What Is a Wireless Network?

You'll find a few different types of wireless technology in home networking today. For Microsoft Broadband Networking purposes, a network is simply a collection of two or more computers, printers, and other devices linked by radio waves. This wireless network uses a wireless protocol called Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11b, or Wi-Fi. Because this protocol works by radio transmission, cables are not required to connect the computers as they are in Ethernet networks.

Range and performance

Wi-Fi is currently the fastest wireless technology. It can transmit through walls and floors at speeds of up to 11 Mbps. However, actual range and speed can vary depending on the number and size of the physical barriers within the network, and any interference to the radio transmission.

The range and performance of any device on a wireless network are greatly affected by the environment in which the device is used. For the best wireless coverage, consider where you place the base station, gateway, or router; where you place the adapters; and how you adjust the antennas. Some recommendations for placement are:

Position the base station, gateway, or router in line of sight to the wireless adapters for best performance.
Position the base station, gateway, or router in a central location within the area to be used for wireless communications.
Keep the wireless equipment away from large metallic objects, such as computer cases, display monitors, and appliances.
Position the wireless equipment away from other electromagnetic devices, such as televisions, radios, cordless telephones, and microwave ovens.
Position the wireless equipment so that large masonry structures, such as fireplaces, are not obstructing the radio path.
Try to position the base station, gateway, or router in a place that is higher than computers and related equipment — on a bookshelf, for example.
Adjust the antennas on the base station, gateway, or router and on the adapters to obtain the best radio signal strength.
Rotate the base station, gateway, or router to obtain the highest data throughput.
Be aware that building construction, such as metal framing, ultraviolet-resistant window film, metallic paint, concrete or masonry walls, or multiple floors and walls reduce radio signal strength.
Position the base station, gateway, or router away from other radio equipment that operates at a frequency of 2.4 gigahertz (GHz), such as microwave ovens and cordless telephones, which can affect the performance of Wi-Fi equipment.

In addition to the potential range and interference problems, all wireless networks have an inherent security risk.

To connect a computer or device to a wireless network, the computer must have a wireless network adapter. No cabling is necessary between networked devices that use wireless technology.

Types of wireless adapters

Wireless network adapters can be internal (inserted in a computer) or external (housed in a separate case). In addition, some computers include a built-in wireless network adapter, eliminating the need for a separate adapter.

The two general types of wireless adapters are:

	USB adapter Connects through a USB cable to a USB port on your desktop computer. USB adapters are popular because they are easy to install and to swap between desktop computers as necessary.
	Notebook adapter Fits into the PCMCIA slot on your laptop or other portable computer. Notebook adapters eliminate the need for cable connections to the computer and are popular among users who value mobility.

Wireless connections and network setup

There are two primary types of wireless networks:

Network with a wireless router (infrastructure network) The base station, gateway, or router is the central point between two or more wireless devices that share a broadband Internet connection. This central point provides the only way to access the Internet and the other devices on the network. Each wireless device must have an adapter that can connect to the base station, gateway, or router, or to another available wireless access point.
Computer-to-computer wireless network (ad hoc network) Wireless devices connect to each other directly, without an intermediary device such as a base station, gateway, or router. This option is recommended only when you are not trying to share an Internet connection or when you are connecting only two computers together. You can access the Internet in an ad hoc network by connecting to a computer that is running Microsoft Windows® XP and that has Internet Connection Sharing (ICS) enabled.

Should you choose wired or wireless?

Wired and wireless networks both offer a number of benefits. Before you decide which connection type is best for you, consider the following:

Convenience You can set up wireless connections without having to run cables or open computer cases. If your computers already have Ethernet connections, however, it might be more convenient to leave the Ethernet network in place and expand the network as necessary by using wireless functionality.
Cost Until recently, wireless network hardware cost more than Ethernet hardware. The relative cost of wireless hardware has decreased significantly, making a wireless home network much more affordable to establish.
Mobility Mobility might be relatively unimportant for a desktop computer but can be an important benefit if you have a laptop or notebook computer.
Range and coverage Both wired networks and wireless networks can cover most home and small-business areas. Depending on the physical characteristics and interference factors in your environment, one or the other type of network might be more effective.
Security Because of the unrestricted nature of their transmission, wireless networks have inherent security issues. However, to improve security, you can implement network features, such as wireless security (also known as Wired Equivalent Privacy, or WEP) encryption, or Network Address Translation (NAT).
Speed The type of network connection that you use does not affect your Internet connection speed, but it can affect how fast you can perform tasks such as transferring files and playing games. Wireless connection speed is typically slower than Ethernet. If connection speed between your networked computers is of primary importance (particularly for playing games with dense graphic detail), you might want to use Ethernet connections.

Source: Microsoft Corporation