Network Configuration
4-4
Infrastructure Wireless LAN for Roaming Wireless PCs
The Basic Service Set (BSS) defines the communications domain for each access point
and its associated wireless clients. The BSS ID is a 48-bit binary number based on the
access point’s wireless MAC address, and is set automatically and transparently as
clients associate with the access point. The BSS ID is used in frames sent between the
access point and its clients to identify traffic in the service area.
The BSS ID is only set by the access point, never by its clients. The clients only need to
set the Service Set Identifier (SSID) that identifies the service set provided by one or
more access points. The SSID can be manually configured by the clients, can be
detected in an access point’s beacon, or can be obtained by querying for the identity of
the nearest access point. For clients that do not need to roam, set the SSID for the
wireless card to that used by the access point to which you want to connect.
A wireless infrastructure can also support roaming for mobile workers. More than one
access point can be configured to create an Extended Service Set (ESS). By placing the
access points so that a continuous coverage area is created, wireless users within this
ESS can roam freely. All wireless network cards and adapters and wireless access points
within a specific ESS must be configured with the same SSID.
<BSS 2>
<ESS>
<BSS 1>
Server
Switch
Desktop PC
Access Point
Seamless Roaming
Between Access Points
Desktop PC
Notebook PC
Access Point
Notebook PC
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