
•
Passphrase. Instead of manually entering WEP keys, you can enter a passphrase. This passphrase is used to
generate one or more WEP keys. It is case-sensitive and should not be longer than 16 alphanumeric
characters. (This Passphrase function is compatible with Linksys wireless products only and cannot be used
with Windows XP Zero Configuration. If you want to communicate with non-Linksys wireless products or
Windows XP Zero Configuration, make a note of the WEP key generated in the Key 1 field, and enter it
manually in the wireless client.) After you enter the Passphrase, click the
Generate
button to create WEP
keys.
Figure 5-14: WPA Pre-Shared Key
Figure 5-15: WPA Radius
Figure 5-16: Wireless Tab - Radius
