BYOD: Are you ready?
The proliferation of iPads, tablets, and other Wi-Fi enabled handheld devices is quickly working its way into enterprise networks. More and more users are expecting to be able to use their mobile devices at work. Business is working wireless into operations objectives to help increase productivity. IT Administrators must be able to support this influx of devices or run the risk of alienating employees and stymieing that productivity. Supporting the influx of mobile devices presents a challenge for IT—but also a huge opportunity.
To properly handle more end-user devices and
Bring-Your-Own-Device (BYOD) policies on a wireless network, four key steps must be followed.
- Design for growth
- Design for security
- Device identification and policy enforcement
- Monitor and adjust network provisioning
Let’s face it. There can’t be a discussion of designing for BYOD without first understanding the capabilities of the client devices in question. For example, when designing for the iPads, there are four critical elements to understand:
- Lower Transmit Power – in order to make the iPad lighter and more energy efficient, the maximum transmission power was decreased by as much at 7dBm compared to laptops. Significantly reducing signal strength and receive sensitivity.
- Lower Data Rates – because of the single 1x1 antenna, iPads are limited to 65Mbps, compared to laptops with two and three spatial streams allowing rates of 300Mbps and 450Mbps.
- Dual Band Support – the first generation of iPads are limited to 2.4GHz, while the second and third generation operate across both 2.4GHz and 5GHz (offers 8X more bandwidth than 2.4GHz).
- Sticky Roaming – tablets, including iPads, tend to hang-on to the associated radio, even when there is a stronger radio available, impacting performance.
Taking these elements in mind, there are a number of best practices to consider when designing for iPads:
- Proper signal strength - Because iPads have a lower transmit power, it’s important to plan for a minimum of -65dBm across the network to maximize data rates.
- Maximize 5GHz usage - Since iPads support and default to 5GHz, be sure to take advantage of the 8X more bandwidth by deploying more 5GHz radios than 2.4GHz to further maximize performance.
- Sufficient radio bandwidth - Because iPads have lower transmit and limited 802.11n data rate support, you’ll want to deploy more radios per iPad than with traditional laptop designs. Some analysts estimate 300% more radios are needed.
Xirrus designed the Wireless Array envisioning the day of dense deployments brought about by BYOD.
- Multiple radios – Xirrus Arrays support from 2 to 16 radios in a single device compared to only 1 or 2 in most other enterprise APs. With up 8X the number of radios, Xirrus Arrays support up to 8X the wireless throughput. Case in point, a eight modular AP Array can replace four or more traditional two-radio APs. Instead of deploying 300% more APs, why not deploy a few more Arrays and use the savings to improve other aspects of the network.
- Directional antennas – Xirrus Arrays use directional antennas that transmit and receive signal strength 2X further than Omni-directional antennas on traditional APs. The ability to “talk” and “listen” at greater distances provides gives you better performance for all devices.
- Configurable Wi-Fi band – Rather than having one 2.4GHz and one 5GHz radio per access device, the Wireless Array allows maximum utilization of Wi-Fi bandwidth by using multi-state radios. All radios in the Xirrus Array can be moved from 2.4GHz to 5GHz to fully utilize the additional spectrum available in the 5GHz space. More 5GHz means better performance.
- Optimized roaming – Xirrus has developed specialized roaming assist functionality into each Wireless Array specifically to support iPads. Roaming is coordinated between multiple Arrays in a wireless network to move iPads from Array to Array at optimized times instead of waiting for the iPad to make the roaming decision.
With two to 16 modular AP Arrays, Xirrus has the right solution for the right scenario. Small to large. Simple to complex. Xirrus is proven.