Wireless e-business by IBM Wireless Local Area Networks

Transcription

1 IBM Global Services October 2001 Wireless e-business by IBM Wireless Local Area Networks Jyrki Korkki Global Offerings Development Executive, Global Services

2 Page No. 2 Contents 2 Unwiring the business world 2 Employees are always connected 2 What is a wireless LAN? 3 The components of a wireless LAN 3 End-user benefits of a wireless LAN 4 ROI in a single year 4 What wireless LANs can provide a company s IT 4 Wireless LAN s help reduce telecom costs 5 Who needs wireless LANs? 6 Security with wireless LANs 7 How are wireless LAN s configured? 8 Speed and range of a wireless LAN 9 IBM s role in this market 9 What our customers can expect from an IBM solution 10 IBM s Instant Wireless LAN for small and medium businesses 10 IBM s total wireless LAN services offerings Unwiring the Business World Many corporate computer applications were built around the traditional client-server model which means having a wired Ethernet link from the desktop to the corporate network and the Internet. What worked then does not work now as access to networked business tools has become critical, whether the employee is down the hall in a meeting, in another part of the corporate campus, or away from the office on business. Increased employee mobility demands flexible communications. Employees are always connected The prevalence of portable computers, cellular telephones, handheld Personal Digital Assistants and interactive communicators, coupled with e-business applications, has resulted in the need for users to have real-time network access regardless of physical location. Wireless LANs or, equivalently, a wireless Ethernet, promise to provide the freedom that many mobile workers demand to stay always connected with their systems and their peers. The ratification of the IEEE standard for wireless LAN and rapid progress toward higher data rates have put the promise of truly mobile computing within reach. What is a wireless LAN? In the simplest of terms, a wireless local area network does exactly what the name implies. It provides all the features and benefits of traditional LAN technologies such as Ethernet without the physical limitations of wires or cables. To view a wireless LAN just in terms of the cables it does not have is to miss the point: wireless LANs redefine the way we should view LANs. First, connectivity can always be available. Further, wireless LANs are very easy to install. There is no requirement for wiring every workstation and every room. This ease of installation makes wireless LANs inherently flexible. Think about it: local areas can now be measured not in feet or meters, but miles or kilometers. An infrastructure need not be buried in the ground or hidden behind the walls - an infrastructure can move and change at the speed of the worker and his or her organisation.

3 Page No. 3 The components of a wireless LAN Access points (AP) contain two-way radios which communicate with a number of client adapters and also provide connectivity to the wired LAN. Bridges provide point-to-point wireless connectivity between LANs - both wired and wireless. Client adapters (network interface cards) are installed in notebooks, handhelds, PDAs and desktops to provide wireless connectivity with the access points and the wired LAN. Various antennas, attached to access points or bridges, are used to provide the desired wireless coverage area required by the end-users. End-user benefits of a wireless LAN Increased mobility for employees improves productivity and service: access to real-time information wherever, whenever, however. Wireless LANS allow the network to go where wire cannot go. In terms of reduced cost-of-ownership, while initial investment can be higher than wired, overall installation expenses and life-cycle costs can be significantly lower. Long-term cost benefits are greatest on dynamic environments requiring frequent moves, adds and changes.

4 Page No. 4 ROI in a single year Organisations implementing an average of 300 client cards reaped annual savings of up to $4.9 million which translated into per-user savings of $15,989 (Source: WLANA 2000). The cost per-user for a global wireless solution averaged $4,550 with an ROI of less than one year (Source: WLANA 2000). Wireless LANS eliminate recurrent charges for LAN-to-LAN building configurations. What wireless LANs can provide a company s IT Installation speed and simplicity due to the elimination of the need to pull cable through wall, ceilings or between buildings. The IT infrastructure is ready for converged applications with unified infrastructure (voice, data & video) Scalability: A variety of configurations to meet the needs of specific applications and installations. Configurations are easily changed and range from independent networks suitable for a small number of users to full infrastructure networks of thousands of users Manageability: Unified administration for wired or wireless devices. Access points ship with default IP addresses, making it possible to use a web browser to set up the default parameters. Parameters can be saved and downloaded to each AP making updating a large installation relatively easy. In addition, browser-based software utilities are easy to use and demonstrate link quality as well. Wireless LANs help reduce telecom costs There are a number of areas in which wireless LANs can positively impact costs: Decreases implementation costs - A fraction the cost of trenching High-speed connections - Greater bandwidth than E1 lines Eliminate recurring charges - No monthly leased line fees Reduces installation delays - No right of way or permits required Makes physical barriers irrelevant - Bypass lakes, rivers, freeways, railroads Can also be used to connect workgroups within buildings in the same manner.

5 Page No. 5 Who needs Wireless LANs? Wireless LANs frequently augment rather than replace wired LAN network. The inherent appeal of wireless networking technology is its ability to provide the final few meters of connectivity between a wired network and the mobile user. Examples of fields in which wireless technology has proven effective include: Doctors and nurses in hospitals are more productive because handheld or notebook computers with wireless LAN capability deliver patient information instantly Consulting or accounting audit teams or small workgroups increase productivity with quick network setup Training sites at corporations and students at universities use wireless connectivity to ease access to information, information exchanges and learning Network managers installing networked computers in older buildings find that wireless LANs are a cost-effective network infrastructure solution Trade show and branch office workers minimize setup requirements by installing preconfigured wireless LANs that do not require local MIS support Warehouse workers use wireless LANs to exchange information with central databases, thereby increasing productivity.

6 Page No. 6 Security with wireless LANs Any network, including a wired LAN, is subject to substantial security risks and issues. These include: Threats to the physical security of a network Unauthorised access and eavesdropping Attacks from within the network s (authorised) user community Spread-spectrum systems are designed to be resistant to noise, interference, jamming, and unauthorised detection. The IEEE b standard, for example, includes a security technique known as wired equivalent privacy (WEP), which is based on the use of 64-bit keys and the popular RC4 encryption algorithm. Users without knowledge of the current key (password) will find themselves excluded from network traffic. Encryption, as noted above, is always advisable on any network, and is certainly easier to implement in wireless LANs than in their wired counterparts. Certificate servers for authentication and centralized security management are also essential because the diligent management of security is essential to the operation of all LANs, regardless of whether they have wireless segments.

7 Page No. 7 How are wireless LANs configured? Wireless LANs provide a flexible data communication system implemented as an extension to, or as an alternative for, a wired LAN within a building or campus and give connectivity between a broad range of business devices (hand-held terminals, notebooks, PDAs, VoIP terminals...) to centralized hosts for processing (Web, mail, SMS...). Wireless LANs transmit and receive data over the air using radio waves between access points and client devices equipped with adapter or PCI cards Wireless LANs combine data and voice connectivity with user mobility, and through simplified configuration, enable movable LANs. The access point connects via a RJ-45 cable to the Ethernet and handles the incoming and outgoing traffic from and to wireless LAN users or clients. Each access point has up to 11 Mbps throughput. This capacity is adequate for the following: 100+ nominal users who are mostly idle and check an occasional text based 60+ mainstream users who use considerable and down/up load moderately sized files 40 power users who are constantly on the network and deal with large files The access point attaches to the backbone (10/100BaseT) and if a single cell does not provide enough coverage, any number of cells can be added to extend the range. Cells usually have a 10-15% overlap. To increase capacity or coverage, more access points may be added - it is important to note, that networks are optimized when the access points are set to different channels (non-overlapping). Three access points can be set up in the same area, this would allow more users to share a total of up to 33 Mbps total capacity (although no single user would ever have throughput speeds greater than up to 11 Mbps). An individual user can seamlessly roam throughout the entire coverage area of the wireless LAN without losing connectivity to host applications. In addition, access points perform dynamic load balancing to maintain optimal system throughput. Load balancing allows the

8 Page No. 8 client to change access point if that access point is congested with traffic or providing a low quality signal. Furthermore, access points can be configured as repeaters within a system to eliminate the need for cabling between access points. Power management allows the client card to go to sleep and the access point will buffer messages to these clients, contributing to longer computer battery life. Speed and range of a wireless LAN Equipment conforming to the IEEE b standard communicate at 11 Mbps between access points and client adapter cards. However, as the client moves away from the access point, transmission speed is automatically reduced to 5.5 Mbps, 2 Mbps and 1 Mbps depending on the distance moved. This Dynamic Rate Shifting is transparent to the end-user when executing transaction-based applications. The range of coverage of a single access point is dependent on many factors which include choice of vendor, possible physical obstructions and other sources of interference. Typically, in an open office environment, coverage of one access point can be expected to reach several hundred feet.

9 Page No. 9 IBM s role in this market With the IEEE HS standard that can drive speeds up to 11 Mbps today the promise to achieve 54 Mbps in a few years and better understanding of security concerns, the wireless market can see an exponential growth. IBM is leveraging its existing partnerships with major LAN hardware networking vendors to provide wireless LAN design and implementation services for their Wireless LAN product and system offerings. In essence, we are extending our networking services and support of a customer s fixed wired LAN infrastructure into an augmented wireless LAN network. It s important to note that IBM Global Services provides services and support for both wired and wireless communication solution offerings to meet your specific needs. What our customers can expect from an IBM wireless solution First, we offer a phased approach to wireless LAN design and implementation that includes: Phase I - Wireless project management, planning and system design and Phase II - Wireless LAN configuration, installation and integration testing, which combine to make up IBM s Total Wireless LAN Solutions for the Enterprise IBM not only provides support and services for the wireless LAN infrastructure, but we can also: Help evaluate, select and procure handheld computer equipment (ruggedized portable computers, printers, bar code readers, etc.) Provide mobile computers, PDAs for the professional mobile worker Provide additional wired LAN infrastructure (hubs, switches, routers, cabling, etc) Provide services for total network integration with the customer s existing intranet regardless of size

10 Page No. 10 IBM s Instant Wireless LAN solution for small and medium businesses For the small and medium business customer, IBM offers an Instant Wireless LAN which is comprised of: 20 wireless LAN adapter cards Two wireless LAN access points Necessary power and data cabling installation as part of our Rapid Network Deployment Optionally, an IBM Netfinity Server is available with pre-loaded software for Internet access IBM s Total Wireless LAN services offerings In summary, to complement IBM s Wireless LAN Design and Implementation offerings, we can help customers with assessment, strategy, architecture, and technology consulting services as part or our wireless e-business Consulting and Architecture Services Practice. We also offer wireless e-business implementation services for enterprises, ISP s and ASP s, and we provide Remote Network Management for wireless LAN.

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