Abstract: Specifying the hosting WLAN switch controller for a WiFi VPN connection from a public hotspot should not require managing separate name spaces for switch controllers and SSIDs. Instead, identification of the controller should be done within the standard 802.11 protocol using SSIDs that resolve to IP addresses. Users therefore need only manage a single SSID name space for both WiFi VPN connections and local wireless connections.

Abstract: The invention comprises three extensions of the IEEE 802.1Q VLAN bridge model. The first extension is the cryptographic separation of VLANs over trunk links. A LAN segment type referred to as an encapsulated LAN segment is introduced. All frames on such a segment are encapsulated according to an encryption and authentication code scheme. The second extension is the division of a trunk port into inbound and outbound ports. The third extension is a protocol that automatically infers for each outbound port in a bridged VLAN, a set of LAN segment types for the port that minimizes the number of transfers between encapsulated and unencapsulated segments required to transport a frame in the bridged VLAN.

Abstract: Disclosed herein is a network device, such as a host computer, that simultaneously has two IP identities: a local IP identity on a local network (e.g., a non-virtual private network) to which the host computer is connected; and a remote IP identity on a second network (e.g., virtual private network) that is remote to the host. Only the remote IP identity is visible to the host operating system's network stack. Each IP identity has its own ARP cache and Address Resolution Protocol (ARP). The local ARP cache is managed with respect to a connection of the host to a local subnet (e.g., an Internet Service Provider (ISP) subnet) and the remote ARP cache is managed with respect to a remote subnet reachable through a gateway on the local subnet.

Abstract: A mechanism for segregating traffic amongst STAs that are associated with a bridge, referred to herein as the personal virtual bridged local area network (personal VLAN), is based upon the use of a VLAN to segregate traffic. The IEEE 802.1Q-1998 (virtual bridged LANs) protocol provides a mechanism that is extended by the invention to partition a LAN segment logically into multiple VLANs. In the preferred embodiment, a VLAN bridge forwards unicast and group frames only to those ports that serve the VLAN to which the frames belong. One embodiment of the invention extends the standard VLAN bridge model to provide a mechanism that is suitable for use within an AP.