Patent ID: 8085740

Claim:
A method for offering wireless network access to both guests and local users, comprising: sending a guest credential to a guest user; receiving at a common wireless network access point a request for access from one of a guest and local user, said request for access from said guest user including said guest credential; determining at the common wireless network access point whether the access request was received from local user or guest, said determining including examining a user domain of a party seeking access to determine whether such user domain designates a guest domain; authenticating the request for access received at the common wireless network access point depending on whether the request was received from the guest or local user, wherein the authenticating step further comprises the step of communicating a request for authentication to one or more authentication servers, the authentication being performed differently depending on whether the party seeking access is a local user or a guest; if such authentication is successful, then routing traffic from the local user differently from the guest; and limiting traffic from said guest according to a guest access policy.