You have just installed a wireless or WiFi network in a cust

You have just installed a wireless or Wi-Fi network in a customer’s house. She wants to connect to the Wi-Fi network with her Windows XP laptop but isn’t sure of the sequence of events for connecting. What must happen first?

A. Her laptop must locate a list of available wireless networks.

B. She must use her laptop to select her wireless network.

C. Her laptop must acquire a DHCP address from the wireless network.

D. She must use her laptop to enter the WEP key for her wireless network.

Solution

A. The first step in connecting to a wireless network is to locate a list of such networks using the laptop’s wireless utility. Usually, you are able to “see” the wireless networks in your immediate area. Once you select the desired network, if any security features such as WEP, or Wired Equivalent Privacy, are being used, you will be prompted to satisfy the requirements, such as entering a WEP key, before continuing. Then the laptop will request an IP address from the DHCP server on the wireless network, which is usually from the wireless router or broadband modem, and once the IP address is received, the computer is successfully connected.