Glossary
SCALANCE W786-xPRO
Operating Instructions, Release 08/2007, C79000-G8976-C221-02
247
Protected Architecture (WPA) to be able to test the compatibility of the various
manufacturers' products.
For real-time transmission, the Wi-Fi Alliance has specified Wi-Fi Multimedia (WMM) for
transmissions with guaranteed quality of service (QoS).
WPA
Wi-Fi Protected Access is a method specified by the die Wi-Fi alliance to close the security
gaps in WEP. Authentication using a server is stipulated (802.1x). The dynamic exchange of
keys at each frame introduces further security. Users can choose between TKIP (Temporal
Key Integrity Protocol) and AES (Advanced Encryption Standard).
Although WPA was never officially part of the IEEE 802.11 standards family, it has become
very widespread in a very short time. This, however, applies only to the WPA procedure
described above using TKIP. The optional possible implementation of WPA on the basis of
AES, on the other hand, did not become established and is therefore irrelevant in everyday
practice. AES only took on practical value only with the development of the later WPA2
standard.
WPA-PSK
WPA-PSK is a weakened form of WPA. In this method, authentication is not established by a
server but is based on a password. This password must be configured manually on the client
and server. Wherever possible, you should change to the WPA method to achieve greater
security.
