Wireless Array
46 Installing the Wireless Array
Migration to 802.11ac will take time. Older Wi-Fi technologies will
continue to be with us for years. In order for 802.11ac to provide
maximum data rates, it is important to keep interference from earlier Wi-
Fi standards at a minimum. For example, 802.11n devices operating in the
5GHz band can slow down 802.11ac devices to 300Mbps or 450Mbps
depending on the 2x2 or 3x3 MIMO technology used.
Infrastructures must be upgraded as well. The bandwidth required out
of 802.11ac APs will certainly exceed 1Gbps and may reach 10Gbps. The
links from the APs to the core network must keep pace with this need.
Centralized firewalls, LAN controllers, and authentication servers may
also reach their limits. Migration to a decentralized architecture, with
intelligence at the edge of the network may be a more scalable solution,
avoiding single points of failure.
More power. Multi-antenna APs handling 802.11ac speeds will likely
require more power. Power planning for your access switches should be
carefully considered.
A new site survey may be needed. Wireless networks established as
recently as a few years ago were probably designed for coverage and not
capacity. APs were placed so that there were no dead zones, without
considering future capacity needs. With the increasing use of mobile
devices, new site surveys that ensure enough bandwidth for anticipated
usage should precede deployment of 802.11ac APs.
Manage application usage. With 802.11ac, a range of applications are
now practical on mobile devices that were previously only used over
wired networks or on laptops. Uncontrolled use of Wi-Fi bandwidth can
cause wireless networks to quickly degrade. Network control elements
must control use of applications and prioritize critical applications.
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