Recently in 802.11n Category

The use of VoFi, or Voice over Wireless, has been rather limited. But now, with the newly ratified 802.11n standard, we're expecting to see a surge of interest in this technology since 802.11n and its increased throughput and range is what makes VoFi feasible. 

Three benefits of VoFi are:

• Reliable coverage
• Moving billable, cellular minutes to Wi-Fi
• Increased mobility
  

We all continually suffer through the issue of poor cellular coverage indoors, whether at home or in the office. VoFi and VoFi enabled phones provide the capability to transition calls and data activity from cellular to Wi-Fi when in range of an 802.11 network. Since 802.11 is typically deployed to cover indoor spaces, like your home and office, call and data quality will be dramatically improved indoors with VoFi enabled technology.

An added benefit of transitioning a call to your 802.11 network is that it reduces cellular usage, saving minutes on pay-per-minute plans. Granted, this hand-off is still being worked out between carriers and equipment manufacturers, and may not result in a complete minute-for-minute reduction in usage, but more than likely some level of savings will be realized, allowing you to much more quickly capitalize the expense of an 11n upgrade by eliminating some of your billable cellular traffic and carrying it on your 802.11 network.

802.11 has always been about mobility, but up until now it's been manifested more in being able to move from your office to the conference room with your laptop and maintain connectivity. VoFi significantly extends mobility by including voice communications as well. You no longer need to be tethered to a desk phone, or limited by the base-station range of a cordless handset. Wherever there's 802.11 coverage there's voice coverage. This technology was already in use by some industries, large retailers for example, allowing customer service reps to wander the store while helping customers. But 802.11n and VoFi will take this to the mainstream, both in the office and at home.

A key element of VoFi, of course, is the voice component. It's very similar to VoIP in that it's susceptible to jitter and latency, and thus dropped calls, interruptions, and other issues. As a typical wireless network has more latency and interference than a wired network the susceptibilities are that much worse. So with this new technology comes new problems. Are you prepared to manage your new VoFi environment?

On November 18, we're hosting a webinar to explain how best to manage your VoFi environment.

As Joanie Wexler points out in her recent Network World article "Prepping for (finally!) a standard 11n world," the imminent ratification of the 802.11n standard will push enterprises to be more serious about investing in 802.11n. Though some early-adopters have already jumped in, either just to test the waters or because their wireless application plans demanded increased performance, most enterprises have been holding off for the final ratification. For those enterprises entering the 11n water for the first time, the Network World article offers some good preparation tips, whether your entry is from the 3m board or a slow stroll in from the shore.

 

In addition to the tips already offered, several other important points come to mind as you prepare your entry. And you guessed it, our tips center around network management.

 

First, the benefits you'll realize as you move towards 11n will likely have you rethinking the way you use wireless, so what better time to also rethink how you  manage wireless. It goes without saying that your wireless management infrastructure will need to be upgraded to include 11n. Some management applications are just getting there, while others, like OmniPeek, have been there for many years already with a substantial amount of real-world testing, not to mention the use of OmniPeek as part of the Wi-Fi Alliance 802.11n interoperability testing. A move to 11n will most certainly include a move to WPA2 for security, if you haven't already made that move, increasing the need for a network management solution that handles both wireless and wired traffic simultaneously so you can monitor your 802.1x authentication all the way back to the wired sources. And with the increased bandwidth of 802.11n, you'll likely be considering applications like voice-over-wireless, which will require additional measurement techniques like wireless roaming to ensure proper operation of your network and ensure wireless call quality. Basically the message is this: plan for wireless management up front as you make the transition to 11n and make sure your wireless management solutions meet the demands of the new applications you intend to deploy.

 

Second, this is an excellent time to consider HOW you plan to monitor the wireless network, either for troubleshooting or 24x7 observation. Wireless networks are becoming much, much larger, and the days of walking around with a laptop running wireless analysis software to do troubleshooting are drawing to a close. However, wireless networks still require a "point of presence" to do adequate monitoring and certainly any troubleshooting, meaning data must be collected near the source of the reported problem. "Overlay" networks have been the standard solution for the past several years, but this is expensive solution requiring duplicative hardware and network resources (network drops, router ports, etc.). This can be mitigated during your 11n planning by designing in just a bit more density in your AP deployment and then relying on wireless management solutions that can leverage deployed APs and turn them sensors when monitoring or troubleshooting is required. This solution is highly cost-effective since the additional density typically only results in about a 10% increase in the number of APs, much less than the number of dedicated sensors you would need to deploy, and every AP can be put to use in the network resulting in even better network performance when not in use as sensors. This is an extremely important consideration as you roll out a new 802.11n deployment and the cost savings over a traditional "overlay" solution can be substantial.

 

So, whether you're diving in head first or just putting in your little toe, this is the time to reconsider not just network upgrades and the new applications you wish to introduce, but the new management challenges for the network as well. The increased throughput, increased mobility and increasing integration between your wireless and wired network put new demands on your wireless network management solutions. Make sure your solution has already proven that it can meet these demands. OmniPeek has been doing this for years.