Wireless Access

I have 2 AP-175's being put into production as outside AP's.  They are being controlled by a 3400, which is on code 6.1.3.6.

One AP is already mounted on the building, with 2 D805 antenna connected.  The other is connected and powered up on my desk.  Both have been provisioned for open access with 1 SSID.  They are working, meaning I can go outside with a laptop some 30 or 40 feet away and connect to the SSID (I usually see 2 or 3 bars on the laptop) and can connect out to the Internet.

This is exactly what we want them to do.

The problem is that they both only have limited RSSI lights.  Usually none or 25% on Radio 0 and 25% or 50% on Radio1.  They are for a campus graduation with roughly 250 guests.  I am concerned that while the connection is good for 1 laptop, it doesn't seem like it's going to hold up for 100 or more user devices since it seems like I don't have proper signal strength.

Am I missing something here?  Any help or advice would be welcome.

#3400

Pam,

 

The RSSI lights usually only come into play for mesh links.  

 

To check the actual configured power on your system, do a "show ap active" command from the CLI.

 

Locate the rows with those units, and see what it states under Power and EIRP.

 

 

Like Clukas said you should check the power level configure under ARM , you should probably consider enabling Spectrum Load Balancing to balance the clients accross those APs more effectivly and also possibly adding a 3rd AP

http://community.arubanetworks.com/t5/Command-of-the-Day/COTD-Spectrum-Load-Balancing/td-p/4698

 

PamJackson,

 

I'm sorry, but I cannot let you take bad advice.  YES, check the signal strength on the client radio..absolutely.  Please DO NOT enable Spectrum Load balancing, because it will possibly exacerbate but not help your situation.  ...and...

 

- Make sure your clients have good line-of-sight to your antennas.  

- Do not expect that an antenna mounted inside would be able to support many clients outside; mount the antenna outside for the best performance.  A wall separating your antenna and clients introduces poor performance.

- Survey the area with antenna mounted at the top of the building and see if you might have to align it differently to more properly cover the area you want client coverage.

 

Thank you for all the advice.  I am pretty certain now that the indicator lights on the device are only concerning Mesh, which I am not using this AP for.  However, I still do not feel like the signal is appropriate.  

The AP is mounted on the outside of a building; the D805's are mounting over-under right next to it.  I toyed with their positioning all day yesterday and came up with the best signal when they are NOT tilted or turned in any way.

The area I am trying to cover is roughly the size of a football field.  The signal directly under the AP is 99% (using VistaStumbler); the signal at the far side of the field drops to between 30 and 40% - and on an iPhone bounces continuously between 2 and 3 bars.

I am new to setting up outdoor networks, but it seems like the bouncing should not be happening, at least; and the signal would have been stronger for a greater distance.

 

Pat,

Can you do a show ap arm rf-summary <apname>?

This should tell you the power levels , noise , phy errors on that channel .

If you cant add another AP , you may have to work with the power levels to increase coverage , I ran into an issue like that recently with two outdoor APs to provide coverage for a soccer field and a softball field

Curious,

I would check:

How high are the antennas mounted?

I believe the D805 antennas have a built in 5 degree down-tilt, could this be affecting coverage across the field regarding height and orientation? (across the field meaning length or width?)

of course increasing the power is an option as well.