Table of Contents Introduction 802.11AC basics Why 802.11ac? 802.11ac technology overview Backward compatibility RF spectrum Multistation MAC throughput > 1 Gbps 256 QAM Wider channels More spatial streams Downlink multi-user MIMO Pros of 802.11ac Cons of 802.11ac Strategy and planning for 802.11ac migration Site planning basics Planning process Minimum requirements and actions to implement 802.11ac Aruba recommendations for 802.11ac migration General Capacity RF planning Installation Wireless RF coverage considerations and questionnaire Summary 3 3 3 4 4 4 5 5 5 5 6 6 6 6 6 6 7 8 8 8 8 8 9 10
Aruba Networks, Inc.
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802.11ac
Aruba Apps download new advertisement screens and software updates, issue stay-alive pings, and multiple devices continuously authenticate and synchronize while roaming. IPTV and other locally-generated video streaming are focused on the residence hall as well. The cable TV infrastructure is aging and campuses do not have the resources required to maintain separate networks. Combine that with the demand to propagate locally generated content, and many campuses are replacing their cable systems with some variant of IPTV.
Aruba Networks, Inc.
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802.11ac
Aruba Migration Guide
Digital signage is receiving more play as well. Originally, digital signage was conceived as a static medium to replace paper bulletin boards in residences halls and other campus venues. Now, digital signage is used to stream multimedia news channels and other locally generated video clips along with their static information components. More non-multimedia residential hall services are moving to IP as a transport. These services can impact the performance of latency-sensitive multimedia applications in those environments. Examples include physical security systems (door locks and video surveillance), vending machines, parking enforcement devices, and HVAC and other sensor-based systems. 802.11ac is a set of physical layer enhancements for higher throughput in the 5-GHz band, chiefly with video in mind, and to achieve this it extends the techniques pioneered in 802.11n:
