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Wireless Networks
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Article 6: Drawbacks to Going Wireless
When weighing whether to
take the wireless network plunge, consider the
drawbacks.
In tight economic times, gadgetry for gadgetry’s
sake is an unnecessary expense. If you have
little need for networked computers in the first
place, wireless networks won’t change that. If
file sharing in your office amounts to passing a
Word document from one user to another once a
week, a floppy disc will suffice.
If you’re counting pennies, it may be more
difficult to justify a WLAN’s long-term
productivity savings, considering that you have
immediate out-of-pocket expenses to add
employees to the network at about $100 a pop. If
so, you might find that staying with your
Ethernet-based wired system is sufficient.
WLANs are still more expensive than standard
Ethernet wired networks, although small-business
owners can save on high-priced technical help by
installing the networks themselves.
The current crop of wireless systems may not
meet your reliability requirements if your
office setting sports many potential physical
obstructions. Thick walls, metal frames, fish
aquariums, leafy trees in planters and other
potential wavelength blockers infringe on the
reliability of wireless communications.
Perhaps the greatest downside to wireless
networks is security. For companies providing
visitors or customers access to their WLAN, care
should be taken not to have mission critical
data on the network. Another option is to
install extra layers of security or provide
separate networks for employees and
non-employees, but such measures mean extra
expense.
Although WLANs are easy to set up, they can
create security risks if installed improperly.
IT managers can provide multiple levels of
access through login procedures, servers,
virtual private networks (VPNs) and other means.
You also can set up “guest access” by attaching
an access point outside the firewall, giving
visitors Internet access for example, but no
access to the internal LAN. This provides more
secure authorization of the wireless clients
because the authorization is not going over the
WLAN.
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