* Windows XP SP2/SP3
- uses the "Wireless Zero Configuration" (WZC) API. This API is almost undocumented and there aren't any examples how to use it, although this API can perform all necessary operations with WiFi connections and Windows XP SP2/SP3 is the most popular version of Windows at present.
* Windows Vista and Windows 7
- uses the "Native WiFi" API. This is a new API that allows you to manage WiFi networks, this API is simpler and more documented, although there is only one example how to use it. You can find this example for the C++ language in the Vista SDK.
There is a patch from Microsoft that allows you to use part of the "Native WiFi" API in Windows XP SP2, though it means that your software must download and install this patch. Unfortunately, we have tried using the "Native WiFi" API for XP in our projects and we have found out that it does not work properly in some cases. It returns some data fields incorrectly and does not set some of them at all. After studying it in detail, we have discovered that the "Native WiFi" API for Windows XP is only a wrapper for the WZC API and it is much better to use the WZC API directly.
WiFi-Manager is a developer tool that allows you to manage WiFi connections and settings in Windows XP SP2 and Windows Vista using one set of API functions. Also, WiFi-Manager provides a COM interface for all API functions so you can simply control WiFi settings from VB or such .NET languages as VB.NET or C#. WiFi-Manager contains functions for enumerating WiFi adapters, enumerating available networks and getting their settings, functions for connecting and disconnecting to networks, functions for working with wireless networks profiles, etc.
WiFi-Manager is easy to use and includes sample applications that will help you learn how to use it. Using the WiFi-Manager library, you don't have to spend heaps of time learning how to manage wireless networks in one version of Windows, why it does not work in the other version and how to make it work in both versions properly.
