<Table> <Tr> <Td> </Td> <Td> This article needs additional citations for verification . Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources . Unsourced material may be challenged and removed . (June 2008) (Learn how and when to remove this template message) </Td> </Tr> </Table> <Tr> <Td> </Td> <Td> This article needs additional citations for verification . Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources . Unsourced material may be challenged and removed . (June 2008) (Learn how and when to remove this template message) </Td> </Tr> <P> In computer networking, a wireless access point (WAP), or more generally just access point (AP), is a networking hardware device that allows a Wi - Fi device to connect to a wired network . The AP usually connects to a router (via a wired network) as a standalone device, but it can also be an integral component of the router itself . An AP is differentiated from a hotspot, which is the physical location where Wi - Fi access to a WLAN is available . </P> <P> Prior to wireless networks, setting up a computer network in a business, home or school often required running many cables through walls and ceilings in order to deliver network access to all of the network - enabled devices in the building . With the creation of the wireless access point, network users were able to add devices that access the network with few or no cables . An AP normally connects directly to a wired Ethernet connection and the AP then provides wireless connections using radio frequency links for other devices to utilize that wired connection . Most APs support the connection of multiple wireless devices to one wired connection . Modern APs are built to support a standard for sending and receiving data using these radio frequencies . Those standards, and the frequencies they use are defined by the IEEE . </P>

In wifi network which acts as a base station