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Trying to enhance the appeal of Windows XP among wireless users, Microsoft is making available a free upgrade to the operating system that supports the new Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA) standard.

The new software is meant to replace the Wired Equivalent Privacy (WEP) standard. It reportedly has more-robust methods of data encryption and network authentication, strengthening Windows XP users' security, according to Microsoft officials.

New Encryption

"While most of the feedback has been good on Windows XP and how easy it is to use for Wi-Fi, some also say the security is not quite what it needs to be. Many IT managers are hesitant to enable wireless connectivity in their organizations," said Jawad Khaki, a Microsoft vice president in charge of the company's networking and communications technologies for Windows platforms.

According to Khaki, WPA improves data encryption by resolving existing cryptographic "weaknesses," and it introduces a new method to generate and then distribute encryption keys automatically. Each bit of data can now be encrypted with a unique key, thereby improving security. WPA also works to improve authentication by authenticating every user on a network, while at the same time preventing users from joining rogue networks.

Microsoft contends that WPA represents another step toward 802.11i, which is being developed by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineering (IEEE) Standards Working Group for wireless local area networks. Microsoft has been working with several vendors, including Broadcom, Intel, Intersil, and Linksys Group, to ensure that users of Windows XP can work with WPA uniformly and then upgrade to 802.11i when it becomes available.

"Protecting home and business Wi-Fi wireless networks from outside attackers must be one of our highest priorities," said Matt McRae, director of broadband services at Linksys. "Security is key to adding peace of mind and to driving the adoption of wireless networking," he said.

Wireless Gains

In a recent report, Gartner Dataquest forecast that the penetration rate of wireless local area networks into the professional mobile PC installed base will grow from 9 percent in 2000 to just under 50 percent by the end of this year, and to 90 percent in 2007.

Khaki said that a solid security standard will do for wireless computing what TCP/IP built into Windows 95 did for the Internet.

"I feel that having that [TCP/IP] built into Windows 95 was a key catalyst for the Internet's growth. We feel a standards-based wireless implementation that secures the data of our users is a major catalyst to the deployment of wireless nets in both the home and enterprise," Khaki said.

The new upgrade, which is "only a few hundred kilobytes,'' according to Khaki, can be downloaded free by both home and corporate users.

The new upgrade will be built standard into the next version of Windows XP or into the operating system's next service pack. Company officials would not comment on when the next Service Pack for XP will be available.

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