We just installed a Ruckus Wireless system (28 access points) this summer. =
I cannot vouch for how it will work under load,though I am excited to see =
how well it does this fall. I can say that after a lot of research I felt =
that ruckus gave us the best performance for price (probably the best perfo=
rmance in general). They had some excellent pricing for schools that reall=
y helped. The Ruckus system is a very easy to use system. We had original=
ly planned on paying to have the equipment installed and the controller con=
figured, but the vendor's idea of installation, and what needed to be done,=
turned out to be a good bit different. So, we went ahead and did the inst=
all ourselves. I found configuring the controller to be easy and the acces=
s points so far have proven to work as advertised and with great coverage. =
=20
I really like how easy it is to manage the system. I am sure there are som=
e features available from other vendors that Ruckus may not have, but I als=
o know from looking around that the Ruckus controller was generally easier =
to configure. For us, general performnce is more important than seldom use=
d features, and easy to manage is the only way we get by with all of our st=
uff. Their beam-forming technology does seem to work in my initial testing=
(I could see it in coverage, I look forward to loads of traffic to see if =
I can see it in handling interference better). The dynamic pre-shared key =
feature also works well and makes configuring klaptopsand maintaining secur=
ity very easy and effective.
I will say that the Aruba solution we looked at was more reasonably priced =
than I expected - though not cheaper than Ruckus. I did not feel that the =
access points had the same coverage as Ruckus'. However, Aruba has been at=
this game ver successfully for many years.
We purchased the 7962 access points (and a few 7363s) which are all dual ba=
nd. I cannot speak to their performance yet, but I can tell you that the 5=
GHz coverage area is not as large as 2.4GHz. This is not a Ruckus issue, t=
his is a difference between the two frequencies - the same exists between 8=
02.11g and 802.11a. We went ahead with the dual band because the cost diff=
erence was minimal and we hope that this solution will meet our needs for m=
any years. There definitely is a performance difference, but depending on =
what the user is doing they may or may not experience it at all. A good so=
lid 802.11n connection at 2.4 GHz will yield a fraction of the theoretical =
130 Mbps, but even half of that is more than one can get from the Internet =
and plenty for moving files around. =20
I wish I had some experience with the wireless system under load to vouch f=
or its general performance. I can tell you that there are many reports out=
there, groups with far more time, sophistication, and need, to truly compa=
re systems, who have found the Ruckus to provide the best performance. =20
If you would like to know more details feel free to follow up.
John Caballero
Heathwood Hall Episcopal School
________________________________________
From: A forum for independent school educators [ISED-L@LISTSERV.SYR.EDU] On=
Behalf Of Renee Ramig [rramig@sevenhillsschool.org]
Sent: Friday, July 30, 2010 10:22 PM
To: ISED-L@LISTSERV.SYR.EDU
Subject: Wireless Options
Can you please share which wireless hardware you are using, and if you are =
happy with it?
We are expanding our school, and I currently have Cisco but I am looking at=
Xirrus and Ruckus. I would love input on these three systems as well as o=
thers that people are using.
How many of you have 5 ghz systems as well as 2.4 ghz. Have you notice bet=
ter coverage / speed of access with it? Did you move up to 5 ghz to suppor=
t more wireless devices and has it helped?
Thanks,
Renee Ramig
Seven Hills School
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