Eric - There are a lot of factors that go into planning a wireless installation. Probably the biggest thing is how you plan to use it. I would strongly recommend handing this task off to an expert - your Cisco rep should be able to put you in touch with someone.
If you still plan to do it yourself, you will need to look at 1) the building materials being used - signal penetration varies significantly through concrete, block, drywall, etc. Also consider steel lockers - they can have an impact on signal 2) number of potentially connected devices - the more devices hitting the AP, the more degradation you will have in performance. Not sure about the newer devices, but with older ones, you typically wanted device count to be below 30 per access point 3) People factor - bodies can affect signal - you will get different results with an empty room than with a room full of people. A weak signal in an empty room can turn into no signal in a crowded room, especially if there are several with wireless devices (even if not connected to your network) 4) channel availability - make sure the devices are spaced far enough apart and organized in such a way to ensure they are not competing for the same frequency range. Wireless controllers will usually handle that automatically 5) outside interference - The system needs to be able to compensate for neighborhood access points that might be operating in the same frequency range Also, if you are in a multi-story building, you have to consider the same factors, but from a 3-dimensional aspect - not just what is adjacent to you, but also what is above or below you. Thomas C. Steele Technology Director Manteno CUSD #5 -----Original Message----- From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Eric Roemer Sent: Thursday, September 02, 2010 10:49 AM To: [email protected] Subject: [tech-geeks] Adding Wireless We are looking at adding wireless throughout our building. Currently looking at Cisco AP 541N Access points. For those of you who have done this before, how do you determine how many access points you needed and where to place them? Any other considerations/suggestions/recommendations you could provide? Thanks THIS TRANSMISSION IS INTENDED AND RESTRICTED FOR USE BY THE ABOVE ADDRESSEE ONLY. IT MAY CONTAIN CONFIDENTIAL AND/OR PRIVILEGED INFORMATION EXEMPT FROM DISCLOSURE UNDER FEDERAL OR STATE LAW. IN THE EVENT SOME OTHER PERSON OR ENTITY RECEIVES THIS TRANSMISSION, SAID RECIPIENT IS HEREBY NOTIFIED THAT ANY DISSEMINATION, DISTRIBUTION, OR DUPLICATION OF THIS TRANSMISSION OR ITS CONTENTS IS PROHIBITED. IF YOU SHOULD RECEIVE THIS TRANSMISSION IN ERROR, PLEASE CALL WOODLAND CUSD#5 IMMEDIATELY AT 815-672-5974, DELETE THE FILE FROM YOUR SYSTEM, AND DESTROY ANY HARD COPIES OF THIS TRANSMISSION. THANK YOU. THIS TRANSMISSION IS INTENDED AND RESTRICTED FOR USE BY THE ABOVE ADDRESSEE ONLY. IT MAY CONTAIN CONFIDENTIAL AND/OR PRIVILEGED INFORMATION EXEMPT FROM DISCLOSURE UNDER FEDERAL OR STATE LAW. IN THE EVENT SOME OTHER PERSON OR ENTITY RECEIVES THIS TRANSMISSION, SAID RECIPIENT IS HEREBY NOTIFIED THAT ANY DISSEMINATION, DISTRIBUTION, OR DUPLICATION OF THIS TRANSMISSION OR ITS CONTENTS IS PROHIBITED. IF YOU SHOULD RECEIVE THIS TRANSMISSION IN ERROR, PLEASE CALL WOODLAND CUSD#5 IMMEDIATELY AT 815-672-5974, DELETE THE FILE FROM YOUR SYSTEM, AND DESTROY ANY HARD COPIES OF THIS TRANSMISSION. THANK YOU. | Subscription info at http://www.tech-geeks.org | | Subscription info at http://www.tech-geeks.org |
