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System Source Webinar & Happy Hour – “How Wi-Fi
Needs are Changing as Employees Return to Work” July 22nd
Scott RippeySolutions Architect
System Source
[email protected]
Erik Sheedy - Inside Territory Manager
Jake Bowers - Mid Atlantic Systems EngineerCisco
Alex Wilson
Wireless Engineer/Project ManagerCollabsion, Inc
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• Introductions – Chris Riley
• Scott Rippey
• Welcome to the new world . . .
• Erik Sheedy and Jake Bowers
• Cisco Meraki – Troubleshooting options
• Alex Wilson
• Advance Troubleshooting
• Q&A – Chris Riley
Agenda
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If you haven’t received your Old-
Fashioned Cocktail Kit
then contact Mike Jones:
[email protected]
Enjoy an Old Fashioned while learning about New Fashioned wireless
technology!
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During the Webinar…
Audio – In presentation mode until end
Control Panel
View webinar in full screen mode
In Chat – Tell us what you hope to learn today?
Feel free to submit written questions
Evaluation just after webinar finish
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Welcome to the new world
Scott Rippey
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Welcome to the new world…
• COVID is changing the way many of us work
• Increased demand for wireless services in office
• Increased use of streaming / video conferencing
• Changing the office layout
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Troubleshooting Options
Erik Sheedy
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The Only 100% Centralized Cloud-Managed Network● Leader in cloud networking: 1,700,000+ customer networks deployed
○ Founders of Meraki Invented cloud managed wifi in 2006 at MIT○ Over 1300 employees worldwide○ 10,000 new networks deployed per week
● Over time Meraki has evolved into cloud-managed everything IT○ Complete line of wireless APs, switches, UTM, SD-WAN, MDM, cloud application monitoring and security cameras.
● Cisco acquired Meraki for $1.2 Billion to form the Cisco Cloud Networking Group○ Heavily increased investment in Meraki technology to grow team and accelerate R&D○ Meraki is Cisco’s most successful acquisition ever!
Trusted by thousands of customers worldwide:
High Security Financial Security Large Enterprise Retail Franchises
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Simplifying IT with cloud management
A complete cloud-managed IT solution
Wireless, switching, security, SD-WAN, application performance management, unified endpoint management (UEM), and security cameras
Integrated hardware, software, and cloud services
Leader in cloud-managed IT
Among Cisco’s fastest growing portfolios
350k+Unique customers
4.5M+Meraki devices
online
5.5M+Active Meraki
dashboard users
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Intuitive Web-Based Dashboard
Site-wide search
Client location
L7 application visibility
Real-time control
Client fingerprints
Single pane of glass ITmanagement
Remote tools
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Granular control over bandwidth, apps, and client devices
Get up-to-date insights into clients and application usage thanks to cloud-automated classification and device fingerprinting.
Ensure network stability and higher productivity by prioritizing mission critical apps and throttling low-priority ones.
Ensure baseline security and consistency across sites while drastically reducing deployment time with configuration templates.
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Powerful heuristics for smarter wireless troubleshooting
Meraki Wireless Health: A powerful heuristics engine that rapidly identifies anomalies impacting end users’ experience across every stage of client
connectivity — association, authentication, IP addressing, and DNS availability — for rapid root cause analysis and response.
Quickly identify worst-performing access points & client devices, problematic latency, and specific failure reasons
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Integrated analytics for actionable insights
Leverage out-of-the-box analytics to understand client behavior and foot traffic across sites and venues.
Use location data to make informed decisions about staffing, event or storefront displays, advertising — even AP placement.
Integrate raw, real-time data with business intelligence systems and perform deeper analysis using built-in API.
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Meraki Dashboard Demo
Jake Bowers
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Advanced TroubleshootingGoing beyond the controller options
Alex Wilson
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Goals
Identify and discuss…
• Advanced troubleshooting options
• Changing workplace environment
• Designing a new system
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Most common test…• Speed Test
• Done from the client to a known server
• Returns the download and upload throughput plus latency
• Limited value
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What causes low throughput?• Low signal strength
• Interference
• Channel width settings
• Spatial stream support
• Band being used
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Going Beyond the Controller
• Signal strength checks
• Spectrum analysis
• Comprehensive troubleshooting
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Signal Strength Checks
• Can be done with pretty much any network device
• iOS devices have limited options
• Limited usefulness – not the full picture
• Not all devices are created equal
• Hard to isolate selected access point
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What defines a “good” signal
• Best signal is -30dBm
• Worst would be -100dBm
• Every application / system has different needs
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We have a good signal but…
• The network still isn’t that great
• Signal strength doesn’t tell you about interference
• Could be weak client devices
• Roaming not working
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Now what?
• Throughput said there was “some” problem
• Signal strength showed there were some dead spots or was inconclusive
• Now what?
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Spectrum Analysis
• Requires specialized tools
• Reads the spectrum and helps find issues
• Requires advanced knowledge to make sense of findings
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Tools of the trade• Limited use tools
• Metageek WiSpy, RF Explorer
• Full featured tools• Ekahau with Sidekick, AirMagnet
• iBwave, Acrylic, TamoSoft, VisiWave
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What can we learn?
• Identify and potentially locate interference sources
• Analyze channel use
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Getting a bit better…
• We know we have throughput issues
• We found our dead and weak spots
• We found we have spectrum use issues
• We fixed the above and still have throughput issues
• Now what?
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Detailed professional assessment
• WiFi site survey conducted by wireless engineer
• Uses professional grade tools
• Looks at more than just signal strength
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Results from Actual Survey• Client is a winery with six access points
• Slow page loads, dropped connections, dropped or garbled WiFi calls, frequent DHCP issues
• POS terminals dropping transactions causing double charges sometimes
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Outcome of an Assessment
• Changing configuration
• Moving, adding, removing access points
• Upgrading certain access points
• System replacement
• Good neighbor policy
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Our Findings
• Interference
• Several APs mounted on the wall, not flat
• Wrong APs for situation
• Weak coverage outside
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Summarizing troubleshooting
• Start with the controller options
• Signal strength tests
• Spectrum analysis
• Professional troubleshooting survey and report
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New WiFi Network Design
• WiFi needs to be designed correctly
• Guessing is not “correctly”
• Neither is 1:1 replacement
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Common Things that go Wrong
• Old location was bad, why would it be better now?
• New radiation patterns
• Different standards supported
• Different options altering the entire experience
• New access points will just be better right?
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Planning on Moving to WiFi 6?
• You need to design for it if you want to take advantage of it
• Coverage will be different due to new APs and new features
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Options to Create a Good Design• Use the right partner to get it done
• AP on a Stick Design
• Predictive Design with Onsite Review / Testing
• Pure Predictive Design
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Wrapping up• Use your controller to start the troubleshooting process
• Move to basic tools next to attempt to isolate some issues
• If you can’t resolve it, move to a professional troubleshooting survey
• If designing a new system, do it right to avoid the common pitfalls
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Q & A
Kindly complete the survey at the end of this webinar. We will use your feedback to help us
improve.
THANK YOU!