Five Common Wi-Fi Errors

The market is changing and new trends are constantly being discussed: Internet of Things (IoT), Artificial Intelligence, sustainability, security. The list is long. But what impact do these trends have on your wireless network? 

The larger your environment is, the more likely you are to encounter any sources of interference. The basis of a wireless network is extremely important. A mistake in the design, in the purchase of the right equipment or in the security and setup of the network is quickly made and costs a lot of money. We list the five most common mistakes below for you, so that you don't have to make them again. 

Five mistakes when purchasing a wireless network: 

1. No Wireless Site Survey

A site survey examines whether your wireless network is functioning optimally. This allows you to measure, among other things, the presence of signals from the immediate environment. By excluding any possible interference in advance, problems such as poor network performance can be avoided. Yet in many cases such a survey is skipped. And you better not do that. 

But how does that actually work, such a Wireless Site Survey? With professional software, floor plans of the intended environment are loaded, after which a physical measurement is made on location with measuring equipment. Especially in locations with a lot of steel and thick walls, or within environments where latency sensitive applications are used. So you can prevent many problems with it: incorrect placement of your access points, an insufficient coverage area or a weak signal strength. So don't skip this check.

2. The wrong design

In addition to a Wireless Site Survey, it is important to draw up a good design. This is done on the basis of various factors: the desired network capacity, the type of devices/users, application of critical applications, network security and scalability. The system is installed and programmed on the basis of design. If you do not include these factors in the design phase of the network, you create an incapable WiFi network and therefore insufficient performance, scalability and continuity. A shame, at least you always want to be able to grow with the future.

3. Poor or no monitoring and management solution

A professional WiFi solution is not a solution that is implemented and then runs without management. In addition to a correct design, correct implementation and configuration, monitoring and tuning is just as important. With a modern monitoring package you make mistakes transparent and you can tackle them more easily. But what mistakes? Latency issues, DNS issues, DHCP failures and coverage issues are just a few examples. By gaining graphical insight into the current status of the environment and historical reports, many problems are prevented or solved.

4. Minimal Network Security

Due to the increasing flow of mobile devices and IoT, the number of visitors on your network is increasing. All the more important to pay extra attention to how you organize access to the wireless and wired network. As a network administrator, it is important to have insight into who, where, when and with which device has access to the network. Automatic authentication and assigning the correct policy to devices and users are part of a secure network security policy.

By applying this, users and devices are identified before they can access a certain part of the network. This not only provides an increased security level, but also reduces the management burden on the network. Are you not doing this? Then you run the extra risk of uninvited guests on your network.

5. Insufficient scalability

The degree of mobility is increasing and therefore more people are using mobile devices. Their demand? Lightning fast and stable WiFi. Devices, applications, new systems: we demand more and more from our network. Is it reliable enough to guarantee continuous availability? Is it secure enough to protect confidential data? And above all, is it scalable enough to facilitate rapid growth? 

Many organizations are looking for a network solution that grows with you. Adding extra access points to your network: it should be easy and fast. It is important to respond quickly to the needs of your organization. Scalability is therefore the key to a future-proof network. Is your network not scalable? Then you run a great chance of falling behind in your organization and competitive market.

Wifi as a Service: constantly growing with you

Due to the increased dependency, complexity and cost savings, many organizations choose to outsource the management of the wireless network: Wireless as a Service (WAAS). This way you have predictable costs per month, 24/7 monitoring and you can easily grow with the organization. With WAAS, your wireless network is always up-to-date, secure and modern.