In the past, networks were designed with either coverage or capacity in mind, however in today’s world WiFi has become such an intrinsic part of life that high-performance connectivity must be offered in spite of the simultaneous demands on capacity and coverage. Network managers must ensure that the digital experience is both seamless and superior whether a user is underground, surrounded by interfering materials, in a football stadium or in an office meeting room. Slow speeds, drop-offs, packet loss, or black spots are simply no longer accepted.
Understanding the interplay between capacity and coverage in today’s world of WiFi is key to understanding how to balance the two elements. Estimating aggregate application throughput is crucial for capacity planning, as it helps determine the network requirements based on the number of concurrent users and specific application demands.
Introduction to Wireless Networks
Wireless networks have become an indispensable part of modern communication, enabling seamless connectivity and data transfer across various devices. At its core, a wireless network allows devices to connect and communicate without the need for cables or wires, providing flexibility and convenience. However, to ensure that a wireless network can support the required number of devices and provide adequate coverage, meticulous wireless network capacity planning is essential. This is particularly crucial in high-density environments, such as large campuses or event spaces, where the demand for reliable connectivity is significantly higher. Effective network capacity planning ensures that the network can handle the load, providing a smooth and uninterrupted user experience.
What is wireless coverage?
The coverage of a wireless network tells us just how far your wireless signal transmits; if you’re running a large institution or organisation, ensuring that your WLAN coverage reaches everywhere on the premises is crucial. Predicting the area a WLAN will cover isn’t always simple; power settings, environmental obstacles, construction materials, and antenna gain can all affect coverage. One of the most accurate ways to assess wireless coverage is wireless surveys, which may include heat maps and spectrum analysis. Ensuring sufficient coverage is essential for good application performance, requiring careful planning and evaluation of signal strength to avoid inadequate network performance in high-density environments.
What is wireless capacity?
Wireless capacity relates to the number of users who can use your wireless simultaneously in one place, and how (and at what rate) they are using bandwidth. Assessing aggregate throughput is crucial for network capacity planning to ensure that the network can handle the total bandwidth required by all users. Wireless capacity is just as big a consideration as coverage when designing a new WLAN; if your network doesn’t meet capacity in peak locations, the result is unusable WiFi and disconnected users.
As an example, in schools, colleges and universities you might find that canteens, social areas and computer rooms are WiFi hotspots – these are areas where large groups of students gather to study, socialise and use social media apps on smartphones and tablets. In these locations, it’s important to maximise WiFi capacity to meet the needs of all users in the network, taking into account potential traffic at peak hours. High-demand areas often require special consideration for applications like HD video streaming, which have significant bandwidth requirements. Effective network capacity planning must also account for more devices, ensuring that the load is distributed across multiple access points to prevent issues such as packet loss and slow connections.
Do I need more coverage or more capacity?
So how do you know whether your coverage or your capacity is the problem? Or both! The best way to find out is to have an on-site survey done by certified WiFi engineers. This will diagnose network problems and offer a series of immediate fixes as well as longer-term recommendations with the future of connectivity in mind.
Factors Affecting Network Performance
Several factors can influence the performance of a wireless network, including the number and type of connected devices and the deployment environment. Wireless throughput capability can be affected by interference, signal strength, and channel utilisation. In high-density environments, employing directional antennas and ensuring proper cell overlap can significantly enhance network performance. Additionally, understanding the wireless capabilities of user devices, such as supported wireless bands and spatial streams, is essential for designing a wireless network that meets the required capacity. By addressing these factors, network managers can optimise performance and provide a reliable wireless experience.
Do I need more coverage or more capacity?
So how do you know whether your coverage or your capacity is the problem? Or both! The best way to find out is to have an on-site survey done by certified WiFi engineers. This will diagnose network problems and offer a series of immediate fixes as well as longer-term recommendations with the future of connectivity in mind. They will calculate roughly the number of access points needed based on user count and application throughput. Additionally, they will analyse the floor plan to determine optimal access point placement, considering factors like wall types, large furniture, or electronics that may interfere with signals.
Do I need more access points?
Wireless networks need to be usable to be worth having, and in today’s constantly connected world, WiFi is no longer optional in large businesses and educational institutions. More access points are a potential solution to improve network performance, but can cause overlapping signals and even poorer performance – yes, it is possible to have terrible performance despite high signal! Monitoring the RF environment is crucial to optimise access point placement, mitigate interference, and adjust configurations based on changes in the RF spectrum. Currently there are only 3 channels in the UK wireless spectrum which guarantee zero interference, so overlapping signals can very easily become an additional problem compounding your wireless’ poor performance.
How can I resolve coverage and capacity issues?
If you’re experiencing issues with capacity and/or coverage, there are other ways to resolve the problem: upgrading your institution’s wireless network can improve coverage and capacity without the need to install more access points, and will offer long-term ROI rather than simply putting a plaster over an increasingly problematic flaw in your network infrastructure.
Newer solutions can offer automated network management to avoid overlapping signals and channel ‘conflict’ which means network managers can save time and focus on more important tasks. As devices, applications and security risks continue to rise, networks that support machine learning and automation will be increasingly valuable to IT departments and businesses as a whole. HD video streaming requires significant bandwidth, which can impact network performance if not properly managed. Additionally, video calls on tablets and laptops in an office setting demand higher capacities, emphasising the need for thorough requirements identification in network design. The best solution will depend entirely on your WLAN design and requirements, considering other factors like client capabilities and simultaneous connections.
For more details about capacity and coverage in your wireless network, contact us today.
