Wireless LAN Site Survey - 2

Interviewing managers and users

It is recommended to create some type of checklist or formal site survey questionnaire to use during the interview process. Some generic interview questions that will pertain to most installations are as follows:

• Has a site survey ever been performed in the past?
• Are any blueprints, floor plans, or any other site-specific documentation available?
• In an office or enterprise environment, furnishing many consist of desks, cabinets, chairs, and other items.
• In warehousing and retail environments, furnishing will include storage racks and shelving as well ass product inventories
• In manufacturing environments, information should be gathered about the location of industrial equipment used in the manufacturing process and about equipment used to move product throughout the factory
• In medical environments, furnishings or equipment will include devices that may cause interference and operate in the same frequency range as the proposed wireless network. Storage of items used with in the hospital or medical environment for patients and employees may also affect RF coverage
• How many users anticipate using the wireless network?
• Will public access be required?
• Is there any preference for a specific manufacturer's equipment?
• What is the coverage area?
• Is an existing wireless network in place?
• Existing wireless networks
• Existing wired networks
• Are there any known area of RF interference?
• Are there any known areas that may lack RF coverage?
• What type of application will be use?
• Will voice or other applications that require quality of service be used?
• Is roaming required?
• Is Power over Ethernet (PoE) required?
• What are the wireless security requirement?
• Will an escort be required
• Are there any legislative compliance requirements?

Above question list is from CWAP

Wireless LAN Site Survey - 1

The main objectives of a wireless LAN site survey are to find areas of RF coverage and interference source as well as installation locations for hardware infrastructure devices such as access points, antennas and any other devices that will be used with the wireless LAN.

Knowing the expectation of the client or business in regard to the wireless LAN is a critical part of a successful Wireless LAN Site Surveys. To understand these client expectations, it is necessary to gather much information. The scope of the wireless LAN Site Surveys is dependent on many factors, some of which include:

• Size of physical location
• Intended use of the network
• Number of users
• Performance expectations

Size of Physical Location

Depending on the size of the physical location in which the wireless network will be installed, a complete wireless LAN site survey may not be necessary. For example, one sandwich shop is approximately 1,200 square fee, has seating for about 15 people. In this case, a single access point would be sufficient for the number of users who access the wireless network at any one time. Although a full-blown site survey determining areas of RF interference coverage and interference would more than likely not be required, it would still be beneficial to visit the location and determine the best place for the access point. In a situation like this, a site survey may be all that is necessary. This would include testing the are to determine the best RF channel to use as well as access point mounting, and connecting to the wired network for access to Internet. 

Intended use of the network

The intended use of this wireless network will consists of staying online and browsing the Internet or checking email. It is unlikely many users would be performing any high-end or bandwidth intensive application on this type of connection. 

Number of users

As the number of actual users grows, the need for additional access points will also increase.

Performance expectations

Keeping in mind that wireless networks are half-duplex and contention-based, many factors will affect the performance of a wireless LAN, including the number of users, types of applications used, location, and the number of infrastructure devices providing access.