30 October 2022
Ekahau tools help you translate your business needs for wireless connectivity into a perfectly optimized Wi-Fi design detailing the exact number of APs you need, where to install them, and how they should be configured. The first step to awesome Wi-Fi is accurately defining your network requirements — that’s where this guide comes in:
Requireme
nt 1: Coverage
Wi-Fi Coverage is a wireless network design requirement detailing all of the areas you want or need wireless connectivity. Primary Coverage is all about optimizing the distance around your wireless access points (APs) to ensure there is sufficient signal strength for Wi-Fi-enabled devices to properly operate.
Think of primary Wi-Fi coverage like paint coverage in a room. You buy enough paint to ensure your walls are sufficiently covered from corner to corner, and you exclude special areas like windows and doorways from your coverage area so you don’t waste money on unnecessary paint. Not enough paint leads to splotchy coverage, too much paint and you either waste it in the can or you can even get inferior results by introducing drip marks from too much saturation.
Requirement 2: Capacity
Wireless network capacity or capacity utilization is a network design requirement detailing the number of Wi-Fi-enabled devices that can be supported concurrently on a wireless network based on the applications used, bandwidth being consumed, and the number of available Wi-Fi radios.
Think of wireless network capacity like the patrons at your local club (Wi-Fi-enabled devices) trying to place their orders and check out at the register (access point). When it’s early in the evening and the crowds are low, it’s easy to walk right up, place your order and pay. But as the night picks up and more patrons compete to place orders, the underequipped service staff has a hard time keeping up with all of the orders that need to be processed which leads to frustratingly long wait times for everyone in line.
Requirement 3: Channe
l Planning
One of the most important tasks when developing a wireless network design is creating a channel plan. A well-developed channel plan will minimize channel overlap and adjacent channel interference in order to maximize airtime, which is one of the foundations of high-performing Wi-Fi Networks.
When a wireless device has something to transmit over Wi-Fi, it must wait for the channel to be clear. Put simply, only one device can successfully transmit at a time. Your channel plan ensures client devices can connect with open access points efficiently and without unnecessary degradation of performance.
Think of channels like radio stations and having a mix of country overlapping on your favorite metal station. The resulting noise just reduces the efficiency of being able to hear the music you want to hear.
Conducting Wi-Fi Site Surveys
A Wi-Fi site survey is a site visit to capture Wi-Fi signal and spectrum data and inspect access point mounting and cabling accessibility. Wi-Fi site surveys can test predictive wireless designs before a network is deployed, verify that changes or additions are installed correctly, and ensure that the network continues to be fast and reliable for its users and applications.
As the “measure twice, cut once” component of Wi-Fi design, validation is cheap insurance and smart risk mitigation against costly and time-consuming redesign processes that would follow a failed deployment. Remember, a predictive design isn’t final and ready for deployment until you have validated your design.
