What frame does the wireless client actively scan to obtain the surrounding wireless network information?

Question

Options

• ABeacon frame
• BProbe Request frame
• CAuthentication Request frame
• DAssociation Request frame

• A
  13% (9)
• B
  75% (51)
• C
  7% (5)
• D
  4% (3)

Explanation

During active scanning, a wireless client transmits Probe Request frames to discover nearby networks, rather than passively waiting. Access points that receive the probe respond with a Probe Response frame, giving the client the network information it needs - this is the key distinction between active and passive scanning.

Option A is incorrect because Beacon frames are transmitted by access points on a regular interval to announce their presence; the client receives them passively but does not send them. Option C is incorrect because Authentication Request frames come after the client has already identified a target network and is beginning the process of joining it. Option D is incorrect because Association Request frames come even later, after authentication succeeds, when the client formally requests to connect to the access point.

Memory tip: "Probe" means to actively seek out - the client is doing the searching by sending Probe Requests, just as a doctor probes to find something rather than waiting for it to appear.

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