Open System Authentication

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Important  The Native 802.11 Wireless LAN interface is deprecated in Windows 10 and later. Please use the WLAN Device Driver Interface (WDI) instead. For more information about WDI, see WLAN Universal Windows driver model.

 

The Open System authentication algorithm is specified in Clause 11.2.3.2 of the IEEE 802.11-2012 standard. Open System authentication is required for both infrastructure and independent basic service set (BSS) network types.

When configured for Open System authentication, the 802.11 station must do the following:

  • If it is configured to operate in an infrastructure BSS network, authenticate with the access point (AP) using the protocol defined for the Open System authentication algorithm.

  • If it is configured to operate in an independent BSS (IBSS), authenticate with other peer stations using one of the following:

    • The protocol defined for the Open System authentication algorithm.
    • A proprietary protocol defined by the independent hardware vendor (IHV). For example, a common approach is to authenticate the peer station as soon as the first frame is received from the peer station.

    Note  IBSS (Ad hoc) and SoftAP are deprecated. Starting with Windows 8.1 and Windows Server 2012 R2, use Wi-Fi Direct.

     

When initialized or reset, the 802.11 station must default to Open System authentication. If configured for WPA or RSNA authentication, the 802.11 station must first authenticate to a BSS network using the Open System authentication algorithm.