Signal Strength: Min -65.0 dBm
Understanding Signal Strength
- Signal strength refers to the power level of a Wi-Fi signal received by a device, measured in decibels relative to a milliwatt (dBm).
- At -65 dBm, users typically experience smooth connectivity, enabling real-time communications, streaming, and web browsing with minimal interruptions.
Designing Wi-Fi Networks with -65 dBm as the Baseline
AP Placement:
- To ensure the signal strength remains above -65 dBm, access points (APs) must be strategically positioned to provide consistent coverage across the area.
- In large or obstructed environments, installing additional APs may be necessary to avoid weak spots or dead zones.
Coverage Planning:
- KloudWIFI’s expert survey team will meticulously map signal strength, ensuring that all areas maintain a minimum of -65 dBm.
- This is particularly crucial in environments with multiple walls, floors, or other obstructions that can weaken the signal.
Power Adjustment:
- Access points can have their transmit power fine-tuned to meet the -65 dBm threshold in the required coverage area.
- This balances strong coverage while minimizing interference with nearby APs, ensuring seamless connectivity across the network.
Capacity Planning:
- Ensure adequate bandwidth by balancing APs and user density for seamless multi-device usage.
Secondary Signal Strength: Min -67.0 dBm
Definition
- The secondary signal strength refers to the minimum signal strength from a backup or secondary access point (AP) that ensures smooth roaming and redundancy in Wi-Fi networks.
- A minimum of -67 dBm guarantees reliable connectivity when a device switches from one AP to another or in the event of primary AP failure.
Network Design Considerations
- AP Placement: Ensure access points are positioned to provide at least -67 dBm from secondary APs, enabling seamless roaming.
- Coverage Overlap: Maintain sufficient overlap between APs to ensure strong backup signals, but avoid too much overlap to prevent interference.
- Roaming Optimization: Fine-tune signal thresholds to ensure smooth transitions between APs, minimizing connection drops or performance issues.
- Redundancy: Design the network for failover capability, allowing users to maintain connectivity even if the primary AP is down.
Signal-to-Noise Ratio: Min 25.0 dB
Definition
- Signal-to-Noise Ratio (SNR) measures the strength of the Wi-Fi signal compared to background noise.
- SNR is calculated by subtracting the noise level (in dB) from the received signal strength (in dBm).
For example, if the signal is -50 dBm and the noise level is -75 dBm, the SNR is 25 dB. - A minimum of 25 dB ensures a strong signal for reliable performance, reducing errors and enabling smooth connectivity for real-time applications.
Network Design Considerations
- AP Placement: Place access points to minimize noise, ensuring a strong signal that maintains at least a 25 dB SNR.
- Interference Mitigation: Use non-overlapping channels (e.g., channels 1, 6, 11 in 2.4 GHz) to reduce co-channel interference.
- Power Adjustment: Adjust AP transmit power to maintain coverage while reducing noise from adjacent APs.
- Environment Analysis: Regularly assess noise levels, especially in high-interference areas, to maintain the desired SNR.
Data Rate: Min 24 Mbps
Definition
- Data rate is the speed at which data is transmitted between a device and an access point (AP) in a Wi-Fi network, measured in megabits per second (Mbps).
- A minimum data rate of 24 Mbps ensures reliable performance for common tasks like video streaming, web browsing, and VoIP, providing enough bandwidth for smooth, real-time communication and moderate data transfers.
- Wi-Fi networks support various data rates, ranging from low (e.g., 1 Mbps) to high (e.g., 600 Mbps or more on modern networks). The actual rate depends on factors like signal strength, distance from the AP, interference, and the Wi-Fi standard being used (e.g., 802.11n, 802.11ac, or 802.11ax).
Network Design Considerations
- AP Placement: Position access points to ensure that devices maintain at least 24 Mbps data rate throughout the coverage area.
- Coverage and Capacity Planning: Ensure enough APs are deployed to handle the expected number of users without dropping below the minimum data rate, especially in high-density areas.
- Channel Utilization: Avoid interference by using non-overlapping channels and reduce channel width if necessary to maintain data rates.
- Roaming Optimization: Ensure seamless transitions between APs so that the data rate doesn’t drop below 24 Mbps during movement across the network.
Channel Interference Max: 2 at Min. -80.0 dBm (2.4 GHz) / Max: 1 (5 GHz)
Definition
- Channel interference happens when multiple networks or devices operate on the same or overlapping Wi-Fi channels, reducing performance.
- For 2.4 GHz, the interference limit is Max 2 interfering networks at no stronger than -80 dBm. For 5 GHz, it is stricter, with a limit of Max 1.
Network Design Considerations
- Channel Planning: Use non-overlapping channels (e.g., 1, 6, 11 for 2.4 GHz) and carefully allocate channels in the 5 GHz band to avoid interference.
- Interference Detection: Conduct regular surveys to identify interference, especially in the 5 GHz band, and adjust AP placement and power to reduce congestion.
- Capacity Management: In high-density environments, ensure adequate AP distribution and load balancing to prevent interference beyond the set limits.
- Power Control: Adjust AP transmit power to reduce signal spillover and avoid excess interference in both 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz bands.
Round Trip Time (RTT): Max 200 ms
Definition
- Round Trip Time (RTT) is the total time it takes for a data packet to travel from a device to the destination (e.g., server or AP) and back, measured in milliseconds (ms).
- An RTT max of 200 ms ensures that network latency is kept low enough to support responsive communication, particularly for time-sensitive applications like video conferencing and online gaming.
Network Design Considerations
- Optimized Routing: Ensure efficient paths between devices and servers by reducing the number of hops and selecting optimal routes.
- Minimize Congestion: Avoid network congestion through load balancing, sufficient bandwidth allocation, and prioritization of critical traffic.
- Latency-Sensitive Applications: Implement Quality of Service (QoS) to prioritize time-sensitive traffic like VoIP and streaming, keeping RTT below 200 ms.
- Monitor Performance: Continuously monitor RTT across the network to identify latency spikes and adjust network configurations or resolve bottlenecks.
Packet Loss: Max 0.0 %
Definition
- Packet loss refers to data packets that fail to reach their destination across a network.
- A 0.0% packet loss requirement means that no packets should be lost during transmission, ensuring full data integrity and optimal performance, especially for real-time applications like VoIP, video conferencing, and online gaming.
Network Design Considerations
- Bandwidth Management: Ensure there is sufficient bandwidth to prevent congestion and avoid packet drops during peak usage times.
- Interference Reduction: Minimize wireless interference by using non-overlapping channels and optimal AP placement to avoid packet loss caused by signal degradation.
- Network Redundancy: Implement failover mechanisms and redundancy in the network to handle potential packet drops and ensure continuous data flow.
- Monitoring & Troubleshooting: Use network monitoring tools to detect and address any packet loss issues in real time, ensuring 0.0% packet loss is maintained.
Points to remember during Survey
During Survey – 1
Signal Strength Min: -65 dBm
- Verify signal strength in high-interference areas (e.g., near walls, elevators).
- Account for obstacles that could affect signal strength (e.g., concrete walls, glass).
Secondary Signal Strength Min: -67 dBm
- Ensure roaming zones between APs have sufficient overlap, avoiding coverage gaps.
- Test devices in motion to check if roaming between APs happens smoothly without performance degradation
Signal-to-Noise Ratio (SNR) Min: 25.0 dB
- Conduct spectrum analysis to identify sources of noise and interference, such as microwaves or Bluetooth devices.
- Measure SNR in both peak and off-peak usage times to account for fluctuating noise levels.
Data Rate Min: 24 Mbps
- Verify that critical areas (e.g., meeting rooms, high-traffic zones) meet the 24 Mbps minimum requirement.
- Test different devices (laptops, smartphones) as data rates may vary depending on the hardware.
Channel Interference Max: 2 at Min. -80 dBm (2.4 GHz) / Max 1 (5 GHz)
- Ensure APs are using non-overlapping channels, especially in the 2.4 GHz band where fewer channels are available.
- For the 5 GHz band, make sure only one interfering network exists in the area.
Round Trip Time (RTT) Max: 200 ms
- Test in high-traffic areas or during peak hours to assess whether RTT exceeds 200 ms.
- Measure RTT at different distances from APs to identify performance bottlenecks.
During Survey -2
Round Trip Time (RTT) Max: 200 ms
- Tools: Ping: A simple tool to measure RTT between devices and the network.
- Traceroute: Useful for diagnosing network paths and identifying points where latency increases.
Packet Loss Max: 0.0%
- Check for coverage holes, especially in areas with dense obstructions, as they can cause packet loss.
- Monitor performance during peak traffic periods to ensure there’s no packet loss due to network congestion.