# Mixing WPA and WEP



## cjc (Aug 12, 2010)

I think I'm looking for an existing tutorial or how-to, but my Google-Fu is failing me and I've not been able to find anything.

I've got an AP running 8.1-Release and a ath(4) device. I can run it with "statically" configured WEP or hostapd-supported WPA. I've gotten both to work individually. But what I need is both to work at once. Or I need to learn how to configure a WPA network to be back compatible to WEP stations (without completely compromising the network).

The background, this is my home network. All of the notebook PC stations can do WPA. With WPA I'll be comfortable allowing direct access rather than the IPsec or PPTP VPN over WEP we've been doing. However, I have a WEP machine that does not do WPA (an old TiVo) that I want to continue to support.

I just upgraded to 8.1 hoping that with cloned wlan(4) devices I could just set up two networks, one WEP and one WPA, but as I said, I can get either one working, but not both at once.


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## phoenix (Aug 12, 2010)

You need two separate radios.  A wireless radio can be configured to support only 1 encryption system at a time (WEP, WPA-PSK, WPA2-PSK, WPA-EAP, etc).

IOW, you need a second wireless card in your FreeBSD box.  Then you configure the AP to use WPA and connect to it using 1 wireless card.  Configure the other card in hostap mode using WEP and connect the Tivo to it.  Then either bridge the two wireless cards together, or just configure file sharing on the FreeBSD box.


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## cjc (Aug 12, 2010)

> IOW, you need a second wireless card in your FreeBSD box.



Well, that's not going to work. The FreeBSD box is a Soekris net5501. Don't think I have room for another wireless NIC. 

I could swear I've read how to configure a WPA network to allow back compatibility for WEP-only stations. I guess I need to concentrate on finding that. Or figuring out if I imagined it. Any help on that front?


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## tingo (Aug 13, 2010)

cjc said:
			
		

> Well, that's not going to work. The FreeBSD box is a Soekris net5501. Don't think I have room for another wireless NIC.


If both the miniPCI and the PCI slot are occupied, you could always use the usb port with a usb wireless adapter.


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