Slashdot Mirror
Restricting Wireless Access on Campus?
Diety_in_A_Minor asks: "How would one set up a wireless network on a campus such that restrictions can occur by classroom? My back of the napkin solution would be to relate MAC addresses to class schedules, and have the DHCP server allow access to student-registered MAC addresses only during specific times. Although possible, this solution requires tremendous maintenance. What other solutions are there? One class in a building will require restrictions, while both classrooms adjacent to it need open access."
Change the student password every hour. Have the teacher easily able to see what the password is.
Write the password on the blackboard at the start of the class. Possibly have several different passwords with different levels of access.
- Muggins the Mad
Why not associate usernames with schedules and save yourself the hassle? Require a VPN logon for the wireless network, and deny access to specific users at the right times.
LOAD "SIG",8,1
What kind of school is this? Is it a college or university? The students are paying their way, let them waste their money by ignoring the class. Is it a K-12 school? Send a note home to the parents or disable the account of those caught using the 'net when they shouldn't.
I can't say that I don't give a fuck. I've just run out of fuck to give.
This has to be the most effective solution suggested yet.
802.1x is more cross-platform than propietary VPN solutions, requires no instructor cooperation changing keys or announcing new keys, requires no hacking up of a DHCP server, etc.
fnord.
MAC Address Restriction wont help, people could just sniff over and masquerade as other clients. Time up on one MAC? Spoof another. Rinse and repeat until wifi wants are satisfied, since nobody is going to be on all of that time or all of that week. Rate limiting wont help if it's done this way, you're just going to get some people who will just hop from one to another MAC, and people wondering what happened to their time.
Twitter supports and protects racists - by smearing their critics with the "Hate Speech" label.
Wireless is good for a lot of things, but it seems to me that this "solution" will require so much more time and effort that you might as well just use a wired solution. It shouldn't be too hard to have a router in each classroom that can be turned on or off as is appropriate. With a wireless solution you are pretty much relegated to turning off each individual students access based on their schedual, which is going to be much more difficult to impliment effectively.
Famous Last Words: "hmm...wikipedia says it's edible"
allot bandwidth according to classes- one hour per week per hour-long class
In most university situations it would be desirable to have accsess outwith the scheduled classes, but less desirable for use during classes (it is distracting and rude towards those taking the classes)
If it is necessary to restrict accsess (for exams etc) The easiest way is to dissalow any equipment not provided by the university. In exams I have had calcualtors provided.
Even if you do acces control by MAC address or VPN login as others have stated, students will just swap wireless cards or vpn logins with someone on a different schedule when they need to.
11*43+456^2
It's a bad idea, students will either hack it or switch to cellular modems. Just let the tight-assed professors deal with it and tell them to join us in the twenty-first century.
What you are doing shows a lack of respect to the students. If a student wants to waste their opportunity to be educated let em. The good students will voluntaraly go by the rules.
Belive me if you try to implement this system you are in for a world of hurt.