Abstract: An electronic device may present a user interface for making selections related to connecting to a network or selecting a network from a plurality of available networks. Additionally, a user interface may give a user an opportunity to secure to an open, unsecure, connection, for example, an ad-hoc wireless connection, such as may be found at a coffee shop. A selection of security offerings may be made from a user interface screen including pre-populated service providers. A user may be allowed to save preferences for connecting to new networks, as well as preferences related to previously used networks. Further, the user may save preferences for invoking security services on a per-network or pan-network basis. The security service may a known tunneling protocol (i.e. VPN), such as L2TP or PPTP.

Abstract: A computing environment containing a mesh network that is adapted to provide a reliable transport mechanism over which services may be delivered. Nodes of the mesh can automatically select routable addresses without conflicts, which allows nodes of the mesh to be accessed, even as the mesh changes through the addition or deletion of nodes. Also, nodes communicate with a protocol that supports service advertisements. These advertisements can identify mesh nodes that supply services, such as file or print servers, for which devices that have not yet connected to the network may be searching. Advertisements can also identify services to be used by nodes in the network, allowing, for example, a node to select a gateway providing a reliable connection to an external network. The mesh network can be used as a transport for communication using protocols, such as TCP/IP, that generally exhibit poor performance when using unreliable transports.

Abstract: A communication system in which an access point and one or more devices communicating through the access point adaptively apply Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDMA). The access point may assign orthogonal subcarriers to devices as in conventional OFDMA, but the access point senses activity on the subcarriers and selects subcarriers without activity for assignment. In an alternative approach, a device that is configured for OFDMA communication may receive a channel assignment from a device that does not support OFDMA. The OFDMA-capable device may use only a portion of the subcarriers in the assigned channel, which may be communicated to the non-OFDMA device. During the non-OFDMA device may then ignore unused subcarriers in error detection and correction to avoid incorrectly classifying communications as erroneous.

Abstract: A standardized 802.11 hardware control interface may be provided such that a driver may communicate with any one or more of a variety of network adapters.

Abstract: A wireless station is connected to a wireless network through an access point and can establish a direct client-to-client connection to a second wireless station. The wireless station can communicate directly with the second wireless station without involving the access point. The wireless station communicates with the wired network and with other wireless stations through the access point. The second wireless station may have an infrastructure connection to the access point or may be independent.

Abstract: A system for signaling an application when a requested data rate and Quality of Service cannot be achieved using OFDM wireless data transmission, and the application proceeds by either renegotiating QoS and data rate, or waiting until they requested rate and QoS are met.

Abstract: A system for signaling an application when a requested data rate and Quality of Service cannot be achieved using OFDM wireless data transmission, and the application proceeds by either renegotiating QoS and data rate, or waiting until they requested rate and QoS are met.

Abstract: A system for signaling an application when a requested data rate and Quality of Service cannot be achieved using OFDM wireless data transmission, and the application proceeds by either renegotiating QoS and data rate, or waiting until they requested rate and QoS are met.

Abstract: An authentication process for a client and a target service to perform mutual authentication. A combined code is received that comprises a combined code hash of at least two sets of data from which an encoding scheme of the at least two sets of data can be determined. The two sets of data comprise a first set of data that includes a first hash of a public key associated with a certificate used to establish a secure channel with a target service, and a second set of data that includes a credential for authentication. The certificate can be validated with the first set of data included in the combined code. In response to a successful validation of the certificate, the credential from the second set of data can be provided to the target service for authentication.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for managing simultaneous virtual connections with multiple wireless networks. A plurality of ports in a hardware driver may be each associated with a corresponding wireless network and maintain a unique MAC state relative to other ports. Each port may have a corresponding virtual NIC that communicates directly with the radio hardware via a hardware virtualization layer that multiplexes communication between the virtual NICs and the radio hardware. Simultaneous virtual connections may be made with one or more infrastructure networks or adhoc networks, and/or the computer may function as an access point for one or more of the networks.

Abstract: A process for controlling radio transmission and/or reception to enforce certain constraints with either single or multiple radio communication is disclosed. In one embodiment, the enforcement control may be by the corporate administrator (such as an Information Technology (IT) department) that is responsible for the company's wireless devices. In other embodiments, the enforcement control may be by a regulatory group having governmental control over wireless communication. In yet another embodiment, the enforcement control might be by a provider group, such as a provider of a local private or semi-private wireless network desiring certain controls over the users of the network.

Abstract: Discovery of services between devices is provided prior to establishing a connection between devices, including wireless-enabled devices or devices that are communicatively coupled to wireless access points or other wireless communication devices. Discovering services prior to establishing a connection may facilitate finding a desired service. The services that may be discovered may be, for example, print services, camera services, PDA services or any other suitable services. Services may be discovered using 802.11, Bluetooth, UWB or any other suitable wireless technology. A graphical user interface is provided that enables a user to select a desired service.

Abstract: A system and method for providing the ability to discover the capabilities of a user's computer to determine whether it is capable of supporting more than one wireless protocol simultaneously is provided. A computing device's capabilities (including, for example, hardware and/or software capabilities) is checked to determine if it supports at least two specific wireless protocols and checking a computing device's capabilities (including, for example, hardware and/or software capabilities) is checked to determine if it supports both wireless protocols simultaneously. The techniques for determining the computing device's compatibility may include comparing lists of protocol requirements to lists of system capabilities and/or generating test signals by the system according to the protocol.

Abstract: Various embodiments enable a device to maintain a plurality of connections to a plurality of wireless networks simultaneously using one radio. For instance, a device can partition in time, or “time-slice”, when it transmits and receives data such that a device can maintain a plurality of connections with a plurality of networks concurrently. With the plurality of connections, the device can receive multiple copies of data. In some embodiments, a device can compare multiple copies of data and determine which copy of data is a best representation. Once a best representation has been determined, it can be selected for further usage.

Abstract: A system and method for providing the ability to discover the capabilities of a user's computer to determine whether it is capable of supporting more than one wireless protocol simultaneously is provided. A computing device's capabilities (including, for example, hardware and/or software capabilities) is checked to determine if it supports at least two specific wireless protocols and checking a computing device's capabilities (including, for example, hardware and/or software capabilities) is checked to determine if it supports both wireless protocols simultaneously. The techniques for determining the computing device's compatibility may include comparing lists of protocol requirements to lists of system capabilities and/or generating test signals by the system according to the protocol.

Abstract: A wireless station is connected to a wireless network through an access point and can establish a direct client-to-client connection to a second wireless station. The wireless station can communicate directly with the second wireless station without involving the access point. The wireless station communicates with the wired network and with other wireless stations through the access point. The second wireless station may have an infrastructure connection to the access point or may be independent.

Abstract: A framework is provided for diagnosing and resolving wireless connectivity-related issues. For example, some embodiments of the invention provide a “health monitor” which monitors and logs wireless connectivity-related events occurring on the device, the network, and the one or more resources to which the device is connected. The health monitor may analyze these events and/or other information to determine when a connectivity problem may have arisen, and if a problem is determined to be imminent or to have occurred, may initiate recovery procedures. In some embodiments, the monitoring of events, analysis to determine whether a connectivity problem has arisen, and the recovery from the problem occur transparently to the user.

Abstract: The normal roles of wireless stations and wireless access points in initiating the establishment of wireless connections may be reversed without the need for changes in the network interfaces for either the station or access point device. This capability may be used to allow wireless devices acting as access points, but on which service clients operate, to initiate the establishment of a connection with a station, on which a wireless service provider operates. Discovery of services between wireless devices can be provided prior to establishing a connection between the devices. A service client device providing access point functionality may broadcast an invitation for service advertisements and then receive service advertisements from relevant service providers acting as wireless stations. An information element may be included as part of periodically broadcast administrative messages to wirelessly convey an invitation for service advertisements.

Abstract: A wireless station is connected to a wireless network through an access point and can establish a direct client-to-client connection to a second wireless station. The wireless station can communicate directly with the second wireless station without involving the access point. The wireless station communicates with the wired network and with other wireless stations through the access point. The second wireless station may have an infrastructure connection to the access point or may be independent.

Abstract: Capability checking to examine a computing device's capabilities to determine if the device supports a software defined radio to communicate according to a specific wireless protocol. Applicants have appreciated that as the reliance on software defined radio increases, numerous potential options may be available to a user for performing wireless communication. Applicants have appreciated the desirability of providing the ability to discover the capabilities of a user's computer to determine whether it is capable of supporting one or more wireless protocols.