ZyXEL Communications ZyAIR G-110 User Manual
ZyAIR G-110 User’s Guide
Using the ZyAIR Utility
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2.8.2 Authentication Mode
The IEEE 802.11b standard describes a simple authentication method between the wireless stations and
AP. Two authentication modes are defined: Open and Shared.
Open authentication mode is implemented for ease-of-use and when security is not an issue. The wireless
station and the AP do not share a secret key. Thus the wireless stations can associate with any AP and listen
to any data transmitted plaintext.
Shared authentication mode involves a shared secret key to authenticate the wireless station to the AP. This
requires you to enable WEP encryption and specify a WEP key on both the wireless station and the AP.
AP. Two authentication modes are defined: Open and Shared.
Open authentication mode is implemented for ease-of-use and when security is not an issue. The wireless
station and the AP do not share a secret key. Thus the wireless stations can associate with any AP and listen
to any data transmitted plaintext.
Shared authentication mode involves a shared secret key to authenticate the wireless station to the AP. This
requires you to enable WEP encryption and specify a WEP key on both the wireless station and the AP.
2.8.3 IEEE 802.1x
The IEEE 802.1x standard outlines enhanced security methods for both the authentication of wireless
stations and encryption key management. Authentication can be done using an external RADIUS server.
EAP Authentication
EAP (Extensible Authentication Protocol) is an authentication protocol that runs on top of the IEEE802.1x
transport mechanism in order to support multiple types of user authentication. By using EAP to interact
with an EAP-compatible RADIUS server, an access point helps a wireless station and a RADIUS server
perform authentication.
The type of authentication you use depends on the RADIUS server and an intermediary AP(s) that supports
IEEE802.1x. The ZyAIR supports EAP-TLS, EAP-TTLS, EAP-PEAP and LEAP. Refer to the Types of
EAP Authentication appendix for descriptions.
For EAP-TLS and EAP-TTLS authentication types, you must first have a wired connection to the network
and obtain the certificate(s) from a certificate authority (CA). A certificate (also called digital IDs) can be
used to authenticate users and a CA issues certificates and guarantees the identity of each certificate owner.
stations and encryption key management. Authentication can be done using an external RADIUS server.
EAP Authentication
EAP (Extensible Authentication Protocol) is an authentication protocol that runs on top of the IEEE802.1x
transport mechanism in order to support multiple types of user authentication. By using EAP to interact
with an EAP-compatible RADIUS server, an access point helps a wireless station and a RADIUS server
perform authentication.
The type of authentication you use depends on the RADIUS server and an intermediary AP(s) that supports
IEEE802.1x. The ZyAIR supports EAP-TLS, EAP-TTLS, EAP-PEAP and LEAP. Refer to the Types of
EAP Authentication appendix for descriptions.
For EAP-TLS and EAP-TTLS authentication types, you must first have a wired connection to the network
and obtain the certificate(s) from a certificate authority (CA). A certificate (also called digital IDs) can be
used to authenticate users and a CA issues certificates and guarantees the identity of each certificate owner.
2.8.4 WPA
Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA) is a subset of the IEEE 802.11i security specification draft. Key differences
between WPA and WEP are user authentication and improved data encryption.
User Authentication
WPA applies IEEE 802.1x and Extensible Authentication Protocol (EAP) to authenticate wireless clients
using an external RADIUS database.
Therefore, if you don’t have an external RADIUS server you should use WPA-PSK (WPA -Pre-Shared
Key) that only requires a single (identical) password entered into each access point, wireless gateway and
wireless client. As long as the passwords match, a client will be granted access to a WLAN.
Encryption
WPA improves data encryption by using Temporal Key Integrity Protocol (TKIP), Message Integrity
Check (MIC) and IEEE 802.1x.
between WPA and WEP are user authentication and improved data encryption.
User Authentication
WPA applies IEEE 802.1x and Extensible Authentication Protocol (EAP) to authenticate wireless clients
using an external RADIUS database.
Therefore, if you don’t have an external RADIUS server you should use WPA-PSK (WPA -Pre-Shared
Key) that only requires a single (identical) password entered into each access point, wireless gateway and
wireless client. As long as the passwords match, a client will be granted access to a WLAN.
Encryption
WPA improves data encryption by using Temporal Key Integrity Protocol (TKIP), Message Integrity
Check (MIC) and IEEE 802.1x.