The Wi-Fi Alliance got its next certification programme
off to a flying start, issuing WPA2 badges to a bunch of products
that comply with the 802.11i security specification.
The Alliance is readying other programmes for quality of service
and the 802.11n fast Wi-Fi standard due next year.
The WPA2 certified products include generic designs from Atheros
Communications and Broadcom, so customers can expect to buy
products with the badges on by the end of the month, and for many
others WPA2 will only mean a software upgrade, said Gordon Lindsay,
Broadcom's European wireless product manager.
WPA2 is the follow up to the Alliance's interim security plan,
WPA (Wi-Fi Protected Access), which was brought out in March 2003,
because the then-current WEP security was not adequate and the
replacement, 802.11i, too far off. Now, with the 802.11i standard
ratified by the IEEE, the Alliance has launched a branding
programme under the WPA2 banner.
The biggest addition in WPA2/802.11i is AES, a heavy duty
encryption standard specified by the US government, which 2003 WLan
equipment did not have the processing power to handle.
Despite fears that users may have to scrap existing Wi-Fi
hardware, many will be pleasantly surprised to find that a software
upgrade will suffice, said Lindsay. "We have the hardware for AES
in all our existing chips," he said. "It's literally a software
upgrade."
WPA2 devices will be backward compatible with WPA systems, but
there will be a couple of steps on the upgrade path.
The full WPA2 security will not be available unless both ends of
the link can run 802.11i, so users with WPA2 networks may need to
upgrade clients before the full security benefits accrue.
Like WPA before it, WPA2 will be essential for the overall Wi-Fi
Alliance certification, so eventually any Wi-Fi certified product
will by definition support 802.11i.
"Enterprise security needs are not a stationary target, and the
Wi-Fi Alliance is committed to certification programmes that meet
evolving security requirements," said Wi-Fi Alliance managing
director, Frank Hanzlik.
Products with WPA2 certification include:
- Atheros' AR5000 series single and dual-band access points, and
its a/b/g wireless adapters
- Broadcom's AirForce dual-band access point and adapter
- Cisco Systems' Aironet 1200 802.11a/g access point
- Instant802 Networks' Gateway 7001 Access Point
- Intel's Intel Pro/Wireless 2915 Network Connection, and a
Realtek NIC.
"There may be some older products out there that don't have AES
in hardware," said Lindsay. "But the fact that it is now agreed,
and essential for Wi-Fi certification, means new products will be
up to that standard straight away."
An imminent Wi-Fi Alliance branding program for the 802.11e
quality of service standard will have a big impact on voice over
Wi-Fi said Lindsay.
"A lot of people are waiting for WME [part of the 802.11e
standard], because quality will improve in leaps and bounds," he
said.
And beyond that, the Wi-Fi Alliance will move in quickly on the
802.11n fast Wi-Fi standard, even though the IEEE has only just
started defining it.
"There was quite a delay between 802.11g coming out, and the
launch of the Alliance branding scheme All being able to test and
certify," said
Peter Judge writes for Techworld.com