802.11a MAC Functions
=========================

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        **What is the MAC layer in 802.11a?**

        The MAC (Medium Access Control) layer controls how devices access the wireless medium and manages frame delivery in 802.11a.

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        **What are the primary functions of MAC in 802.11a?**

        Functions include medium access control, frame encapsulation/decapsulation, error checking, and retransmissions.

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        **How does MAC handle medium access in 802.11a?**

        It uses CSMA/CA (Carrier Sense Multiple Access with Collision Avoidance) to listen before transmitting and avoid collisions.

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        **What role does MAC play in frame retransmission?**

        MAC retransmits frames if acknowledgments are not received, ensuring reliable delivery.

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        **How does MAC implement collision avoidance?**

        By using interframe spaces and random backoff timers before transmitting to reduce chances of collisions.

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        **What is the purpose of ACK frames in MAC?**

        ACK (Acknowledgment) frames confirm successful reception of data frames, enabling error recovery.

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        **How does MAC layer handle frame fragmentation?**

        MAC can fragment large frames into smaller ones for better reliability in noisy environments.

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        **What is the NAV (Network Allocation Vector) in MAC?**

        NAV is a virtual carrier sensing mechanism used by MAC to indicate how long the medium will be busy.

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        **How does MAC manage power saving?**

        MAC supports power-saving by coordinating sleep and wake times between the access point and stations.

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        **What is the role of RTS/CTS in MAC?**

        Request to Send (RTS) and Clear to Send (CTS) frames help prevent collisions in hidden node scenarios.

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        **How does MAC prioritize traffic?**

        Although QoS enhancements came later, basic MAC prioritizes control frames like ACKs and RTS/CTS by using shorter interframe spaces.

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        **What types of frames are managed by MAC in 802.11a?**

        MAC handles management frames, control frames, and data frames.

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        **How does MAC deal with errors?**

        MAC uses CRC (Cyclic Redundancy Check) for error detection and requests retransmission on failure.

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        **Is MAC responsible for addressing?**

        Yes, MAC manages physical addressing using MAC addresses for source and destination identification.

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        **How does MAC coordinate with the Physical layer?**

        MAC provides data frames to the PHY layer for modulation and transmits/receives bits over the air.

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        **What is Distributed Coordination Function (DCF)?**

        DCF is the fundamental MAC access method in 802.11a using CSMA/CA for channel contention.

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        **Does 802.11a MAC support Point Coordination Function (PCF)?**

        Yes, PCF is an optional MAC function that allows contention-free access controlled by the access point.

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        **How does MAC support roaming between access points?**

        MAC handles authentication, association, and reassociation processes to allow seamless mobility.

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        **Where are MAC functions defined for 802.11a?**

        In the IEEE 802.11-1999 standard and its amendments specific to the 5 GHz band (802.11a).

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        Topics in this section,

                * :ref:`Learnings in this section <mac_functions_step1>`

                * :ref:`Terminology <mac_functions_step2>`

                * :ref:`Version Info <mac_functions_step3>`

                * :ref:`mac_functions Basic Setup on Ubuntu using IPv4 <mac_functions_step18>`

                * :ref:`Reference links <mac_functions_step17>`

.. _mac_functions_step1:

.. tab-set::

    .. tab-item:: Learnings in this section

        * In this section, you are going to learn

.. _mac_functions_step2:

.. tab-set::

    .. tab-item:: Terminology

       * Terminology


.. _mac_functions_step3:

.. tab-set::

    .. tab-item:: Version Info

         * Version Info


.. _mac_functions_step18:

.. tab-set::

    .. tab-item:: mac_functions Basic Setup on Ubuntu using IPv4

       * setup


.. _mac_functions_step17:

.. tab-set::

    .. tab-item:: Reference links

       * Reference links