Certified Wireless Network Administrator – CWNA (CWNA) – Outline

Detailed Course Outline

Hands-on Lab Exercises

Spectrum Capture and Analysis

  • Installing spectrum analyzer software
  • Performing and analyzing a capture
  • Swept Spectrogram
  • Real Time FFT
  • FFT Duty Cycle
  • Channel Utilization
  • Interference with Wi-Fi Channels
  • Interfering Device Discovery

Infrastructure Mode Throughput Analysis

  • Section A: Greenfield mode throughput (802.11b vs. g vs. a vs. n)
  • Section B: Mixed mode throughput
  • Section C: Adjacent and co-channel interference
  • Understanding speeds and feeds of Wi-Fi technologies

Using Laptop Analyzers

  • Using laptop analyzers for WLAN discovery and protocol analysis.
  • Understanding security and performance related protocol analysis
  • Installing and configuring a WLAN discovery tool.
  • Installing and configuring a laptop protocol analyzer
  • Locating 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz WLANs
  • Capturing and analyzing Management, Control, and Data frames
  • Capturing and analyzing a WPA2-Personal authentication
  • A protocol analyzer is provided on the student CD

Site Survey

  • Classes of site survey methodology
  • Section A: Manual site surveys (sometimes called the walkabout)
  • Section B: Predictive analysis (sometimes called automated site surveying)
  • Manual site surveying
  • Active mode vs passive mode
  • Predictive analysis software tools

Basic WLAN Security

  • WPA compliant
  • WPA2 compliant
  • Personal vs Enterprise
  • TKIP encryption
  • 802.11i compliant CCMP
  • 802.1X/EAP authentication

Wireless Intrusion Prevention Systems

  • security monitoring
  • performance monitoring
  • reporting
  • Installation and configuration of WIPS
  • Properly classifying authorized, rogue/unauthorized, and external/interfering access points or clients
  • Event monitoring and notification
  • Identifying and mitigating rogue devices
Course Outline

Introduction to 802.11 WLANs

  • Discuss the standards organizations responsible for shaping the 802.11 Wireless LAN protocol
  • Learn how standards compliance is enforced for 802.11 WLAN vendors
  • Examine the 802.11 standard and various amendments
  • Discuss additional networking standards that are commonly used to enhance 802.11 WLANs

Radio Frequency Fundamentals

  • Physical aspects of RF propagation
  • Types of losses and attenuation that affect RF communications
  • Types of modulation and coding schemes (MCS) used for 802.11 communications
  • How channels and bandwidth are related to each other in wireless networks
  • Types of Spread Spectrum used in wireless networking
  • RF Power Output Regulations

Understand international, regional, and local RF spectrum management organizations

  • Understand RF channels in the unlicensed 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz frequency ranges
  • Understand how power output limitations are enforced by the FCC for Point-to-Multipoint (PtMP) and Point-to-Point (PtP) wireless connections

Power over Ethernet

  • Recognize the two types of devices used in Power over Ethernet (PoE)
  • Recognize the differences between the two types of Power Sourcing Equipment (PSE)
  • Understand the two ways in which power can be delivered using PoE
  • Understand the importance of planning to maximize the efficiency of Power over Ethernet
  • Understand the two standards currently available for PoE
  • Powering 802.11n APs

Basic WLAN Analysis

  • Protocol Analysis
  • 802.11 Frame Types
  • Data Frames
  • Control Frames
  • Management Frames
  • Protection Mechanisms
  • Legacy Power Saving operations
  • Transmission Rates

Coordinating 802.11 Frame Transmissions

  • Differences between CSMA/CD and CSMA/CA
  • Distributed Coordination Function (DCF)
  • Network Allocation Vector (NAV)
  • Clear Channel Assessment (CCA)
  • Interframe Spacing (IFS)
  • Contention Window (CW)
  • Quality of Service in 802.11 WLANs
  • Point Coordination Function (PCF)
  • Hybrid Coordination Function (HCF)

RF Math and System Operating Margin

  • RF units of measure
  • Basic RF mathematics
  • RF signal measurements
  • Understand link budgets

802.11 Service Sets

  • Three types of service sets defined for use within 802.11 WLANs
  • 802.11 authentication and association
  • 802.11 network infrastructure
  • Roaming within a WLAN
  • Load-balancing as a method to improve congestion in WLANs
  • The 802.11n Amendment

Challenges addressed by 802.11n

  • 802.11n PHY/MAC layer enhancements
  • MIMO and SISO systems
  • 802.11n coexistence mechanisms
  • 802.11n integration and deployment considerations
  • 802.11n site surveying and analysis

Wireless LAN Operation

  • WLAN Hardware Devices
  • WLAN Software
  • Architecture Types and Evolution
  • Ad Hoc & Infrastructure Connectivity Operation
  • AP Modes
  • Bridging & Repeating
  • Mesh Networking
  • WLAN Controller Deployments
  • WLAN Profiles
  • Multichannel Architecture (MCA)
  • Single Channel Architecture (SCA)
  • WLAN Management Systems (WNMS)

WLAN Security

  • The Importance of WLAN Security
  • Security Policy
  • Legacy WLAN Security Mechanisms
  • Modern WLAN Security Mechanisms
  • Baseline WLAN Security Practices

Site Surveying

  • Defining an RF site survey
  • Spectrum Analysis
  • Types of RF site surveys
  • Manual RF site surveys
  • Predictive Modeling
  • Dense AP deployments

Antennas

  • Types of antennas and antenna systems commonly used in 802.11 WLANs
  • Antenna Polarization and Gain
  • Antenna implementation and safety
  • Types of antenna cables, connectors, and other accessories