Wi-Fi Offices Sheffield

Thanks to the wonders of radio waves it is now possible to set up an office network - linking computers, servers, printers, modems and the like - without redress to the traditional spaghetti junction of cable. There are a number of systems that enable you to connect office machines wirelessly but if you want to create a fully functioning local area network (LAN) there is really only one contender – it’s known as WiFi.

What is WiFi?
Put simply, WiFi is a radio-based technology, designed to allow computers and other devices to talk to one another in a network environment. Also known as Standard 802.11b, it uses an unlicensed strip of the radio spectrum, so once you’ve installed the kit you won’t have to pay anyone to use the airwaves. In that respect it is similar to the radio systems used to connect cordless phone handsets with their base stations.
 
At the core of any WiFi system is a transmitter and receiver known as an access point. These devices have a limited range - typically about 100 metres in any direction in office blocks and cities - and when switched on they create what technicians describe as a radio footprint and what the marketing people call a wireless hotspot: a bubble of wireless connectivity.

Within that bubble, laptops, desktop PCs, servers, modems and printers can talk to each other via the access point, provided they are equipped with their own transmitting and receiving WiFi cards. All this is held together by a “router”, which manages the addresses of the various machines on the network.

In the short term, it will cost about the same to set up a wireless network as it would a cable network. But if you think about the longer term – say over two or three years – it can be a lot cheaper.

For instance, as a business grows a wireless network makes it easy to scale up as you won’t have to put in new cable to cater for more PCs. If you move offices, you simply take your wireless equipment with you rather than having to pay technicians to root around under the floorboards.
Security issues

Its also important to be aware that security remains an issue with wireless offices put simply, it is hard to keep radio waves within walls as your radio footprint is unlikely to coincide with the shape of your building. That means that in theory, someone could stand outside your office with a suitably equipped PC and access your information.

The only way to prevent this is to have your code encrypted on. And you should have software that authenticates the addresses of all machines on the network. Suppliers will equip you with security tools but when setting up your access points you should try to ensure there is as little leakage from the office as possible.

It’s also worth considering if your office is suitable. Not every place of work will be conducive to data being bounced about by radio waves. Older buildings with thin walls and low ceilings are less conducive to the effective use of wireless th...