XP boosts WLAN security

Microsoft has integrated support for the Wireless Protected Access (WPA) security protocol in a new patch for Windows XP, and Nortel has unveiled several new enterprise-class products marking its entry into the wireless LAN (WLAN) market.

WPA addresses some of the security problems inherent in the IEEE's Wireless Equivalent Privacy (WEP) protocol and may be an interim solution for firms wanting to improve WLAN data security before the 802.11i specification is ratified at the end of this year.

Microsoft's XP patch only updates WLAN security on the software client side, however. IT managers will still need to perform firmware upgrades to wireless access points, access point/router combinations and network adapters, and this will depend on the availability of adequate driver support from vendors.

Nortel, which recently announced a range of branded WLAN switches, access points, mobile voice clients and PC Card adapters due this quarter, has not yet implemented WPA security in its products, but said hardware vendors will quickly implement non-proprietary technology such as WPA.

"We're following the IEEE standards track and what the majority of the market is doing at the moment, but we don't like going down the proprietary route," said Ian Jones, of Nortel's enterprise solutions sales and engineering group.

Nortel's goal is to provide corporate users with the ability to roam across public and private WLANs and cellular networks, a strategy that mirrors that of rivals such as Cisco and HP. The idea is that staff can use a single voice-enabled mobile device, typically a smartphone or handheld PC such as the Compaq iPaq or Dell Pocket PC, to make calls and transmit data from anywhere, inside or outside company premises.

This presents a number of challenges, however, including those of security, billing, and the need to seamlessly hand over voice or data calls from one type of network to another.

"When you move around a group of access points, you have to switch from one to another, and 802.11 is fine for that. But if the user moves from building to building they have to move to a new subnet and that's a lot harder to do," said Jones.

Whether the technology works or not, most IT managers are probably not ready to adopt it, argued Michael Wall of analyst firm Frost & Sullivan. "This [WLAN to cellular roaming] is some way away from real implementation. It is possible to do but technically demanding," he said.

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See also:

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