1. Is Wi-Fi Ready for This?

2. High Performance Wi-Fi for Education: Planning, Deploying, and Managing Wi-Fi in Campus Environments
February 2011
© 2011 Xirrus, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

3. Wi-Fi Technology Radio Improvements 1999 2000 2001 2003 2004 2005 2007
54Mbps 5GHz
802.11g
54Mbps 2.4GHz
802.11n –Draft
150Mbps 2.4GHz
600-Mbps 5GHz
802.11n
150Mbps 2.4GHz
600Mbps 5GHz
802.11ac
Gigabit
1000Mbps
5GHz
802.11ad
Multi-Gig
2000Mbps
60GHz
802.11af TV
White
Space
IEEE b
11Mbps 2.4GHz
1999
2000
2001
2003
2004
2005
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
MAC Improvements
802.11i
Security
TKIP +AES Encryption
802.11e
Wi-Fi
Quality of
Service
802.11r
Fast
Roaming
802.11k
Radio
Resouce
Mgmt
802.11w
Protected
Mgmt
Frames
802.11v
Wireless
Network
Mgmt
802.11u
External
Network
Interface
802.11s
Mesh
Wi-Fi Engineering’s Goal Continues to be
“Wireless Networking Better than Wired”

4. Changing Role of Wi-Fi in Education
“Wi-Fi will overtake Wired as the primary network connection as evidenced by the wave of new devices being introduced without a Wired connectivity option”
Trends Impacting Wi-Fi in Education:
Capacity & Performance are key, coverage is a given
Proliferation of Wi-Fi Devices, you can’t stop them
Higher bandwidth applications, will continue to grow
© 2011 Xirrus, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

5. Wi-Fi: Devices
“Client devices are increasingly being engineered with Wi-Fi as the only network connection”
Wired
Wi-Fi
Tablets
Desktops
Laptops
VoIP Phones
iPads
Enterprise Adoption Rate
Netbooks
Smartphones
Notebooks
© 2011 Xirrus, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

6. Educational Wi-Fi: Reality
“Within months, 60-80% of your users will rely upon mobilized applications. They will use 3+ wireless devices over a cloud-based infrastructure to access these applications.”
What are the Critical Success Factors?

7. Wi-Fi: Applications
“Applications are mobilizing via the cloud and will increasingly be accessed over Wi-Fi”
Wired
Wi-Fi
Cloud-based Data, Voice & Video
Data, Voice & Video over Wi-Fi
Enterprise Adoption Rate
Data, Voice & Video
Client / Server
Data & Voice over Wi-Fi
Data-centric Client / Server
Data over
Wi-Fi
Mainframe
© 2011 Xirrus, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

8. Wi-Fi: Critical Success Factors
Performance
Security
Resiliency
Management
Site
Survey
© 2011 Xirrus, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
11 of 18

9. “802.11n speeds effectively put Wi-Fi on par with Wired”
Wi-Fi: Speeds
“802.11n speeds effectively put Wi-Fi on par with Wired”
Wired
Wi-Fi
Ethernet
Fast
Gigabit
Enterprise Adoption Rate
802.11n
802.11ag
802.11b
Futures: ac, 11ac, 11af, …
© 2011 Xirrus, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

10. To Address Wi-Fi Performance Needs…
“Taking advantage of Wired Lessons Learned is a best practice”
2000
2010
Distributed Intelligence
2000
2000
10/100/1000 Mbps
1000Base-T
4 pairs provide 1Gbps
Media fully leveraged
2010
2010
IEEE n
11/54/300/450 Mbps
3 channels of 2.4GHz = 450 Mbps
24 channels of 5GHz = 3.6 Gbps
spectrum fully leveraged
Distributed Intelligence
Forwarding & Filtering at Edge
No Single Point of Failure
No Processing choke point
Dense, Multi-state Ports
Intelligent connectivity
Auto detect speed/band/channel
Supports client migration
Enterprise Best Practice
Leverages all available medium
Improve B/W across all medium
Sufficient for network needs
Best Practice:
Since the late 70s Ethernet has continued to evolve, providing higher performance via a distributed architecture, higher density devices and leveraging all available media. It only makes sense for Wi-Fi to mirror these practices.

11. To Address Wi-Fi Security Needs…
“Doing your security due diligence is a best practice”
Authentication
Encryption
IDS/IPS
Authentication
Machine and/or User
802.1x/MAC/WPR
Separate User Classes by SSID
Encryption
WEP, WPA, WPA2
Distributed Processing
Separate User Classes by SSID
IDS/IPS
24/7 monitoring/mitigation
Integrated solution
RF analyzer to monitor spectrum
Best Practice:
Whether called due diligence of just a best practice all enterprise networks providing client connectivity to critical applications require the ability to verify users, protect the communication channel and monitor the RF environment
© 2011 Xirrus, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

12. To Address Wi-Fi Resiliency Needs…
“System level availability is a best practice”
Edge
Multiple Radios/Channels
Load balancing across radios
Band /Mode Steering
Access Level
Distributed intelligence
Auto Cell Recovery
Auto Channel Services
Core
Redundant wired uplinks
Redundant WDS uplinks
802.3ad link load balancing
Best Practice:
Having end to end redundancy is always an Enterprise connectivity best practice. Wired solutions fell short at the edge and traditional Wi-Fi falls short at the core. Look for a solution offering reliability at all points in your network.
Confidential Information. © 2010 Xirrus, In. All Rights Reserved.

13. To Address Wi-Fi Management Needs…
“System level management is a best practice”
Device Specific
Provisioning
Monitoring / alerting
Upgrading
Reporting
Enterprise Wide
Multiple SSID/User Groups
Traffic limiting
Load balancing
Reporting
RF Environment
Threat Monitoring
Coverage Assurance
Interference Monitoring
Reporting
Best Practice:
Management applications, no matter wired or wireless must have the ability to manage, monitor all networked devices and provide detailed reporting and statistical data for each device, or the network as a whole. Wireless adds the requirement to also monitor RF environment for interference or potential threats
Confidential Information. © 2010 Xirrus, In. All Rights Reserved.

14. To Address Wi-Fi Site Survey Needs…
“Live site surveys are a best practice”
Coverage Verification
Active Measurements
Verifies real RF propagation
Visually inspect site
RF Analysis
RF Interference Check
Neighboring Wi-Fi
Potential Threats
Guarantee
Actual Product capabilities
Coverage/Performance
Product Numbers and cost
Best Practice:
At best, predictive surveys are a estimate, live site surveys take actual measurements using the same devices that will be deployed. This is the only way to guarantee coverage, # of devices and most importantly cost.
Confidential Information. © 2010 Xirrus, In. All Rights Reserved.

15. Final Thoughts: It’s Math, Not Marketing
More Radios, Separate Channels = More Bandwidth
Channel Planning is key
27 Available Wi-Fi Channels (3 in 2.4GHz, 24 in 5GHz)
Avoid Co-Channel & Adjacent Channel Interference (spectral mask)
Lowering radio power is seldom the answer
Use Cognitive Systems (Multi-State, Multi-Mode, Multi-Channel …)
Limit the number of SSIDs you define
Clients, Clients, Clients, ….
Purchase multi-band devices
Understand signal level requirements
Consider return path signal levels
Performance
Security
Resiliency
Management
Site
Survey
© 2011 Xirrus, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

16. Wi-Fi: What is your plan?No
Question
Yes X
Do you need to deploy Wi-Fi as a primary network connection somewhere on your campus during the next 2 years? √
Do you need a Wi-Fi solution that will support all your educational and business applications, not just basic ‘Hot Spot’ services?
Do you need a Wi-Fi solution that can support major traffic spikes (flashtraffic) throughout your campus as students move and congregate?
Do you need a Wi-Fi solution that can be deployed with a minimum of classroom disruption and operate with % reliability?
Do you want a guarantee for the Wi-Fi solution you purchase for one or all of the following: performance, capacity, or the cost of implementation?
© 2011 Xirrus, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

17. Is Wi-Fi Ready for This, YES!

18. Xirrus: Wi-Fi Array
“The Wi-Fi Array obsoletes traditional thin omni-directional Access Points and is the only 1-to-1 Wi-Fi equivalent to a Wired Switch”
2X the range
4X the coverage
8X more bandwidth
8X more users
Multi-state radios
Full line-rate encryption
Integrated Threat Sensor
Integrated Wi-Fi Firewall
Radio resiliency
Array resiliency
Uplink resiliency
Wi-Fi backhaul resiliency
© 2011 Xirrus, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

19. Additional Wi-Fi Resources: WWW.XIRRUS.COM
Wi-Fi Posters
Deployment Examples
Design & Deployment Guide
Technical Resources
White Papers
FAQs
Application Notes
And More
Wi-Fi Inspector
Request a Survey

20. Thank You Perry.Correll@Xirrus.com www.xirrus.com