Wireless Network Infrastructure Upgrade Recommendation

Mr. Wadlund has spent several months vetting the various wireless internet

hardware and software vendors. He has found that Meraki provides the district

with the best possible solution. The price points being considered were all very

comparable, and not worth saving a few thousand dollars to go with an inferior

product and performance.

The district has a total of $38,523 remaining in our Rural Education Assistance

Program Grant for the 2012-2013 school year, $21,000 left in our computer

equipment budget, and $9,000 remaining in our equipment addition budget. I

recommend we pay for the upgrades using the REAP grant for the entire

$23,900. I did look into whether or not we could count some of it as a fund 27 to

assist with us meeting Maintenance of Effort (MOE) expenditure, unfortunately

we cannot.

Recommended motion:

Motion to approve the purchase of the proposed Meraki

wireless network solution, including all necessary hardware,

wiring, and personal services not to exceed $26,000 (Price +

10% contingency).

Providing access for educational opportunities

WCS W IRELESS PROPOSAL

WHY DO WE NEED IT?

• More devices on our wireless network than ever before

• Increase in number of wireless devices going forward

• More devices in a smaller area than our current system can handle

• Instructional practice now requires access to more internet bandwidth

• Need for constant connection while moving around the building

WHY DO WE NEED IT?

• Decrease connection time

• Increase instructional time

• Improve consistency of internet access

• Coverage in all areas of the building

• Separate network traffic

• More customizable filtering for students

• Distribute bandwidth more effectively

• Provide filtered guest internet access

OPTIONS

List of companies and products that were reviewed to determine what best meets our needs:

• Aruba – Dell Inc

• BlueSocket – Adtran

• ProCurve – Hewlett Packard

• Meraki – Cisco

• Meru – Meru Networks

PERFORMANCE

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

Connect Time (Sec)

44

46

48

50

Total connected devices

COST

$0$2,000$4,000$6,000$8,000

$10,000$12,000$14,000$16,000$18,000

Initial Investment

$0$500

$1,000$1,500$2,000$2,500$3,000$3,500$4,000$4,500

Annual Fees

ADDITIONAL COSTS

• Cabling – 5,000’

• 1,000’ Cat6 UTP Plenum-Rated - $300 ea

• PoE Switches – 2

• HP ProCurve 2910AL - $1,900 ea

• Installation (cable and AP installation)

• In-house staff – No cost

• Two contractors – 60hrs ea @ $20/hr ea = $2400

RECOMMENDATION

• Purchase Meraki hardware and necessary components to complete installation including upgraded wiring

• Total cost - $23,900

• Meraki – Cisco

• Meets and exceeds all of our needs

• Industry leading company

• Fast connection times

• Twice as fast as closest competitor

• Simple, robust management

• Stable solution providing consistent access

• Highly recommended by current customers, including Trevor-Wilmot / WUHS

THANK YOU !

Vendors

Aruba ­ Aruba Networks (Dell)○ Company info ­

○ 2 year high $35.92 low $12.93 current $25.50○ Founded 2002○ Dell added Aruba to their PowerConnect W­series portfolio in 2010

○ Performance ­○ All devices connected within 45 seconds. Three were disconnected and needed

to reauthenticate.○ All devices able to stream video successfully. Reached throughput limit at ~35%

then buffered indefinitely.○ Pricing ­

○ Hardware: $20,290○ Licensing / Support: $4,412 / yr

BlueSocket ­ Adtran (DTG)○ Company info ­

○ 2 year high $42.24 low $15.65 current $19.95○ Founded in 1986○ Primarily telecom company, but moved into wireless via BlueSocket.

○ Performance ­○ All devices connected within 30 seconds. Two were disconnected and needed to

reauthenticate.○ All devices able to stream video successfully. Reached throughput limit at ~25%

then buffered indefinitely.○ Pricing ­

○ Hardware: $15,095○ Licensing / Support: $3,210 initial + $1,680 / yr

Procurve ­ Hewlett­Packard (ESG)○ Company info ­

○ 2 year high $42.68 low $12.44 current $22.91○ Founded 1998○ HP’s flagship networking division.

○ Performance ­○ All devices connected within 60 seconds.○ All devices able to stream video successfully. As with BlueSocket, reached

throughput limit at ~25% then buffered indefinitely.○ Pricing ­

○ Hardware: $13,174.40○ Licensing / Support: $609 / yr

Meraki ­ Cisco (Macker Tek)○ Company info ­

○ 2 year high $21.16 low $14.93 current $21.70○ Purchased by Cisco in Nov 2012○ Founded by MIT students, this is a cloud based controller architecture.

○ Performance ­○ All devices connected within 15 seconds.○ All devices able to stream video successfully. Reached throughput limit at ~50%

but after short buffering devices continued streaming.○ Pricing ­

○ Hardware: $19,575○ Licensing / Support: $1,595 / yr (5 yr term)

Meru ­ Meru Networks (JSO)○ Company info ­

○ 2 year high $22.23 low $1.47 current $6.36○ Founded 2002○ Consistent decrease in value, concerns over company’s financial future.

○ Performance ­○ Four devices never connected. Stopped connection test at 5 minutes.○ Devices that did connect could not load streaming video.

○ Pricing ­○ Hardware: $15,465○ Licensing / Support: $1,095 initial + $219 / yr

Additional Costs○ PoE Switches ­ 2

○ HP ProCurve 2910AL ­ $1,900 ea○ Cabling ­ 5000’

○ 1000’ Cat6 UTP Plenum­Rated ­ $300 ea○ Installation ­ TBD

○ Two contractors ­ $20/hr ea