Walkthrough A Wireless Survey
Here at Telcion, we do a lot of assessments to help businesses optimize their technology strategy, and one of the assessments we do is a wireless survey. Wireless networks are typically very tolerant to less than optimal conditions. However, if enough issues arise wireless performance typically goes downhill. That’s where wireless surveys come in. Everything from poor signal strength to interfering devices can be found through a wireless survey, so carrying out a wireless survey in an existing deployment will quickly reveal underlying issues.
How a Wireless Survey Works
A passive wireless survey is performed by capturing the wireless data in the spaces where wireless coverage is desired. This is typically done by physically carrying around a dedicated device with on-board radios to measure and record many wireless parameters while the engineer plots where the captured data should be presented in relation to a set of floor plans. During this process, snapshots of the overall spectrum are taken for later review. These spectrum snapshots reveal interfering devices. Things like microwaves, wireless cameras, and malfunctioning electrical devices are sometimes to blame for problems in your wireless network.
After the wireless survey data is captured, an engineer will spend time reviewing the information looking for issues. Too few APs, too many APs, rogue APs, interfering devices, high spectrum utilization, channel assignments, etc. This data is then used to generate a set of heatmaps overlayed onto the floorplans. Each of these heatmaps usually show one parameter of the captured data. Signal strength, for example. The heatmaps are paired with the engineer’s recommendations to form a report that provides a clear path to remediation.
There are sometimes scenarios where a passive survey can’t be completed, such as with a new construction, for example. In this scenario, the engineer will use prospective floor plans along with provided information on wall thickness and construction materials to create a predictive wireless model. Using typical attenuation figures the engineer can create a design showing all necessary details for AP ordering and cabling teams prior to beginning construction.
What You Can Do After a Wireless Survey
Many of our customers relate wireless surveys to new wireless deployments only. It would certainly be recommended to perform a wireless survey before deploying new APs but wireless surveys can also be advantageous to make improvements to an existing deployment. It’s not uncommon to move the existing APs and make configuration changes to alleviate issues. In the past we’ve seen wireless networks where every AP is on the same channel and using 80 MHz channels on 5 GHz. This issue was resolved with configuration alone.
Overall wireless surveys are a great tool. They can be used for assessing an existing deployment or planning a new deployment. In either case, reach out to us to get started with the next steps.
This post was contributed by Spencer Boyd, one of our Network Engineers and our wireless site survey specialist.