Business grade Wifi

[Jamster001]

Hello SNB members and thank you all for the active forum filled with knowledge!

I was asked to get quotes for our business to have secure, stable and "speedy" wifi access throughout our entire building. We are a Public Safety establishment and again need the added layer(s) of security. Our primary functions consist of Emergency Responsiveness focusing on both Law Enforcement, Medical and Homeland Security.

Anyways, here is a little info pertaining to our building and department. The square-footage of the desired wifi access is approximately 40,000 SqFt; of which about 25,000 SqFt. is an office setting and the remaining 15,000 SqFt is a garage. Our current employee count, that will actively utilize throughput at any given time (BTW we are a 24 Hour operation) is roughly 60 employees; at which I would say that more then have of this throughput will be users on tablets/laptops/phones basically either browsing the web/app usage, e-mails, and/or file transferring to networked servers we currently have up and running. Our current network, both clients and servers, consist of mostly HP hardware. Is their anything I am missing here???

I am assuming I will need to purchase a standalone network router and several wireless access points. Am I correct? Currently, our budget is open (within a reasonable amount) as I am now only looking for quotes. We currently do not own any AC enabled devices but may in the near future. Any suggestions on equipment?

**** Myself and our company greatly appreciates any and all feedback. ****

- Jamster001

 

[thiggins]

Dependable business grade Wi-Fi requires professional setup. I strongly suggest you engage a local company with an established track record on setting up and maintaining wireless networks like the one you desire. Especially because you are involved in public safety.

You need a site survey to determine the current wireless environment, interference sources and AP placement. The access points are going to need to be capable of load management, power control and centralized management.

Good luck.

 

[azazel1024]

In terms of, at least from what I have heard, good security and good coverage and seamless roaming, you might want to look at Ubiquity.

Their 802.11ac access points are expensive (speaking as a home user, not from a business stand point), but their 11n access points are pretty cheap. A Ubiquity Unifi Access point setup with a Ubiquity Edge Lite router might be your best bet for such a setup. Without know the construction of the building, I'd guess you'll probably need one Unifi access point for roughly every 2-4,000 sq-ft of building and maybe 2 to cover the garage if it is mostly open. You'd really need a site survey to determine number and location of the access points though.

I agree with Thiggins though, this sounds like a job for a local company with experience to setup.

 

[stevech]

Aruba is selling 11ac access points.
Cisco historically waits a year after ratification of a new standard.

 

[KGB7]

Dependable business grade Wi-Fi requires professional setup. I strongly suggest you engage a local company with an established track record on setting up and maintaining wireless networks like the one you desire. Especially because you are involved in public safety.

You need a site survey to determine the current wireless environment, interference sources and AP placement. The access points are going to need to be capable of load management, power control and centralized management.

Good luck.

I agree.


Have 2 or 3 local companies come out and do a site survey. Then chose 1 company that will get the job done correctly, with in your budget, addresses all your concerns, answers all your questions, and most importantly; has a track record working in commercial environment.

So dont be calling Geek Squad.

 

[remixedcat]

I would recommend Cisco or Cisco Meraki. They both have the seamless layer 3 roaming features, great management, etc.

Cisco solution would need a few APs and a Wireless LAN Controller
Meraki solution would need just a few APs and the controller is in the cloud.

 

[Jamster001]

Again, your feedback is greatly appreciated. I am also relaying all information to the "Big-Wigs" here at Public Safety.

I am glad I posted this topic, as I have now told the Executive Director of our department to seek a site survey for optimal setup in regards to surity and interference control. As our department is located here in Erie, PA., I am assuming we will probably deal with a local company that we already have contracts with. I beleive Velocity.Net is the companies name we deal with (their website: http://www.velocitynetwork.net/). Hopefully, the will understand our importance when it comes to both security and our overall requirements.

Thanks again for all your support. If my IT team doesn't currently refer to this site prior to making network decisions, I will be sure they know now to do so.