Patent ID: 7869438

Claim:
A method of enhancing roaming of mobile client devices in a wireless network having a plurality of wireless access devices, the method comprising: receiving a pre-authentication frame at a first wireless access device of a first Layer 2 subnetwork, the pre-authentication frame originating from a mobile client device that is currently in association with the first wireless access device, the pre-authentication frame including a Layer 2 network address of a second wireless access device of a second Layer 2 subnetwork that is different than the first Layer 2 subnetwork, and the pre-authentication frame further including an identifier of the mobile client device; the first wireless access device accessing a network mapping database; the first wireless access device using the network mapping database to determine a Layer 3 network address of the second wireless access device, based upon the Layer 2 network address included in the pre-authentication frame; the first wireless access device generating a Layer 3 network packet that encapsulates the pre-authentication frame, the Layer 3 network packet also including the Layer 3 network address of the second wireless access device; and sending the Layer 3 network packet from the first wireless access device, the Layer 3 network packet being destined for the second wireless access device.