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Environment:

We currently are using Ubiquity AC Long Range access points in a reinforced concrete building and the average wall thickness is 1 foot (30cm) on external walls, internal walls vary from a foot to 4 inches (10cm). We have a large amount of people in this specific area below.

Issue:

We have an area which is having major Wi-Fi issues. This area is surrounded by concrete pillars and has 4 access points in its vicinity. Please see below image: (Blue dots are APs and the area is circled in red. The red X almost has no wi-fi connection.) image

The main issue that happens is that when sitting in the red area, your device sometimes looses connection for a split second and the call you are on (Wi-Fi call) drops.

Solutions:

So far I have tried setting different channels on each AP although it did not solve the issue. I am considering putting (or moving) an access point into the center of the red area although it would require chasing of ceilings, etc.

Is there a better way this could be laid out or is there any tips for setting channels or other advanced AP settings?

DDiamond
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    The proper way to do this is to get an experienced company to perform a Wi-Fi site survey. The results will tell you have many WAPs, WAP placement, power levels, channels for each etc. This is how successful companies do this to optimize the Wi-Fi and eliminate radio shadows. Simply guessing where to place the WAPs, the power levels, and channels will cause you no end of trouble. Also, remember to re-survey when changing Wi-Fi standards because the radio characteristics change. – Ron Maupin Nov 24 '19 at 19:46

1 Answers1

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I work for a k-12 school and we ended up putting an access point in every classroom because of cinder block walls. If the signal strength is weak, than there is not much you can do on the configuration side. I would take access point #1 and move it to the area with weak coverage. In our classrooms, we have 25-35 devices connected and do not have any issues. For larger rooms, we add a second access point and have 75+ devices connected without issue.

When laying out your network, I find that you need to have -65db or better of single strength for the best coverage. I use the AirCheck tester to confirm signal strength.

Joe
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