The words you meet when buying or running guest WiFi, explained in plain English. Each entry links to a page where we go into more detail.
The web page that opens when you join a hotel or public WiFi and asks you to log in before the internet opens. It can ask for a mobile number, a voucher code or a room number, and it usually carries the venue's branding. See captive portal software.
A WiFi network that gives internet access to the public or guests, usually behind a captive portal. On a MikroTik router, "Hotspot" is also the name of the built-in feature that runs the login page and tracks each user. See hotspot billing software.
A list of websites a user can open before logging in, such as the login page itself or a payment page. Keep it short: an entry that matches everything lets guests online without logging in. See WiFi login page not opening.
Login with a one-time password: the guest types their mobile number, receives a code by SMS and enters it. Each session is tied to a verified number, which is why it is common in India. See WiFi OTP login.
A code, often printed as a card with a PIN or QR code, that gives a set amount of time or data. Vouchers suit walk-in guests, events and paid WiFi. See WiFi voucher system.
Letting a device online by its hardware (MAC) address instead of a login. Useful for devices that cannot use a login page, such as smart TVs or printers, but weak as security because MAC addresses can be copied.
Modern phones use a different, random MAC address on each WiFi network, and sometimes change it over time. This can make a returning guest look like a new device, so logins tied only to the MAC may ask the guest to log in again.
Challenge-Handshake Authentication Protocol. On a MikroTik hotspot, HTTP-CHAP login means the password is mixed with a one-time challenge in the browser before it is sent, so it never travels in plain text. See MikroTik hotspot login page.
The session timeout is how long a login lasts in total; the idle timeout logs a user out after a period with no traffic. Both keep the list of active users clean and stop forgotten devices from holding a session.
Authentication, authorisation and accounting: checking who the user is, deciding what they may do (speed, time, data) and recording what they did. A hotspot's AAA server does all three for every login. See cloud AAA WiFi.
The standard protocol routers and access points use to ask an AAA server whether a user may log in, and to report usage. It normally uses UDP ports 1812 (authentication) and 1813 (accounting). See what is a RADIUS server.
Change of Authorisation: a message from the RADIUS server to the router that changes or ends a live session, for example to disconnect a guest at checkout or change their speed without waiting for them to log in again.
MikroTik's own RADIUS server, a package that runs on RouterOS. It is fine for a single small site; multi-site operators usually move to a central or cloud RADIUS service.
Property management system: the hotel software for bookings, check-in and checkout, such as IDS Next, protel, Hotelogix or WinCloud. Linked to the WiFi, it lets guests log in with their room number and surname. See PMS WiFi integration.
WiFi security where each user logs in with their own username and password (checked by RADIUS) instead of a shared WiFi password. Common for staff and campus networks; guest WiFi usually uses a captive portal instead.
The WiFi network name you see on your phone. Hotels often run one SSID for guests and separate hidden or protected ones for staff and devices.
A virtual LAN: one physical network split into separate networks, for example guests, staff, CCTV and the PMS. Devices on one VLAN cannot see those on another unless the router allows it. See hotel WiFi network design.
A setting that stops WiFi users on the same network from reaching each other's devices. It should be on for any guest network.
The temporary IP address a router gives a device, and how long the device may keep it. If the address pool is small and leases are long, a busy hotel can run out and new guests get no address. See hotel WiFi not working.
Network Address Translation: lets many devices share one public internet address. Every hotel router does it; it is also why logs must record which private address a guest had at what time.
The internet's phone book, which turns names like iberrywifi.com into addresses. If DNS fails, nothing loads even when the line is up.
Power over Ethernet: one network cable carries both data and power to an access point or camera, so no socket is needed at the ceiling. The switch or injector must supply enough power for the device (802.3af, at or bt).
The device that broadcasts the WiFi signal, usually mounted on a ceiling or wall and cabled back to a switch. Coverage depends far more on where access points go than on how powerful they are. See LAN and structured cabling.
The operating system on MikroTik routers. It includes a hotspot, firewall, VPN, load balancing and RADIUS client, which is why it is popular for hotel gateways. See MikroTik services.
A modern, fast VPN. iberry gateways use an encrypted tunnel to reach the cloud, so they can be managed without a public IP address or open ports. See MikroTik remote management.
A device moving from one access point to another as the user walks around. Standards 802.11k, v and r help phones pick a better access point and switch faster.
Nudging devices that support both bands onto 5 GHz, which is usually less crowded than 2.4 GHz, so everyone gets better speed.
Access points that connect to each other by radio instead of cable. Handy where cabling is impossible, but each wireless hop costs speed, so cable is better wherever it can go.
WiFi 6 (802.11ax) handles many devices at once better than older WiFi. WiFi 6E adds the 6 GHz band, where the law allows it, for more clean channels.
WiFi 7 (802.11be) adds wider 320 MHz channels on 6 GHz and Multi-Link Operation, where a device uses several bands at once. Devices need WiFi 7 support to benefit.
Limiting each user's download and upload speed so one guest cannot use the whole internet line. On a hotel network it is set per login, per room or per plan.
Quality of Service: giving some traffic priority over other traffic, for example video calls ahead of large downloads, so the line feels fast even when it is busy.
Using two or more internet lines at once and spreading users across them. On MikroTik this is usually done with PCC. See MikroTik load balancing.
Switching to a backup internet line automatically when the main one fails, and back again when it recovers. See internet failover and SD-WAN.
Unified Threat Management: one box that combines a firewall with features like intrusion prevention, web filtering and VPN. See UTM firewall and firewall and hotspot.
Blocking websites by category (adult, gambling, malware) at the DNS level, before a page loads. It also needs rules that stop devices from bypassing the filter with their own DNS. See web and DNS filtering.
Rules that decide which traffic may enter, leave or pass through the router. On a guest network it keeps guests away from staff systems and protects the router itself. See MikroTik firewall rules.
Indian rules expect public WiFi to identify users (for example by OTP) and keep records of who was online. The CERT-In directions of April 2022 ask organisations to keep ICT logs for 180 days within India. See WiFi log retention and compliance.
The Indian government's public WiFi framework, launched by the Department of Telecommunications in 2020. Shops and other businesses can sell WiFi as Public Data Offices without a licence. See PM-WANI.
Under PM-WANI, a PDO (Public Data Office) runs the WiFi hotspot, and a PDOA (Public Data Office Aggregator) provides the login, accounting and records for many PDOs. iberry is registered as both.
The hotspot is the WiFi service that gives guests internet access; the captive portal is the login page the hotspot shows before the internet opens.
Some AAA server is needed to check logins and apply limits. You can run one yourself, use MikroTik's User Manager on a single site, or use a managed cloud service such as iberry.
Ask us on WhatsApp; we answer in plain English. Published plans in India start at ₹30,000 one-time plus a ₹15,000 yearly subscription from the 2nd year (1st year included; ₹20,000 with DNS security and/or PMS integration); outside India every project is quoted on its own.
Ask us a WiFi question
Social WiFi
A page shown after login that invites guests to leave a Google review or follow the venue on Instagram or Facebook. Done properly, it is optional and never blocks the internet. See WiFi marketing and Google reviews.