What is WLAN planning?

WLAN planning basically means a concept for the functionality of wireless LAN in a building, a section or another area, which can also be an outdoor area, for example. Basically, WLAN planning is necessary to achieve the most complete and efficient coverage of a WLAN network in the respective areas.

Essential for this are first the requirements that a customer places on the later WLAN network - i.e. how many users want to use what kind of connections in the later desired WLAN infrastructure and what kind of data is to be transmitted. It makes a considerable difference whether only printer or scanner data is to be transmitted via the wireless network or whether the data is to be transmitted e.g. Voice over IP, thus ensuring telecommunications via the WLAN infrastructure. Voice over IP (VoIP) can in principle only be realised with significantly higher demands on a WLAN infrastructure. One example is transmission via the 5 GHz band, which then also drives up the density of the access points placed later, their capacities and also the pricing policy of the devices.

Once the requirements are known and documented, another fundamental factor for WLAN planning comes into play - the condition of the infrastructure. The basis for such a condition analysis is usually formed by building plans, which show the area, the room layout and also the type of walls. Above all, the material properties of the walls play a major role, as WLAN signals are to be transmitted through them later. The denser the wall, the greater the attenuation to which the "acoustic" WLAN signals are later exposed during propagation. Thus, the signals become increasingly "quiet" with increasing distance and at some point are simply no longer "audible".

Taking into account the framework conditions just mentioned, the manufacturer and model of the access points can then be selected and the WLAN planning can be started digitally with the help of a construction plan or another authoritative graphic. The goal is to keep the distribution and number of access points as efficient as possible while ensuring complete WLAN coverage. The end product of a WLAN planning is a meaningful documentation that shows the exact positions of the access points including technical configuration details (channel settings, etc.). According to this documentation, the access points can then be installed.