by Jovie Cabais | Oct 31, 2010 | Tech Updates
When we hear WiFi, we often associate it with Internet access via wireless network. However, WiFi may also be used for local area network and not necessarily have Internet access. For some facilities, using wired network for LAN connection is not possible due to distance or aesthetics. In this case, WiFi technology may be used as a low cost solution. An example of a situation requiring a wireless network for LAN connection is for a resort complex with buildings scattered in a large estate. The business units requiring a point of sale (POS) device like restaurant, spa, dive shop, pool bar, etc, must be connected to the main server but are scattered in different buildings that are hundreds of meters apart. The POS devices need a secure wireless connection to the main server that is isolated from regular WiFi Internet access. A WiFi based LAN must implement multiple security features of the WiFi specifications. Among these are hidden SSID, the use of WEP for encryption and the use of MAC address filtering to help ensure that only known WiFi devices are connected to the network. There are various devices that can be used for a WiFi LAN implementation. For situations that need the devices to be located outside the building, weatherproof models should be used. It is also important that devices to be exposed to the elements use power over ethernet (POE) to avoid another cable run for the power supply. Also, use devices with a watchdog feature that will automatically restart the device if the network connection is down. This feature will increase uptime and lessen the need...
