Collecting statistics from the unifi wireless controller

Collecting Statistics from the

Unifi Wireless Controller

By NEKLS Technical Staff

Introduction

It is that time of year again. The State Library has begun to request statistics from Kansas libraries regarding the number of patrons/members of the community that are utilizing your library’s Wireless network. Most libraries that receive technical support from NEKLS have a Unifi Wireless solution in place as of this writing (1/21/16). The purpose of this document is to provide a step by step guide on collecting the necessary statistics for the State Library.

What is the Unifi Controller?

The Unifi Controller is a piece of software that manages Unifi Access Points (commonly referred to as APs, or as NEKLS staff likes to call them, “the little flying saucers”). It is the controller’s job to act as the brain of the AP.

The controller, tells the APs which networks to broadcast, which passwords to use, and also collects information about which, and more importantly for us, how many devices connect to your wireless network on a daily basis. This is the number that the State Library is looking for.

Stat CollectionStep 1: Make sure that the Unifi Controller is up and Running

In order for the Unifi Controller to collect any stats it must be left up and running during all hours when the library’s wireless network may be accessed. This means that if you allow after-hours access, and wish to count those connections, the computer with the controller needs to be on after hours as well.

The controller starts running as soon as the computer is booted up and will look like this:

Stat CollectionStep 1: Make sure that the Unifi Controller is up and Running

Stat CollectionStep 1: Make sure that the Unifi Controller is up and Running

On most days the preferred option will be to select the “Hide” button on this popup. This will minimize the controller, while maintaining its functionality.

Closing this popup by clicking on the red X will close the controller software, and no stats will be generated.

To access the controller and get to the statistics select the “Launch a Browser to Manage the Network” button.

Stat CollectionStep 2: Logging into the Unifi Wireless Controller

After selecting to “Launch a Browser to Manage the Network” your default web browser (Firefox, Google Chrome, etc.) should open a new window that shows the following page:

Stat CollectionStep 2: Logging into the Unifi Wireless Controller

Stat CollectionStep 2: Logging into the Unifi Wireless Controller

The username should always be admin, and if you do not recall your password, please contact NEKLS technical staff either by phone at (785) 838-4090 or via email at tech@nekls.org, and the correct password will be provided in a timely fashion.

Stat CollectionStep 3: Navigating the Unifi Dashboard

Once you have successfully logged into the controller you will land on the Unifi Dashboard, which looks like this:

Stat CollectionStep 3: Navigating the Unifi Dashboard

The Dashboard provides a quick look at the health of your wireless network. When the WLAN is green as it is in the above image, the AP and controller are working properly, and are therefore collecting stats. If the WLAN is red that means that there is an issue between the controller and the AP. This does not mean that the wireless network is not working per se, but stats are not likely being tabulated. If you log into the controller and the WLAN is red please contact NEKLS technical staff immediately.Once you have verified that the controller and AP are green the next step is to locate the statistics.

Stat CollectionStep 4: Locating the Statistics

To get to the stats select the Statistics tab located on the left side of the website as shown here:

Stat CollectionStep 4: Locating the Statistics

Once you have selected the Statistics tab you will arrive on a page that looks like this:

Stat CollectionStep 4: Locating the Statistics

Please note that by default this section of the controller is only going to show one day’s worth of stats, which is not overly helpful given our goal.

In order to change this click on the date tab in the upper right hand corner of the statistics page as seen on the following page:

Stat CollectionStep 4: Locating the Statistics

Stat CollectionStep 4: Locating the Statistics

As you can see on the previous image, a calendar should be generated in a drop down menu. In the upper portion of the calendar there are two options. Select the option labeled “Month”, and then click update.

If you have done this correctly the screen should look like the following image:

Stat CollectionStep 4: Locating the Statistics

Stat CollectionStep 5: Collecting Stats

Once the stats have been set to pull for a month, you should see information begin to populate two line graphs in the bottom right hand corner of the Statistics page.

If the controller and AP have been up and working correctly it will look something like this:

Stat CollectionStep 5: Collecting Stats

Stat CollectionStep 5: Collecting Stats• The top graph labeled “Clients” is the most important graph for our

purposes. Each “Client” is a device that has connected to your library’s wireless network.• The second graph shows how much bandwidth the wireless network

used on the day in question. It is also important to note that the date for both pieces of information is located on the second graph.• In our example 14 devices connected to the wireless network,

generating 3.3 GB of traffic on 12/22/15.• Hovering the mouse cursor over the graph will allow you to see the

number of clients that accessed the wireless network on each day of the entire month. From there you should be able to generate an average number of wireless users for your library for the month.

Final Thoughts

If you have any questions or concerns regarding this reporting please feel free to contact NEKLS staff and we will gladly help you navigate this software.