Author: Neftaly Malatjie

The properties dialogue box for the wireless network connection (wireless network configuration tab) presents the networks detected by the wireless adapter and lets you configure them.

To create an ad hoc network, you need to add a new network, identified by a unique name, the SSID. To do so, click the button Add. A new dialogue box opens:

To create the ad hoc network, on each of the future network’s computers, you simply need to enter the same SSID and check the box “This is a computer-to-computer network“. The other options are used to heighten security. Firstly, leave the network completely open (with the options in the above screenshot), so as not to multiply settings that could prevent the first networking.

At this point, the machines on the ad hoc network should be able to connect to each other.

Before doing anything else, you need to equip all the machines that will be on the future ad hoc network with a wireless adapter and install drivers.

A new icon appears in the taskbar, indicating the presence of an active wireless adapter in the computer:

By default, Windows XP offers a utility making it possible to configure wireless networks. The Microsoft Windows XP wireless network configuration utility disables manufacturer configuration tools. To disable the Windows XP tool, simply click Start/Settings/Network connections, then right-click the icon corresponding to the wireless network and choose Properties. In the wireless network configuration tab, check or uncheck Use Windows to configure my wireless network.

This manipulation involves enabling or disabling Windows XP’s wireless network automatic configuration service. An alternative is to go to the control panel/Administrative tools/Services, and then to start or stop the Automatic wireless configuration service.

In the rest of this article, all manipulations will be made using the Windows XP utility (Service pack 2).

If you have two or more computers equipped with wireless adapters (WiFi cards), it is possible to easily connect them in a network by setting up a so-called “ad hoc” network, that is, a computer-to-computer network, without using an access point.

If one of the computers on the ad hoc network has an internet connection, it is possible to share it with the other computers on the network, like in the case of a traditional local network.

A wireless network makes it possible to connect several devices or several computers in a network, without the use of wires. Thanks to wireless technologies, it is possible to access shared resources, particularly the internet, from several different locations: this is called “mobility“.

WiFi network

WiFi technology (also called 802.11) is the most widely used wireless local area network technology. This technology makes it possible to connect computers over a distance of approximately three hundred feet at a shared speed ranging from a dozen Megabits per second (Mbps) to several dozen Mpbs.

WiFi technology offers two operating modes:

• “Ad hoc”mode, a peer-to-peer mode making it possible to connect two computers equipped with wireless adapters to one another;
• “Infrastructure”mode, making it possible to connect computers to a wired network using a device called an “access point“, sometimes abbreviated AP.

Because of the use of radio waves, it is important to fully test a wireless LAN (WLAN) before letting users start using it. Be certain to perform testing after installing a WLAN to ensure that the WLAN system satisfies requirements. In some cases, during operations and maintenance, it might be necessary to perform testing when troubleshooting problems. This chapter covers the types of testing that you should accomplish.