Planning For Success - Wireless Network Design, Analysis, and Troubleshooting

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Jay BotelhoDirector of Product [email protected] me @jaybotelho

Planning for SuccessWireless Network Design, Analysis, and Troubleshooting

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© WildPackets, Inc. 2Planning For Success – Wireless Network Design, Analysis and Troubleshooting

Agenda

• The Wi-Fi Lifecycle

• The Importance of Design

• Verification of Assumptions

• Deployment and Recalibration

• Monitoring and Troubleshooting

• Managing Expanded Usage

• Company Overview

• Product Line Overview


The Wi-Fi Lifecycle


Network Designand Requirements

”How to create a high performance Wi-Fi network?”

ManagementTroubleshootingExpansion ”How to resolve issues and cope with changes? How to expand the network?”

DeploymentandVerification ”Does my network function as required?”

Ensure coverageVerify performanceCheck correct AP configurationsTest end-to-end network

operation

See the network coverage and performance during and after deployment

Solve Wi-Fi issues, such as 802.11n issues Excessive interference Rogue APs, Broken APs Coverage holes / leakage Plan for added capacity or

coverage

See network trouble spots and find corrective measures

See the impact of added access points or new technologies

Define applications to be usedDefine areas to be covered

Find locations for the APsDetermine AP configurationsFind optimal antennas and their

alignment

See the network coverage and performance prior to depoyment

The Wi-Fi Life Cycle Has a Lot to Consider

Copyright © 2011 Ekahau. All Rights Reserved


The Importance of Design


Example – Purdue University

• "The management of our wireless network, when you boil it down, is three people. It's three busy people, but not three suicidal people." - Scott Ksander, Executive Director of Networks and Security

• 6,000 802.11n APs, 265 buildings, 10,000 users

• Using a controller-based architecture is a must

• Uses Cisco software for centralized monitoring but requires specific trouble-shooting tools for the field

• 11n is a must – Purdue learned the hard way that large lecture halls with 802.11bg APs could not tolerate 600 students logging in at the same time

Source: http://searchnetworking.techtarget.com/news/article/0,289142,sid7_gci1373978,00.html


The Real World at Liberty University

• Multi-channel, IP-based video (IPTV) over wireless

• Provide roaming students with universal access to multi-channel video

• Delivery of 15 live TV channels

• Liberty's campus channel as well as ABC, CBS, CNN, ESPN, FOX, NBC, and a range of other broadcasters

• Serves 46,000 local/remote students and 2,600 FTEs

• Network includes more than 770 Aruba 802.11n access points

Source: http://www.marketwire.com/press-release/Liberty-University-Launches-Campus-Wide-Wireless-IPTV-Using-80211n-Wi-Fi-From-Aruba-NASDAQ-ARUN-1069662.htm


Ekahau Site Survey (ESS)

• Visual, Enterprise-grade Wi-Fi toolkit for‒ 3D Network Design‒ Deployment and Verification‒ Troubleshooting

• Created for IT administrators / managers and wireless professional services persons

‒ For anyone dealing with a Wi-Fi network of over 10 APs

• Software application, runs on Windows laptops (XP/Vista/7 32/64bit)

• Supports 802.11n, and 802.11a/b/g



Automatic Network Planning

Select your requirement, such as VoIP

Indicate desired coverage areas

Select AP model and AP parameters

Automatically find optimal number of APs, AP placement, and configurations based on your requirements

ESS calculates the locations and configurations for the APs for the entire building – in 3D!

Fully supports 802.11n



Manual Network Planning


Hundreds of access points and antennas to choose from

Support for:802.11n / MIMOMulti-radio APsDirectional antennasAntenna downtilt, etc.

Accurate 3D planningallows seeingsignal leakage and interference travelling through floors

Crystal-clear user interface

Easy-to-read coverage and performance maps

Fine-tune the network using one-click AP placement, directional antennas, downtilt, etc.


Integration with Cisco WCS and Avaya NMS

Hundreds of access points and antennas to choose from

Support for:802.11n / MIMOMulti-radio APsDirectional antennasAntenna downtilt, etc.

Accurate 3D planningallows seeingsignal leakage and interference travelling through floors

Crystal-clear user interface

Easy-to-read coverage and performance maps

Simplifies and makes things faster with leading infrastructure vendors



Verification of Assumptions


Coverage and Performance Visualizations

Visualizations can be shown any group of APs (My, All, per SSID, per channel, only 802.11n, etc)

Visualizations for coverage, data rate, AP overlap, signal-to-noise ratio, roaming, interference, packet loss, network response times, ...

Crystal-clear, easy-to-read visualizations

Visualize various network parameters, perform in-depth analysis and simulations



802.11n

See 802.11n data rates, and areas of 40MHz channels

802.11n access point charateristics (Greenfield, SGI, channel bonding, multiple spatial streams /MIMO) in the AP list

Design, deploy and troubleshoot 802.11n effectively

Network planning includes tens of 802.11n access points and antennas



Deployment and Recalibration


Network Health Analysis

Network Health visualization shows whether your network works or not in each location

Network requirements can be selected for VoIP, e-mail, RTLS, etc. Customized profiles also supported. Green = everything

works as it should Red = one or more requirements are not met.

See overall network health status in a single view



Troubleshooting – Wi-Fi

Network Issues Visualization pinpoints network problem locations and causes with a single view

Instant, on-the-spot assessment using the Live Network Status view. Take the laptop the problematic location and see what’s wrong.

Each color represents a different cause for network errors:Low signal or data rate, insufficient overlap, high packet loss, high latency times

Troubleshoot network issues on-the-spot, or after survey



Monitoring and Troubleshooting


Troubleshooting - Spectrum Analysis

RF activity over time (bottom is now, top is 2,5 minutes ago)

A wireless camera was first turned off, then switched on to cause an RF havoc

Wi-Fi Channels 1-3 are mostly affected by the device

Find issues caused by non-802.11 devices, such as microwave ovens, wireless cameras, motion detectors, and Zigbee.

RF intensity (the higher the more intense)

Momentary RF intensity (blue = max, green = avg)



Distributed Network Analysis

WLANController

ThinAPs

Remote SoftwareProbe with Wireless

AdaptersNetwork USB Hub

with Wireless Adapters

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/images/B000QSN3O6/ref=dp_image_0?ie=UTF8&n=172282&s=electronics


Wireless Network Analysis Requirements

• Portable and remote analysis in a single package

• Extensive, commercially available wireless adapters

• Full 7-layer analysis

• Voice and video analysis

• Roaming analysis

• Multi-channel analysis

• Flexible options for remote analysis


Unified Wired and Wireless

• Security protocols and policy• Rogue APs and clients• Ad-hoc networks• Wireless security attacks• QoS configuration and use• Signal strength• Dropped packets and retries

• Tracking wireless packets onto the wired network

• QoS configuration and use• VPN/MPLS• Application vs. network latency

AccessPoint Router

Air-link

PrivateNetworkor the

Internet

AuthServer

Ethernet Ethernet

WLANController


Comparing Wired and Wireless Is Essential


Multi-Channel Analysis


Wireless Roaming

• Campus-wide deployments imply frequent roaming

• Roaming is the cause of many wireless issues

• Voice and video are especially sensitive

• Roaming analysis requires detailed and accurate measurements from many perspectives


Managing Expanded Usage


Identify Weaknesses As Network Expands

Network Issues Visualization pinpoints network problem locations and causes with a single view

Instant, on-the-spot assessment using the Live Network Status view. Take the laptop the problematic location and see what’s wrong.

Each color represents a different cause for network errors:Low signal or data rate, insufficient overlap, high packet loss, high latency times



WLANs Carry Everything!Analysis At All Network Layers Is Essential


Expand Analysis for New Services: Voice and Video

VoFi Call

Wired VoIP Call


Company Overview


Corporate Background

• Experts in network monitoring, analysis, and troubleshooting‒ Founded: 1990 / Headquarters: Walnut Creek, CA‒ Offices throughout the US, EMEA, and APAC

• Our customers are leading edge organizations‒ Mid-market, and enterprise lines of business‒ Financial, manufacturing, ISPs, major federal agencies,

state and local governments, and universities‒ Over 7,000 customers / 60+ countries / 80% of Fortune 1,000

• Award-winning solutions that improve network performance‒ Internet Telephony, Network Magazine, Network Computing Awards‒ United States Patent 5,787,253 issued July 28, 1998

• Different approach to maintaining availability of network services


What We Do

• Provide network visibility and intelligence …‒ WatchPoint, OmniPeek, OmniEngines

• Expert systems – we find the problems for you• Superior drill-down capability – trouble-shoot from anywhere• Flexible, customizable, extensible – leverage your investment

‒ Professional services, training, best practices

• For all network segments …‒ Data center to desktop to remote office‒ LAN, WAN, Wireless …‒ HTTP, Email, Database, VoIP, Video …

• To …‒ Network engineers; IT Management; Developers


Real-World Deployments

Education

Health Care / Retail

Financial

Telecom

Government

Technology

http://www.fbiband.com/

http://www.dea.gov/


Product Line Overview


Product OfferingsSoftware and Turnkey Appliances

• Enterprise Monitoring and Reporting‒ WatchPoint Server‒ OmniFlow, NetFlow, and sFlow Collectors

• Network Probes & Recorders‒ Omnipliance Network Recorders – Edge, Core‒ TimeLine Network Recorder‒ OmniAdapter Analysis Cards

• Distributed Analysis Software‒ OmniPeek – Enterprise, Professional, Basic, Connect‒ OmniEngine – Enterprise, Desktop, OmniVirtual

• Portable Solutions‒ OmniPeek software‒ Omnipliance Portable


WatchPointCentralized Monitoring for Distributed Enterprise Networks

• High-level, aggregated view of all network segments

‒ Monitor per campus, per region, per country

• Wide range of network data‒ NetFlow, sFlow, OmniFlow,

SNMP

• Web-based, customizable network dashboards

• Flexible and detailed reports



Omnipliance Network Recorders

• Captures and analyzes all network traffic at the source 24x7‒ Runs our OmniEngine intelligent probe software‒ Generates vital statistics on network and application performance‒ Intuitive root-cause analysis of performance bottlenecks

• Intelligent data transport‒ Network data analyzed locally‒ Detailed analysis passed to OmniPeek on demand‒ Summary statistics sent to WatchPoint for long term trending and

reporting‒ Efficient use of network bandwidth

• Expert analysis speeds problem resolution‒ Fault analysis, statistical analysis, and independent notification

• Multiple Issue Digital Forensics‒ Real-time and post capture data mining for compliance and

troubleshooting


TimeLine Network Recorder11.7Gbps Sustained Capture

• Fastest network recording and real-time statistical display — simultaneously

‒ Network statistics display in TimeLine visualization format

• Rapid, intuitive forensics search and retrieval‒ Historical network traffic analysis and quick data rewinding‒ Several pre-defined forensics search templates making

searches easy and fast

• A natural extension to the WildPackets product line

• Turnkey bundled solution


Omnipliance Network RecordersPrice/performance solutions for every application

Portable Edge Core TimeLineRuggedized

TroubleshootingSmall Networks / Remote Offices

Regional Offices /Small Datacenter

DatacenterWorkhorse

Chassis 1U 3U 3U

Memory 2 GB / 8 GB 4 GB / 8 GB 6 GB / 24 GB 18 GB / 24 GB

Expansion 1 PCI-E / 2 PCI-X 1 PCI-E or 1 PCI-X 4 PCI-E 4 PCI-E

Storage 500 GB / 2.5 TB 1 TB 8 TB 8 TB / 16 TB / 32 TB


OmniPeek Network Analyzer

• OmniEngine Manager‒ Connect and configure distributed OmniEngines/Omnipliances

• Comprehensive dashboards present network traffic in real-time‒ Vital statistics and graphs display trends on network and application

performance‒ Visual peer-map shows conversations and protocols‒ Intuitive drill-down for root-cause analysis of performance bottlenecks

• Visual Expert diagnosis speeds problem resolution‒ Packet and Payload visualization provide business-centric views

• Automated analytics and problem detection 24/7‒ Easily create filters, triggers, scripting, advanced alarms and alerts


Key Differentiators

• High-level network monitoring to root-cause analysis

• Single solution for today’s converged networks‒ Wired, Wireless, 1GB, 10GB, VoIP, Video, TelePresence, IPTV

• Reduce and even eliminate network downtime‒ Automated monitoring 24x7‒ Speedy resolution of network bottlenecks

• Improve network and application performance

• Uniquely Extensible Platform – tailored to your needs

‒ Plug-ins and APIs for integration and customization


Q&A

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#wp_wifiwith any questions, comments, or feedback.

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Thank You!

WildPackets, Inc.1340 Treat Boulevard, Suite 500Walnut Creek, CA 94597(925) 937-3200

Planning For Success - Wireless Network Design, Analysis, and Troubleshooting

Technology

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