Local and Metropolitan Area Networks

Using Bluetooth For a Personal Area Network

The latest technology of Bluetooth has allowed brought about a fair amount of revolution in the way devices communicate with each other. It is a technology that has been in use since 1999 but now is being put to widespread use. This amazing piece of technology allows the user to connect the PDA, mobile phone, MP3 player and just about any digital device, that supports the function, to communicate with each other. This concept of having all your devices Bluetooth enabled so that they can exchange information is being called PAN or Personal Area Network.

Like the 802.11 wireless technology, Bluetooth also uses radio signals to create bandwidth but it does not require a receiver to be plugged in the USB port of the computer. The range of Bluetooth is much better than this erstwhile technology and is allowing people to go further into a world devoid of entangled wires.

Developed and designed to be a low cost, secure and easy to use technology, Bluetooth is available in two classes: class 1 and class 2. Class 1 is relatively uncommon one and can detect other Bluetooth devices in the range of 100 meters. Class 2 is the more used and common one and enables access up to a range of 10 meters only.

A Bluetooth enabled computer has a receiver installed inside and can connect simultaneously with a maximum of 7 other devices. Though most of the computers being manufactured today (and definitely all the Apple Macs) have a Bluetooth receiver installed, if your older computer needs does not have one, it can easily be made to accept and send Bluetooth messages. This can be done by using a USB to Bluetooth adaptor or installing it internally. Also if it is a notebook that needs to be Bluetooth enabled and you have a spare PCMCIA slot, you could use a Bluetooth card to get going with Bluetooth.

The ease of use, affordability and instant compatibility one can now download all the data on addresses, contacts, things to do and notes on to the computer in a jiffy. Downloading pictures from digital cameras, saving mp3 audio files from the mp3 player and sending a print command to the printer have now become much easier without the need for long twisted and messy looking cables. It is also being used in areas other than that of computers. Hands free headsets for mobiles phones are today hands free and wire free. Car phones can use the same concept to enable speaking on the phone and driving a seamless affair. The list of devices that Bluetooth can be used with includes cordless phones, faxes, headsets and video.

As always people have discovered new applications for the latest technology. One of such uses is called Bluejacking. In Bluejacking people can send messages from their mobile phones to other mobile phones in the vicinity without accessing the mobile service providers network. The first ever message that was sent using Bluejacking was Buy Ericsson. Though it seems to have limited use it can be a fun thing to do among friends. Bluecasting is another such use which has captured the interest of advertisers. In this process, Bluetooth enabled billboards and signposts can be used to send relevant and appropriate messages to all Bluetooth devices in the area. This method of advertising is extremely relevant for location specific businesses like food service restaurants, malls and the like.

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The new 802.11n wireless technology standard introduced – wireless, 802.11n, wireless LAN – Network Communication industry HC

802.11n context   Various wireless LAN technologies in today’s cutting the Warring States Period, WLAN, Bluetooth , HomeRF, UWB and other competing bloom, but the IEEE802.11 family of WLAN is the most widely used. Since 1997, IEEE802.11 standard has been implemented, there have 802.11b, 802.11a, 802.11g, 802.11e, 802.11f, 802.11h, 802.11i, 802.11j other standards or brewing, but WLAN is still facing “four noes One does not “question, namely, insufficient bandwidth, roaming inconvenient, network management is not strong, the system safe and no killer applications. Like today’s VoIP application as a new area of VoWLAN, although the industry as a WLAN is the most promising killer application, but because of the four “no”, it is difficult to further develop.

Order to achieve high bandwidth, high quality WLAN service to the wireless LAN to Ethernet performance levels, 802.11n emerged.

500Mbps wonderful prospects In transfer rate, 802.11n WLAN transmission rate can be from the current 54Mbps 802.11a and 802.11g provides up to 108Mbps, and even as high as 500Mbps. Thanks to the MIMO (Multiple Input Multiple Output) and OF DM (Orthogonal frequency division multiplexing) technology combines the application of MIMOOFDM technology, this technology not only improves the quality of wireless transmission, but also to greatly enhance the transfer rate.

Prospects: 802.11n WLAN transmission rate would reach the current transmission rate of 10 times, and can support high-quality voice, video transmission, which means that people can Offices Used Wi-Fi Mobile To make IP telephony and video telephony.

In the coverage area, 802.11n uses smart antenna technology, through multiple independent antenna of the antenna array can dynamically adjust the beam to ensure that WLAN users to receive a stable signal, and can reduce the interference of other signals . Therefore, its coverage can be extended to several square kilometers, making WLAN Mobile Of greatly enhanced.

Prospects: This makes use Notebook Computer , And PDA can be a greater range of movement, allowing WLAN signal coverage to the office, hotel and family anywhere, let us truly experience the mobile office and mobile life of convenience and pleasure.

In compatibility, 802.11n uses a software radio technology, it is a fully programmable hardware platform, making the base stations of different systems and terminals are available through the platform to achieve interoperability of different software and compatible, which makes WLAN compatibility have been greatly improved. This means that not only can achieve 802.11n WLAN will later forward compatible, but also realize the WLAN and wireless wide area network integration, such as 3G.

Standard two camps in the war

Pity is, 802.11n is in a “standard lag, product premature” embarrassing situations. 802.11n IEEE standard has not been a formal approval, but manufacturers have been using MIMOOFDM technology many Package Include Airgo, Bermai, Broadcom and Agere Systems, Atheros, Cisco , Intel And so on, products include wireless LAN, Wireless Router And so on, and has large number of PC , Notebook computer applications.

Leading technical camp 802.11n standard has two, namely WWiSE (World Wide SpectrumEfficiency) Union and TGnSync Union. Both camps hope the next generation wireless LAN standard is a priority dispute, but the two camps has become increasingly similar to the technical architecture, for example, are based on the MIMOOFDM technology, but also in the Aug. 2 news that they have decided to let go, common to the American Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11n wireless technology submitted version.

In this fierce Competition , We do not see China’s shadow, so we have to feel some regret. This is the core technology we do not have consequences. Standards war is ultimately a dispute over interests of Chinese enterprises in the WLAN core technology is difficult to achieve significant benefits, it is worth pondering.

Editorial 802.11n WLAN certainly able to bring real killer application, think about Office We can no longer use the phone, not using a desktop phone, but the use of Wi-Fi phone, you can make notebook computers without interrupting the network connection in each office, meeting room mobile office. In the family, and we can enjoy a variety of broadband wireless applications, from IPTV To the videophone can be achieved through the WLAN, more importantly, a variety of smart home appliances can be achieved through the WLAN connection can be connected with the communication system to achieve more intelligent control.

802.11n lighthouse as fog, has been getting closer and closer to us.

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In this last post of the series about branch router configuration I would like to complete the last step of our scenario:

1. The Branch router to access the Internet via HQ router. In case the link between the Branch and the HQ router fails, the Branch will use its own direct connection to the Internet. DONE!
2. IOS Firewall should be configured to protect the local area network. HQ Firewall should allow access to WWW server (10.254.254.254) located in the HQ (simulated by loopback interface). DONE!
3. The Branch router should use its backup (direct) connection to the Internet as a secure, encrypted (IPSec) tunnel to the HQ local area network, should its private network fail (Branch-to-HQ private link is down). DONE!
4. The IPSec tunnel should allow EIGRP routing protocol between the Branch and the HQ router.

IPsec cannot send multicast traffic, so our IGP protocols (like OSPF, EIGRP etc.) cannot be transmitted via the IPSec tunnel. To rectify that, we can encrypt IGP packets (in my scenario EIGRP) in GRE headers and sent across the Internet via IPsec based VPN.

=== Branch Router ===
!
! Configure loopback interface to source the GRE tunnel off of
!
 interface loopback 101
  ip address 172.16.101.1 255.255.255.0
!
! allow GRE over IPSec
!
 ip access-list extended VPN_ACL
  permit gre host 172.16.101.1 host 172.16.102.1
!
! Configure a GRE tunnel interface
!
interface tunnel 0
  ip address 10.0.0.1 255.255.255.0
  tunnel source loopback 101
  tunnel destination 172.16.102.1
!
! Enable IGP protocol (here EIGRP) between the sites
!
router eigrp 1
  no auto-summary
  network 10.0.0.1 0.0.0.0
  network 10.1.1.0 0.0.0.255
!

=== HQ Router ===
!

! Configure loopback interface to source the GRE tunnel off of
!

 interface loopback 102
  ip address 172.16.102.1 255.255.255.0
!
! allow GRE over IPSec

!

 ip access-list extended VPN_ACL
  permit gre host 172.16.102.1 host 172.16.101.1
!
! Configure a GRE tunnel interface

!

interface tunnel 0
  ip address 10.0.0.2 255.255.255.0
  tunnel source loopback 102
  tunnel destination 172.16.101.1
!
! Enable IGP protocol (here EIGRP) between the sites

!
router eigrp 1
  no auto-summary
  network 10.0.0.2 0.0.0.0
  network 10.2.2.0 0.0.0.255
!

Watch the video:

That is the last post in the series. Time for a new project