PHY Layers & Technologies (10%) – This subject area requires that the test takers demonstrate their understanding and skills in specific knowledge domains. These include the following:

• Establish and utilize the PHY details offered in pseudo-header in the protocol analyzers;
• Understand and explain the core functions of PHY technologies and PMD and PLCP sublayers;
• Identify the limits of the protocol analyzers in the process of capturing the PHY details, which include PHY headers and NULL data packets;
• Apply the understanding and skills of PHY technologies to captured data. These include PHY headers, frame aggregation, preambles, data rates, as well as training fields;
• Utilize the relevant capture devices according to the understanding of PHY types. These include supported spatial streams, supported PHYs, and SGI (Short Guard Interval).

WLAN Medium Access (10%) – In the framework of this objective, the examinees must develop competence in the following technical areas:

• Demonstrate the in-depth knowledge of the 802.11 contention algorithms and understand how these impact WLANs. The subtopics include Distributed Coordination Function, Wi-Fi Multimedia, and Enhanced Distributed Channel Access;
• Analyze QoS operations and configuration. This covers the skills in authenticating QoS parameters within capture files and ensuring that QoS is implemented end-to-end.

Test Domains

CWAP-403 topics have been developed based on a JTA (Job Task Analysis), which involved experts and professionals in wireless networking. Thus, the topics and the domains represent how important the content is for acing the official test. The areas that you'll come across on the exam day are captured as follows:

• Spectrum Analysis

  Such an area includes explaining data for RF spectrum and understanding commonly available views within spectrum analysis, analyzing spectrum captures for the purpose of identifying relevant issues and information concerning RF, analyzing captures for spectrum for the purpose of identifying varied device signatures, and centralizing solutions for spectrum analysis.

• 802.11 Frame Exchanges

  The first part of such a segment regards capturing, understanding, and analyzing BSS discovery in addition to joining frame exchanges. This further looks at BSS discovery, 802.11 authentication as well as association, 802.1X/EAP exchanges, four-way handshake, group key exchange, neighbour discovery, and more. The second scope is centered on analyzing roaming behavior as well as resolving roaming challenges. It's all about of where to find excessive roaming, sticky clients, and channel aggregation aimed at roaming analysis. The third section is about analyzing frame exchanges for data. It captures data frames in addition to acknowledgement frames, RTS/CTS and QoS data frame exchanges, and block acknowledgement exchanges. The fourth aspect of this topic concerns analyzing transmission methods that are specific to HT/VHT. Particularly, this looks into Transmit Beamforming (TxBF), MIMO, and MU-MIMO. In addition, you'll know all you need about the frame aggregation (A-MPDU and A-MSDU). The fifth and final thing is about analyzing behavior and resolving problems that relate to operations within the MAC layer. This goes further into operations for Power Save, load balancing, band steering, and protection mechanisms.

• WLAN Medium Access

  The last tested domain delves into the understanding of 802.11 contention algorithms and knowledge of their impact on WLANs. This concerns DCF (Distributed Coordination Function), EDCA (Enhanced Distributed Channel Access), and WMM (Wi-Fi Multimedia). It also touches on the analysis of QoS configuration as well as operations. Also, it further discusses the verification of QoS parameters within capture files and ensures an end-to-end implementation of QoS.

• MAC Sub-Layer & Functions

  This part includes the understanding of frame encapsulation in addition to frame aggression. It also includes identifying and using MAC information within captured data to carry out analysis, which will be looking further at management, control as well as data frames, MAC Frame Format, 802.11 Management Frame Formats, Data & QoS Data Frame Formats, and 802.11 Control Frame Formats. Another portion looks at validating the configuration of BSS through analysis of the protocol. This covers country code, supported rates, minimum basic rate, WMM settings, beacon intervals, HT & VHT operations, primary channel, and more. There is also the part on identifying and analyzing CRC error and retransmitted frames.

• Protocol Analysis

  This concerns detailing 802.11 frames with the use of proper methods as well as locations, analyzing what the 802.11 frame has captured to allow the discovery of problems and finding of solutions, and understanding as well as applying common capture parameters for the configuration that are available within protocol analysis. Other aspects are utilizing additional tools used for capturing 802.11 frames with the intention of analyzing, troubleshooting, and ensuring the usage of proper troubleshooting methods with all types of analysis.

• PHY Layers & Technologies

  This topic is about understanding and describing the functions as well as the PLCP sub-layers, applying the knowledge of PHY technologies that include PHY headers, training fields, preambles, data rates, and frame aggregations to captured data, and identifying as well as using PHY information as availed in pseudo-headers within protocol analyzers. More domains are focused on recognizing the limits related to protocol analyzers during the capture of PHY information that includes NULL data packets as well as PHY headers and using proper capture devices depending on the knowledge of PHY types.

CWNP CWAP-403 Exam Topics:

Reference: https://www.cwnp.com/certifications/cwap