LWAPP brings harmony to WLANs

Centralized security and management of wireless LANs is a rapidly growing trend in which a WLAN device such as a switch, appliance, or router is used to create and enforce policies across many streamlined, or lightweight, radio access points.

As is the case with any network technology, standardization is key to widespread adoption. More specifically, a standardized protocol is required that governs how WLAN system devices communicate with lightweight access points to ensure interoperability and to avoid having to buy from only one vendor.

This is the role of the Lightweight Access Point Protocol (LWAPP), a draft standard the Internet Engineering Task Force is considering as part of the Control and Provisioning of Wireless Access Points (CAPWAP), which is in the preliminary stages of becoming an IETF working group.

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Centralized security and management of wireless LANs is a rapidly growing trend in which a WLAN device such as a switch, appliance, or router is used to create and enforce policies across many streamlined, or lightweight, radio access points.

As is the case with any network technology, standardization is key to widespread adoption. More specifically, a standardized protocol is required that governs how WLAN system devices communicate with lightweight access points to ensure interoperability and to avoid having to buy from only one vendor.

This is the role of the Lightweight Access Point Protocol (LWAPP), a draft standard the Internet Engineering Task Force is considering as part of the Control and Provisioning of Wireless Access Points (CAPWAP), which is in the preliminary stages of becoming an IETF working group.

Traditional WLANs function on a stand-alone basis. As such, they are based on a device known as a fat access point, which contains all wireless processing capabilities. This traditional architecture doesn't let different vendors' equipment interoperate. The new, hierarchical WLAN architecture departs from this model.

LWAPP's goal is to provide consistent behavior across WLAN devices, ensure multi-vendor WLAN interoperability, protect WLAN hardware investments and create a foundation for delivering advanced WLAN functionality in enterprise environments. LWAPP helps companies simplify WLAN deployment and management, and build large-scale wireless networks.

An LWAPP-managed network consists of multiple access points connected via Layer 2 (Ethernet) or Layer 3 (IP) to an access controller. Access controllers typically are WLAN appliances or WLAN switches. With LWAPP, access points are essentially remote radio frequency interfaces that no longer house all the mandatory wireless processing capabilities and are controlled by the access controller.

LWAPP governs how access points and access controllers communicate with each other by defining the following activities: