Every wireless LAN

Wireless LAN

A wireless local area network links two or more devices using some wireless distribution method , and usually providing a connection through an access point to the wider internet. This gives users the mobility to move around within a local coverage area and still be connected to the network...

 network consists of an access point

Wireless access point

In computer networking, a wireless access point is a device that allows wireless devices to connect to a wired network using Wi-Fi, Bluetooth or related standards...

, such as a wireless router

Router

A router is a device that forwards data packets between computer networks, creating an overlay internetwork. A router is connected to two or more data lines from different networks. When a data packet comes in on one of the lines, the router reads the address information in the packet to determine...

, and one or more wireless adapters. Each adapter is controlled by software known as a wireless LAN client, or wireless connection management utility

Wireless connection management utility

A wireless connection management utility is a piece of software that manages the activities and features of a wireless network connection. It may control the process of selecting an available access point, authenticating and associating to it and setting up other parameters of the wireless...

.

There are many wireless LAN clients available for use. Clients vary in technical aspects, support of protocols and other factors. Some clients only work with certain hardware devices, while others only on certain operating systems. The table below compares various wireless LAN clients.

Name	Creator	First public release	Authentication	Security	Latest stable version (Release Date)	Cost	Operating systems	Limitations	Target audience
Cisco Secure Services Client http://www.cisco.com/en/US/products/ps7034/index.html	Cisco	2008	PEAP/MSCHAPv2, PEAP/TLS, PEAP/GTC, TTLS/PAP, TTLS/CHAP, TTLS/MSCHAP, TTLS/MSCHAPv2, TTLS/EAP-MD5, TTLS/EAP-MSCHAPv2, FAST/MSCHAPv2, FAST/GTC, FAST/TLS, TLS, LEAP, MSCHAPv2, GTC, MD5	WEP, WPA(TKIP/AES), WPA2(TKIP/AES), CCKM(TKIP/AES)	5.1.0	Trial	Windows	90 day full trial/Unlimited wired only.	Enterprise, Desktop, Workstation, Server, Windows Microsoft Windows Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...  users
Intel PROSet Wireless http://www.intel.com/network/connectivity/products/wireless/proset/proset_software.htm	Intel	N/A	LEAP or EAP-FAST	WEP, WPA,WPA2	10.5.0.0	Free	Windows	Only for intel wireless modules	Desktop, Workstation, Server, Windows Microsoft Windows Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...  users
ThinkVantage Access Connections Manager http://www.pc.ibm.com/us/think/thinkvantagetech/accessconnections.html	Lenovo	2006-APR-21	LEAP, EAP-TLS	WEP, WPA,WPA2	4.42	Free	Windows	Only for intel PRO/wireless modules	Desktop, Workstation, Server, Windows Microsoft Windows Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...  users
Cisco Cisco Cisco may refer to:Companies:*Cisco Systems, a computer networking company* Certis CISCO, corporatised entity of the former Commercial and Industrial Security Corporation in Singapore...  Aironet http://www.cisco.com/en/US/products/hw/wireless/ps4555/index.html	Cisco	N/A	LEAP, EAP	WEP, WPA,WPA2	ver	Free	Windows	N/A	Desktop, Workstation, Server, Windows Microsoft Windows Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...  users
Microsoft Microsoft Microsoft Corporation is an American public multinational corporation headquartered in Redmond, Washington, USA that develops, manufactures, licenses, and supports a wide range of products and services predominantly related to computing through its various product divisions...  Wireless Zero Configuration Wireless Zero Configuration Wireless Zero Configuration , also known as Wireless Auto Configuration, or WLAN AutoConfig is a wireless connection management utility included with Microsoft Windows XP and later operating systems as a service that dynamically selects a wireless network to connect to based on a user's preferences...  http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/networking/default.mspx	Microsoft	October 25, 2001 (with Windows XP Windows XP Windows XP is an operating system produced by Microsoft for use on personal computers, including home and business desktops, laptops and media centers. First released to computer manufacturers on August 24, 2001, it is the second most popular version of Windows, based on installed user base... )	PEAP-ELS, PEAP-MS-CHAP v2	WEP, WPA,WPA2	ver	Free	Windows XP Windows XP Windows XP is an operating system produced by Microsoft for use on personal computers, including home and business desktops, laptops and media centers. First released to computer manufacturers on August 24, 2001, it is the second most popular version of Windows, based on installed user base... , Windows Server 2003 Windows Server 2003 Windows Server 2003 is a server operating system produced by Microsoft, introduced on 24 April 2003. An updated version, Windows Server 2003 R2, was released to manufacturing on 6 December 2005...	none	Desktop, Workstation, Server, Windows Microsoft Windows Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...  users
Dell Wireless LAN Card Utility http://www.dell.com/content/topics/global.aspx/solutions/en/truemobile?c=us&cs=04&l=en&s=bsd	Dell	N/A	N/A	WEP, WPA,WPA2	ver 3.0	Free	Windows	Only for Cisco Aironet products	Desktop, Workstation, Server, Windows Microsoft Windows Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...  users
Broadcom WLAN Utility http://h18007.www1.hp.com/support/files/compaqtabletpc/us/revision/7758.html	Broadcom	N/A	N/A	WEP, WPA,WPA2	ver 6.0	Free	Windows	Only for Broadcom wireless modules	Desktop, Workstation, Server, Windows Microsoft Windows Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...  users
Juniper Networks Juniper Networks Juniper Networks is an information technology and computer networking products multinational company, founded in 1996. It is head quartered in Sunnyvale, California, USA. The company designs and sells high-performance Internet Protocol network products and services...  Odyssey Access Client http://www.juniper.net/customers/support/products/oac.jsp	Funk/Juniper	October 22, 2002	EAP-TLS, EAP-TTLS (inner: PAP,CHAP,MSCHAP,MSCHAPv2,PAPToken,EAP-GTC,EAP-MD5,EAP-SIM,EAP-AKA,EAP-POTP,EAP-MSCHAPv2,EAP-JUAC), EAP-PEAP (inner: EAP-GTC,EAP-POTP,EAP-TLS,EAP-MSCHAPv2,EAP-JUAC), EAP-FAST, EAP-MD5, EAP-GTC, EAP-LEAP, EAP-SIM, EAP-AKA, EAP-POTP	WEP, WPA, WPA2	5.20 (June 2010)	Varies, 30-day trial	Windows, Mac OS X	none	Enterprise, Government (FIPS Edition), Desktop, Workstation, Server, Windows Microsoft Windows Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...  users
NetworkManager NetworkManager Network Manager is a software utility aimed at simplifying the use of computer networks on Linux-based and other Unix-like operating systems.- Overview :...  http://www.gnome.org/projects/NetworkManager/	nm	N/A	N/A	WEP, WPA, WPA2	ver 0.6.4	Free (GNU)	Linux	Wireless drivers must support HAL HAL (software) HAL was a software project providing a hardware abstraction layer for Unix-like computer systems.HAL is now deprecated on GNU/Linux systems, with functionality being merged into udev as of 2008–2010...	Desktop, Workstation, Server, Linux Linux Linux is a Unix-like computer operating system assembled under the model of free and open source software development and distribution. The defining component of any Linux system is the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released October 5, 1991 by Linus Torvalds... /Unix Unix Unix is a multitasking, multi-user computer operating system originally developed in 1969 by a group of AT&T employees at Bell Labs, including Ken Thompson, Dennis Ritchie, Brian Kernighan, Douglas McIlroy, and Joe Ossanna... users

N/A: Not available or not known.

External links

• Wireless LAN Trainer