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Showing posts from January, 2015

5GHz in the UK White Paper (Version 2)

[Note: The information in this white paper has been superseded. Check out my updated white paper:  http://wifinigel.blogspot.co.uk/2018/05/updated-white-paper-on-license-exempt.html ] I decided it was time to update my white paper detailing the use of the 5GHz band here in the UK for wireless LANs. I've tidied a few things up and added some information around 802.11ac channel planning within the constraints of UK 5GHz spectrum. You can download the whitepaper from here: PDF download Google docs Scribd

Cisco AP Channel Utilization

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One thing that keeps me awake at night is the whole concept of Co-channel interference in WiFi networks (well, that and acid reflux) . I'm always concerned by it's presence in a Wireless LAN, how to detect it, how to avoid it and how to measure its effect. In this article I share a tip I picked up from a recent Cisco webinar to determine the general level of utilization of an AP's channel. I also look at how this may give us a clue about the level of CCI in a Cisco wireless network. Background Co-channel interference (CCI), co-channel contention (CCC)...whatever you want to call it (I'm growing quite fond of the term "Co-channel Chatter"), is a blight in many WiFi networks. In all but the most isolated and carefully designed of wireless LANs, it lurks, waiting to disrupt the efficient operation of our WiFi network. As the number of WiFi networks rises, AP channel-widths increase (with newer WiFi standards) and the population of WiFi devices explodes, th