BT Home Hub, WEP or WPA encryption ?

Hi
More questions on broadband wireless routers from this broadband
newbie.

The information I have gathered on wireless security is saying that
WPA or WPA2 encryption should be used in preference to the older WEP
which is less secure.

I am considering BT option 1 (plus £30 extra for the Hub) so
downloaded the userguide for the Hub. The guide only mentions that the
Hub is preset using WEP with a 64bit key, so I had thoughts of buying
a 3rd party router with WPA encryption. The BT website spec sheet
however says that the Hub supports WEP and WPA-PSK/WPA2-PSK.

I am a little confused, is anybody using one of these things, can they
confirm it supports WPA.

TIA

Dave

"David" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
news:(E-Mail Removed)...
> Hi
> More questions on broadband wireless routers from this broadband
> newbie.
>
> The information I have gathered on wireless security is saying that
> WPA or WPA2 encryption should be used in preference to the older WEP
> which is less secure.
>
> I am considering BT option 1 (plus £30 extra for the Hub) so
> downloaded the userguide for the Hub. The guide only mentions that the
> Hub is preset using WEP with a 64bit key, so I had thoughts of buying
> a 3rd party router with WPA encryption. The BT website spec sheet
> however says that the Hub supports WEP and WPA-PSK/WPA2-PSK.
>
> I am a little confused, is anybody using one of these things, can they
> confirm it supports WPA.

Yes it does: I changed a Home Hub from WEP to WPA-PSK today - for the first
time, so it's a coincidence that you should ask today.

A word of warning: its odd menu structure will drive you mad: you know that
standard features like encryption algorithm and key, and wireless channel
can be configured but it takes a while to find the menus! Still, less
obscure than my Dad's Solwise router which is just plain weird.

On Thu, 15 Feb 2007 23:54:37 -0000, "Martin Underwood" <a@b> wrote:

>
>"David" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
>news:(E-Mail Removed).. .
>> Hi
>> More questions on broadband wireless routers from this broadband
>> newbie.
>>
>> The information I have gathered on wireless security is saying that
>> WPA or WPA2 encryption should be used in preference to the older WEP
>> which is less secure.
>>
>> I am considering BT option 1 (plus £30 extra for the Hub) so
>> downloaded the userguide for the Hub. The guide only mentions that the
>> Hub is preset using WEP with a 64bit key, so I had thoughts of buying
>> a 3rd party router with WPA encryption. The BT website spec sheet
>> however says that the Hub supports WEP and WPA-PSK/WPA2-PSK.
>>
>> I am a little confused, is anybody using one of these things, can they
>> confirm it supports WPA.
>
>Yes it does: I changed a Home Hub from WEP to WPA-PSK today - for the first
>time, so it's a coincidence that you should ask today.
>
>A word of warning: its odd menu structure will drive you mad: you know that
>standard features like encryption algorithm and key, and wireless channel
>can be configured but it takes a while to find the menus! Still, less
>obscure than my Dad's Solwise router which is just plain weird.
>
Thanks Martin

I have read on Wikipedia that XP needs an update (might be on driver
CD) but Vista supports WPA2 out of the box, so might have additional
hassle.

Dave

"David" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
news:(E-Mail Removed)

[snip]

> I have read on Wikipedia that XP needs an update (might
> be on driver CD) but Vista supports WPA2 out of the box,
> so might have additional hassle.

Eh..? What has the operating system got to do with the encryption used ..?

Ivor

On 17 Feb 2007, "Ivor Jones" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote:


>Eh..? What has the operating system got to do with the encryption used ..?

Try getting WPA on Win 98/Win 95. Also, there might still be other devices
such as "internet radio" units which support only WEP...

On Sat, 17 Feb 2007 01:39:54 -0000, "Ivor Jones"
<(E-Mail Removed)> wrote:

>"David" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
>news:(E-Mail Removed)
>
>[snip]
>
>> I have read on Wikipedia that XP needs an update (might
>> be on driver CD) but Vista supports WPA2 out of the box,
>> so might have additional hassle.
>
>Eh..? What has the operating system got to do with the encryption used ..?
>
>Ivor
>
Well if you know the answer to that one you might edit the Wikipedia
page refering to WPA.
What puzzels me is that some of the USB wireless adapters say that
they support WEP and others both WEP and WPA. I would have thought
that the encryption decoding would have been done in the computer
itself not the adapter ???.

Dave

"David" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
news:(E-Mail Removed)...
> On Sat, 17 Feb 2007 01:39:54 -0000, "Ivor Jones"
> <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote:
>
>>"David" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
>>news:(E-Mail Removed) m
>>
>>[snip]
>>
>>> I have read on Wikipedia that XP needs an update (might
>>> be on driver CD) but Vista supports WPA2 out of the box,
>>> so might have additional hassle.
>>
>>Eh..? What has the operating system got to do with the encryption used ..?
>>
>>Ivor
>>
> Well if you know the answer to that one you might edit the Wikipedia
> page refering to WPA.
> What puzzels me is that some of the USB wireless adapters say that
> they support WEP and others both WEP and WPA. I would have thought
> that the encryption decoding would have been done in the computer
> itself not the adapter ???.

Maybe it's the *drivers* that are supplied with some of the USB wireless
adaptors which support only WEP and not WPA. Since the hardware and drivers
tend to be supplied as a single unit, the lack of WPA support in the driver
tends to imply that the adaptor (hardware+driver bundle) doesn't support it.

"Ivor Jones" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in
news:(E-Mail Removed):

>> ...I have read on Wikipedia that XP needs an update...

> What has the operating system got to do with the encryption used
> ..?
>
Support for WPA was not in the original XP release; it was added in
XP Service Pack 2.

"Frazer Jolly Goodfellow" <no-(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in
message news:Xns98DBDC46ECF29frz@80.5.182.99
> "Ivor Jones" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in
> news:(E-Mail Removed):
>
> > > ...I have read on Wikipedia that XP needs an update...
>
> > What has the operating system got to do with the
> > encryption used ..?
> >
> Support for WPA was not in the original XP release; it
> was added in XP Service Pack 2.

But what has it to do with an external device, such as my standalone
access point, which isn't running Windows..?

Ivor

"Ivor Jones" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in
news:(E-Mail Removed):

> "Frazer Jolly Goodfellow" <no-(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in
> message news:Xns98DBDC46ECF29frz@80.5.182.99
>> "Ivor Jones" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in
>> news:(E-Mail Removed):
>>
>> > > ...I have read on Wikipedia that XP needs an update...
>>
>> > What has the operating system got to do with the
>> > encryption used ..?
>> >
>> Support for WPA was not in the original XP release; it
>> was added in XP Service Pack 2.
>
> But what has it to do with an external device, such as my
> standalone access point, which isn't running Windows..?
>
Durrrr it would get kinda lonely without something to talk to?