Successful Wireless LAN Implementation

It’s all about Consistency and application delivery

Gartner’s Enterprise WLAN Product Evolution: Meru is 4th Gen Leader

2nd

Stand-Alone4th

Traffic-Optimized

Core controllers Edge controllers Overlays

Coordinated Single-span channels

3rd

Centralized2003-20042000-2002 2005-2006

Source: Gartner

Central ManagementSecurity

Cisco 1200+SWANSymbol

Aruba, Trapeze, Airespace …

Meru Networks

RF IntelligenceHigh DensityQoSZero Handoff

Cisco 350ORiNOCO

RoamAbout

Basic Connectivity

1st

Pre-802.11

Serv

ice s

/ Sc

a le

Meru is Visionary with 4th Generation WLAN

Source: Gartner Dataquest (September 2006) As of September 2006

challengers leaders

Cisco Systems

Symbol TechnologiesAruba NetworksMeru NetworksTrapeze Networks

Nortel Networks3Com Bluesocket

HP ProcurveSiemens

Extreme NetworksFoundry Networks

ExtricomXirrus

Enterasys Networks

AlcatelColubrius

niche players visionaries

abili

ty t

o ex

ecut

e

completeness of vision

2006-2007 change

Broad Market AdoptionSample Customers

Higher Ed & K-12

Government

Healthcare Enterprise

EducationIndustrial & Retail

Meru Networks Confidential

Meru Networks Solution Ecosystem

Clients & ApplicationsInfrastructure Security

New Wireless LAN Existing Wired Network, PBX, Security

End Users Demand: Guaranteed Delivery For Real-World mission critical Applications

NEW

APPS

WORKFLOW

INVENTORY

WEB

EMR

VOIP

Future Apps

ASSET

TRK

TEACHING

TRADING

VIDEO

Strategic Applications

Wi-Fi GettingEmbedded in

Variety of Devices

Delivering Consistency (Wi-Fi vs. Wired)

On the Wire it is pretty straightforward High Performance L2/L3 switches are a

commodity- Hubs, 10M Switches, 100M Switches, Gig Switches, - CAT5, CAT6, Fiber, etc……- QoS Capabilities are mature - Adding additional capacity is easy

More switches = more capacity But What about Wireless?

There are Inherent Challenges to consistent (Application) Delivery …

Wi-Fi basics and issues

802.11 Standards: 11b – 11M, 2.4G Band, 3 channels 11g – 54M, 2.4G Band, 3 channels 11a – 54M, 5G Band, 11 Channels 11n – 300M, both 2.4G and 5G Bands

Over the Air Challenges: QOS: Application Delivery & Consistent

Performance Complex Channel planning, Site Surveys Sticky Clients, Slow Clients Ping – Pong effect Roaming

Most Popular

Wi-Fi basics

There are 3 channels(Ch 1, 6, 11)

1

6

11

6

6

11 11

154Mbps 1Mbps

11

11

1

How WiFi Works – The Problem

Packet

Ack

Packet

wait

random backoff

Retransmission

1. Collisions are common and costly

2. AP doesn’t get more access to channel

3. More devices mean more collisions

4. Only AP is wired

1/3 access1/10 accessto channel

Meru Air Traffic Control TechnologyPredictable Performance with Density

20-25

Tota

l Ban

dwid

th a

t Pea

k (M

bps) 5

8

11

1

3

ContentionLoss

Today’s APPerformance

Meru AP Performance

Active Users Per AP

Others Meru

20-25

100+

Number of Active Users

Peak Aggregate Throughput

The only way to get good performance is to limit the number of devices

Predictable and Better End User Experience

Predictable, uniformly fair throughput across all clients

Throughput 1 AP + 20 Clients Throughput 1 Meru AP + 20 Clients

WLANs Rely on Client to Make Decisions

There are 3 non-overlapping channels in 2.4GHz (Ch 1, 6, 11)

1

11

6

Client selects AP based on luck and signal strength

The client doesn’t know which AP is truly the best selection24 users

90% bandwidth

4 users15% bandwidth

1 users2% bandwidth

Co-Channel Interference and Sticky Clients

There are 3 channels(Ch 1, 6, 11)

1

6

11

6

6

11 11

1

Designed for 54Mbps

54Mbps 1Mbps

Signal reaches much further

Co-channel interference is inevitable

11

11

1

Client connects at 54 Mb

Client still connected at 1 Mb

Meru Solution: The Network Makes the Decisions

Virtual CellAll Channel 1

Controller

1. Network in charge

1

1

1111

11

2. Best choice AP3. Zero time

handoff4. Full power APs5. Simple deployment

Why Customers Choose Meru Over Legacy Solutions

Switch-like: Better Performance and Scale Predictable performance and fair access to clients Improved performance in mixed 802.11b/g networks Toll-quality Voice Improved Mobility / Zero-Handoff

Single Channel: Lower Costs of Deployment and Operations Reduced need for site-survey, channel planning Less APs to deliver same application performance Lower operational complexity, leading to lower personnel

cost

Virtual Cell: Best Architecture for the Future - Scaling capacity with 802.11 a/b/g Migrating to 802.11n Deploying greenfield 802.11n

Promise of 802.11n

Improved coverage through multipath and MIMO; multiple

transmit and receive paths

Better coverage

Longer range: Over 2 times better than 802.11a/g *

Longer range

Over 6 times better than 802.11a/g *

Higher throughput

More resistant to interference and loss due to multipath *

More reliable

* Based on specifications in the standard.

2x2, 3x2, 2x3, 3x3, …

What does this mean? Number of Chains = Number of Antennas

used at any one time Not Number of Spatial Streams!

- Number of Spatial Streams = 2 or less, always

3x_ _x33 Tx Antennas3 Rx Antennas

Standards Adoption: 802.11 b -> a/g - >n

2000 2004-7 2007….M

bps

per

cell

Application Casual usage Networks of

Convenience Conference Rooms

Limited applications in mobile workforce organizations

Healthcare, Education Retail, Manufacturing

Pervasive, business-critical deployments

Support high-bandwidth applications

All Wireless Offices

300

Architectural ConsiderationsFlexible 3-Tier Traffic Distribution System(3TDS)

DP’sController Controller

DP DP DP DP

Access Point (AP)Distribution Point (DP)Controller

Meru Centralized Model Meru Distributed Model

: Control Traffic: Data Traffic

11n AP 11n AP 11n AP 11n AP 11n AP 11n AP 11n AP 11n AP 11n AP 11n AP 11n AP 11n AP

Options

21

CH 1

CH 1

CH 6CH 11

Design Considerations Lack of Site Planning Tools Channel Planning

Challenges Migration of infrastructure

from .11a/g to .11n Two Different channel plans

for 2.4 and 5 GHz using same AP chassis

Increase in interference with Increase in range

PoE 802.3af Simplifying deployment &

operations Optimizing capacity and

scalability Impact on wired switching

infrastructure

Meru WLAN ProductsSimple Deployment Architecture

Floor 2

Floor 1

Data Center

L2 / L3Backbone

Virtual AP

AP

AP

Meru Controller

Meru AP Coordinated Access Point► Air Monitor + Access Point ► Application Flow Classification► Contention management

Controller► Centralized appliance for

coordination, management and security

► Built-in application Flow-Detectors e.g. SIP, H.323, Spectralink SVP

Certified Voice Solutions

Nokia E61Dual-mode phone

PSTN

Ascom PortableDevice Manager (PDM)

Meru WLAN Controller

Meru AP 201

Ascom i75 Handsets

AVAYA 3631

Hitachi-CableWIP-5000

Outside Enterprise Inside Enterprise

Cellular Network

Channel 1 VirtualCell

T1 / PRI

AVAYA SES (SIP)

AVAYA S8300/G700Communication Manager Example Deployment Options:

Industrial/Healthcare Applications

Ascom i75, Avaya 3620

Basic WiFi VoIP Handset WIP-5000Full-featured Office VoIP Handset

AVAYA 3631

Mobile, Multi-site Worker Nokia E61SIP PB

X Meru AP 201

AVAYA 3620

Meru AP Family PositioningB

andw

idth

RS4000

AP150

AP300family

Single Channel, Ease of Deployment

Medium scaleData +Voice

High CapacityData + Voice

High Client BandwidthData + Voice

AP150 family

AP200family

OAP180outdoor

Controller Family Positioning

1-5 15 ………………………150 200…………….1000

Remote / Small Office

Medium EnterpriseBranch Office

Large Enterprise

Number of Managed Access Points

MC500

MC1000

MC3000

MC50006U (5-slot)

Manages Access Points and Radio Switches

Simple configuration WLAN security

enforcement Coordinates QoS policies

and manages contention Ensure seamless client

mobility across subnets

Redundant configurations available

Meru AirShieldTM Addresses Unique WLAN Security Requirements

Application Security Application Firewall: Packet-Signature

Per-User Firewall Asset Tracking & Reporting

Intrusion Detection &Protection

AirFirewall security* Rogue detection and

mitigation IDS/IPS

Authorization, Isolation &Control

Guest Access GRE tunneling MAC filtering, VLAN control NAC/NAP

Authentication & Encryption

802.11i, WPA2, WPA 802.1x/EAP, Two-factor

*201/208 only

Centralized Management and Visualization Simplifies Operations and Improves Productivity E(z)RF Application Suite

Locate

Visualize AP Coverage Locate Rogues

Monitor Performance Advanced Location MappingManage

Monitor

Deploy

State University of New York, Morrisville First 802.11n campus wide deployment

Profile Located in rural upstate NY comprise of 30+ buildings Offers more than 70 degree options to > 3200 students Tech savvy, IBM ThinkPad University, campus-wide wireless

initiative includes campus wide Nextel phone

Challenge Replace EOL’d legacy wireless network and plan for high density

future usage 100% mobile teaching and learning environment Support secure, converged data, voice and video High-performance, high density, everywhere

Solution 900 Meru AP300 access points with two a/b/g/n radios and

MC5000 Controllers 802.11i standard security Results “Some of the statistics from tests were just unbelievable.

In general, speeds were five times that of 11g.” - Jean Boland, vice president of technology services

Summary: Customers Trust Meru to Deliver in the Most Challenging Deployments Largest Deployment with No RF Planning

2.5 Million Square Feet 3000+ APs on a single channel

World’s Largest Enterprise WLAN Deployment

24,000 radios deployed in 200+ buildings; 30,000 radios by Sep, 2007; 250,000 students

Innovative, all-wireless teaching environment at Microsoft School of the Future with 600 Mbps of wireless capacity at every location

Highest user density production deployment 100+ active users/AP Completely wireless teaching/testing environment

Largest Enterprise FMC dual-mode phone deployment

6000+ phones, 8000+ laptops; all-wireless 49 offices

Thank You!Rob Klouda

Sales Director203-376-0710

rklouda@merunetworks.com