[NTLUG:Discuss] RE: Wireless Home Network

[terry]

Hanna, Mark wrote:
> I get the intention that you are going to convert your entire home network to wireless, which isn't bad in itself, but... a few things to keep in mind when deploying a wireless AP into your home network.
> 
> Some wireless NIC's drivers are considerable easier the others to compile and use under Linux.  I've used only PCMCIA cards for my laptops at home, but I suspect desktop/server cards are about the same.  The driver all comes down to the chipset used in the NIC... typically either Orinoco, prism or tulip.  Some PCMCIA NICs also require a "firmware" file that should come on the install CD... even though it is a Windows file, Linux still needs it in some cases.
> 
> Most AP's you can get now support more then one mode, usually B plus either A of G.  For a new network/AP, I would probably lean towards B/G, although I have all three.  802.11A never really took off like people thought it would.  If you really want all three though, there are some vendors with AP's that support A/B/G in a single device.  Pretty much any AP you buy off the shelf today will have a web browser based setup that will help you through these options.  I personally have a Netgear WGR614 (A/B) and a Linksys WRT54G (B/G) and both were very easy to install and use.
> 
> Some install steps from a security point of view,
> Change the default admin password (big duh)
> Enable WEP with shared key and the highest strength like 128bit) supported by your NICs and AP.
> Change the Channel from the usual default of 6 or 7.
> Change the default SSID and disable SSID broadcast.
> Enable MAC address filtering (your NIC's should have the MAC address printed on the label.
> Enable logging.
> Update the firmware.
> If you get a Router/AP combo, make sure Remote Management is turned off.
> 
> Overall difficulty level, depending on one's current setup, really should not be too difficult for the average Linux enthusiast.  The networking aspect doesn't change too much from wired to wireless (everything still needs an IP and so on).  The windows part is stupid easy but the Linux part could include driver/kernel compiling and using iwconfig along with ipconfig.  If you have installed your own wired netowrk at home, then there should be nothing to be intimidated with.
> 
> On a side note, if you have a laptop and a wireless NIC, try driving around your neighborhood and seeing how many APs you find broadcasting loud and clear with all default settings.  I was SHOCKED when I just drove around the block where I live in Plano.  Maybe 30 Nets with half of the running default configs.
> 
> 

Well, that's nothing, just look at the computers they're hooked to, ... 
(or just any computer for that matter, [MS Windows computers that is], 
and let's face it, that's the behavior of MS Windows users.).  You'll 
find most don't even have the Administrator account password protected 
and they are operating in an administrator privileged account in the 
first anyway, so....why bother, why not leave their network wide open, 
the world is just full of perfectly trustworthy people!

You could / should warn them about it, but... they'd just think you're 
some kind of crazed lunatic.  Oh well, life is good, Linux is free. :)

> 
>>Date: Mon, 21 Jun 2004 15:18:05 -0500
>>From: Lance Simmons <lance at lsimmons.net>
>>To: discuss at ntlug.org
>>Subject: [NTLUG:Discuss] Wireless Home Network
>>
>>I want to change my home network over to wireless, but I'm a bit
>>intimidated.  Have others on the list done it, and what would you say is
>>the difficulty level?
>>
>>-- 
>>Lance Simmons
> 
> 
> 
> 
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