Aruba Wireless Networks First to Bring 802.11i to Life

Aruba Wireless Networks announced support for the newly ratified 802.11i standard on its centralized wireless LAN switching system. Early field trials with select customers are underway, and general beta testing of its 802.11i implementation is slated to begin in August.
Aruba implements all encryption in a centralized high-speed, software- programmable hardware encryption engine rather than in individual access points. Conventional WLAN systems decrypt wireless traffic at the AP, requiring encryption keys to be stored on or pushed to those APs. The company argues that this conventional approach poses security risks if an access point is lost or stolen, or if those encryption keys are otherwise intercepted or redirected. Also, to implement fast mobility between APs, conventional wireless systems must exchange complex state information between all possible APs, causing unwanted latency and complexity. Aruba's WLAN switching solution eliminates the need for complicated authentication state to be exchanged between APs by processing all authentication and encryption within a centralized system. http://www.arubanetworks.com