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GETTING OFF THE WI-FI ROLLER COASTER - THE TRANSITION TO 802.11.AC

802.11ac: IS IT NEEDED? IS IT TIME?

Perry Correll,Xirrus, Principal Technologist

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EVOLVING USE CASES & APPLICATIONS2012

• Overlay network

• 1:1 devices to users

• Design for coverage

• Design RF for laptops

• 2.4GHz centric

• Application focus – Email/Web Surf

2015

• Primary network

• 2:1 to 3:1 devices to users

• Design for capacity

• Design RF for tablets/phones

• 5GHz and 2.4GHz both required

• Application focus – Anything

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WI-FI’S EVOLUTION TO 802.11AC

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THE EVOLUTION OF WI-FI TECHNOLOGY

Wi-Fi Standards Evolution

• Every 2-3 years there is a new standards

• New standards are at 5GHz and beyond

11ax

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WHAT IS 802.11AC

• High performance

• Raises the ‘low’ end

• Superior throughput

• Backwards compatible

• ‘Cleaner’ spectrum

• Improved battery Life

• Focus on 5GHz spectrum

• Improved modulation efficiency

• Channel bonding up to 160Mz

• Up to 8 spatial streams

• MU-MIMO

Technology Benefits

Data rates up to 6.9Gbps

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802.11N vs. 802.11AC

• 802.11n• Up to 600Mbps• Up to 64 QAM Modulation• Up to 40Mhz channel width• Up to 4 data streams• MIMO- Single client link

• 802.11ac• Up to 1.3GBps / 6.9Gbps• Up to 256 QAM Modulation• Up to 80/160Mhz channel width• Up to 4/8 data streams• MU-MIMO-Multiple client links

vv

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STANDARDS ROLL OUT PLANS

• 3 Streams• 80 MHz channel width• 256 QAM• Product Availability: Now

• 4/8 Streams• 160 MHz channel width• 256 QAM• MU-MIMO• Product availability: 2H ‘14

Wi-Fi Alliance has launched Wi-Fi Certified™ achttp://www.wi-fi.org/discover-and-learn/wi-fi-certified%E2%84%A2-ac Wave 1 product certification completedWave 2 products certification: expected 2015

Final standard approved by the IEEE Feb’14http://grouper.ieee.org/groups/802/11/Reports/802.11_Timelines.htm

WAVE 2

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802.11AC MYTHS vs. REALITY

• Only high-end clients need this much bandwidth/speed­ Key value of 11ac is raising the lower end

• Just wait for Wave 2 (MU-MIMO, 6.9Gbps, …) to be safe­ Probably a few still waiting for 11n 600Mbps (4x4)

• Only limited # of 11ac clients in use­ Default chipset http://wikidevi.com/wiki/List_of_802.11ac_Hardware

• LTE growth will significantly reduce need for Wi-Fi­ Think Wi-Fi offload, Passpoint, 802.11u, NGH, …..

• 802.11ac will require a complete network rip and redesign­ Technology (wired and wireless) continues to evolve, planning for it is key

• 11ac allows you to reduce # of APs to offer same bandwidth­ Yes, in Theory, No, in Reality – where do you want to live?

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IS IT TIME TO CONSIDER TO 802.11ac?

802.11ac sales will accelerate, reaching over 90% of all Wi-Fi devices by 2015

Growth of 802.11ac capable Wi-Fi devices reach nearly 2 billion by 2015

Assuming 3 year replacement rate = 70% 802.11ac market share by 2015.

• What Wi-Fi technology is your existing system based on?• What is the current feedback users?

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DESIGNING HIGH-PERFORMANCE WI-FI

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THE MIXED CLIENT ENVIRONMENT REALITY

= 2.4GHz

= 5GHz300Mbps 65Mbps

65Mbps 150Mbps

52Mbps

6Mbps

1.3Gbps

45Mbps

150 Mbps

6Mbps120Mbps

24 Mbps

2.4G and 5G

450Mbps Max

2.4G and 5G

150Mbps Max

2.4G only

65Mbps Max

=

=

=

In a Wi-Fi network, the user data rates varies with distance, device type, Wi-Fi band, channel width capability, interference, …..

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MIXED CLIENT OPTIMIZATION • The Problem

­ Wi-Fi is shared medium - slow clients reduce speed of fast clients

• The Solution – Client Classification and Segmentation

­ Separate high speed and low speed clients on different radios

­ Maximize system performance for ALL clients

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• It’s the New Default

• You will still Need to Support a Mix of Client Type

• Plan for the future, Scalability is Required

• Plan for the future, Upgradability is Required

• There will be a continual Need to Support 2.4GHz

• There is No Right Answer – It Depends

SUMMARY: IEEE 802.11ac and You

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XIRRUS

Recognized­for­Product­Innovation,­we­are­deployed­in­over­4000­networks­and­serve­the­most­demanding­customers­worldwide.­

First AP - EverXircom’s Netwave (1994)

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WIRELESS ACCESS PORTFOLIO

XR-500 XR-600 XR-2000 XR-4000 XR-6000 XR-500h XR-2000H

AP AP Modular Array Modular Array Modular Array AP AP

11n 2x2 11n 2x2/3x3,

11ac 2x2/3x3

11n 2x2 / 3x3,

11ac upgradable

11n 2x2 / 3x3,

11ac upgradable

11n 2x2 / 3x3, 11ac

upgradable

11n 2x2External

Antennas

11n 2x2External

Antennas

2 Radios 2 Radios 2 or 4 Radios 4 or 8 Radios 8 or 16 Radios 2 Radios 4 Radios

Common Feature Set

Integrated Controller

Application Control

Zero Touch Provisioning

On-Premise or Cloud Management

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11AC RESOURCES• 802.11ac Resource Center: http://www.xirrus.com/11ac

• 802.11ac Poster

• 802.11ac White Paper

• 802.11ac FAQ

• 802.11ac AP & Array Data Sheets

• 802.11ac Gartner Webinar

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