"In many cases, particularly those in educational establishments, wireless networks can be invaluable in terms of removing the need for bulky and often dangerous cables, as well as taking up less space," said Chris Davies, senior systems analyst for Pembrokeshire County Council. "In addition, they can improve productivity significantly; for example in our wireless-enabled buildings, staff have become much more mobile because of their ability to move from one office or meeting to another without it impacting negatively on their output."
Any network downtime has an immediate and serious impact on business performance, and unless information about the network is immediately available, it can be difficult for the systems team to identify, much less rectify performance or security issues. AirMagnet's leading suite of network analysis tools enable the team to pre-empt and avoid any potential performance problems when planning new network installations as well as supporting existing WLANs in the event of a performance issue or security breach.
According to Davies, "AirMagnet is a must-have tool for successfully planning wireless networks. AirMagnet Survey lets us see and plan for factors such as wireless coverage and overlapping channels, helping to speed up network implementation and establish coverage areas from the first instance. Prior to using AirMagnet's tools it could take several weeks to physically survey a large site to establish the best locations for access points. In one educational facility, which needed more than 30 access points, the time was reduced from the expected two weeks to just over three days using AirMagnet's Survey, reducing costs and increasing speed significantly."
AirMagnet Survey reportedly stands apart from other market solutions by enabling organizations to collect live signal, packet and spectrum data during site surveys. This allows users to simulate and measure network performance and offer the most accurate depiction of a real-world user experience, which ultimately results in a better performing WLAN. AirMagnet Survey also incorporates floor plans of each building, allowing the user to test the placement of access points in order to decide where to deploy each for optimal coverage. Following installation of a wireless network, AirMagnet Laptop Analyzer helps IT staff make sense of end-user complaints to quickly resolve performance problems, while automatically detecting security threats and other network vulnerabilities. Although compact, Laptop Analyzer has many of the feature-rich qualities of a dedicated, policy-driven WLAN monitoring system.
"Public sector services need to ensure a highly resilient infrastructure due to the high percentage of employees and local users dependent on the wireless network to access information," said Ian Schenkel, managing director EMEA, at AirMagnet. "Through our experience of working with a number of County Councils, we understand the challenges facing the sector and are well positioned to provide support and tools that are able to pre-empt and resolve WLAN performance and security issues. Building on an existing relationship with Pembrokeshire is testament to our appreciation and understanding of its operations."
