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About the Guide
This design guide provides engineering guidelines and practical techniques for designing, planning, and
implementing a wireless LAN (WLAN) within a high-density environment in a university or college campus.
High-density is defined as any environment with a large concentration of users, such as a classroom, lecture hall,
or auditorium where the users are connected wirelessly, sharing applications and using other network services
individually.
This document is intended for wireless network design engineers responsible for designing, deploying, and
maintaining today’s Wi-Fi networks. Knowledge of Cisco
®
networking concepts, WLAN technology fundamentals,
Cisco Unified Wireless Network (CUWN) features and configurations are prerequisites.
Related Documentation
Cisco Mobility 4.1 Design Guide
Cisco Campus Wireless LAN Controller Configuration Design Guide
Optimize the Cisco Unified Wireless Network to Support Wi-Fi Enabled Phones and Tablets
802.11n: Mission-Critical Wireless
Executive Summary
The demands on WLANs for functionality and scalability are growing due to the rapid proliferation of new network
devices and applications. The number of devices and connections per user is steadily increasing. It is common for
most users today to not only have a primary computing device but also at least one other smart device. Wireless
operators have worked hard to accommodate the increased demand for data services over wireless networks.
They have been forced to consider alternative offload strategies, including wirelessly connecting electronic
devices (Wi-Fi). Unfortunately, the majority of smartphones being introduced into the marketplace only support
Wi-Fi at 2.4 Gigahertz (GHz), which is rapidly increasing pressure on Wi-Fi designers and administrators to design
products for the smallest segment of bandwidth available. This trend has driven a dramatic increase in user
densities, with many users competing for 2.4 GHz services. According to some projections, this competition for
resources has just begun. In addition to this rapid increase in demand for an already congested spectrum, new
network devices often are designed for use in the home. This is often not well suited for optimal efficiency in an
engineered public wireless space.
Administrators are finding themselves faced with the challenge of providing ever-increasing levels of service in
areas where simple pervasive coverage was the singular design goal. Simply adding more access points (APs)
often does not enhance service. This design guide focuses on the challenges facing administrators deploying
WLANs in higher education and offers practical strategies and design guidance for evaluating and modifying
current deployment strategies, improving performance with existing resources, and successfully scaling network
accessibility in high-density venues.
The best practices discussed have been gathered from multiple venues and have been used to successfully
deploy high-density wireless networks throughout the world. While the guide primarily focuses on requirements for
a large, network-connected lecture hall, the principles discussed will provide the reader with the tools necessary to
successfully increase density in a wide variety of other shared network environments.