Welcome to JumpStart for Wireless™

One of the biggest challenges facing the WLAN industry today is providing end-users with products that enable quick, simple and

secure network configuration. In response to this challenge, Atheros has created JumpStart for Wireless, a set of secure networking tools

designed to help home consumers and SOHO users easily establish their wireless LANs with enterprise-class security.

Offering Broad-based Interoperability

To help WLAN product vendors avoid hardware lock-in and ease implementation, JumpStart was built from the ground up to be interoperable

with a wide array of WLAN platforms such as Intel Centrino, Broadcom, Marvell and many more. JumpStart also supports alternative profile

management tools such as Microsoft’s Zero Config.

Broad Product Support

JumpStart provides configuration solutions for standard WLAN equipment and PCs.

What makes JumpStart so Simple?

JumpStart is….

Fast: literally less than one minute for initial configuration and addition of new devices.

Intuitive: JumpStart guides the user through a fixed sequence of steps to virtually eliminate decision-making during the configuration process.

Wireless: no cables, no gadgets required

Simple: Initial configuration consists of 3 user steps, adding new devices requires just 2 steps.

What makes JumpStart so secure?

The basis for JumpStart encryption is the Diffie-Hellman Key Exchange Protocol enhanced with elements to mitigate the possibility of man-in-the-middle (MiM) attacks.
Authentication is done by the user observing the devices’ LED behaviors. This form of authentication requires both devices be in the possession of the user.
Authentication occurs out of the wireless radio band, thus ensuring greater security.
JumpStart automatically, and transparently to the user, chooses shared network key material created by the secure Diffie-Hellman protocol itself.
JumpStart uses AES (Advanced Encryption Standard) and SHA (Secure Hash Algorithm), both employed by government and private institutions for data protection.
Networks protected by JumpStart afford the highest level of each device’s WLAN security (WPA, WPA2).