1. 1 © 2014 XIRRUS :: All Rights Reserved GETTING OFF THE WI-FI ROLLER COASTER - THE TRANSITION TO 802.11.AC 802.11ac: IS IT NEEDED? IS IT TIME? Perry Correll, Xirrus, Principal Technologist

2. 2 © 2014 XIRRUS :: All Rights Reserved EVOLVING USE CASES & APPLICATIONS 2012 Overlay network 1:1 devices to users Design for coverage Design RF for laptops 2.4GHz centric Application focus – Email/Web Surf 2015 Primary network 2:1 to 3:1 devices to users Design for capacity Design RF for tablets/phones 5GHz and 2.4GHz both required Application focus – Anything

3. 3 © 2014 XIRRUS :: All Rights Reserved WI-FI’S EVOLUTION TO 802.11AC

4. 4 © 2014 XIRRUS :: All Rights Reserved THE EVOLUTION OF WI-FI TECHNOLOGY Wi-Fi Standards Evolution Every 2-3 years there is a new standards New standards are at 5GHz and beyond 11ax

5. 5 © 2014 XIRRUS :: All Rights Reserved WHAT IS 802.11AC High performance Raises the ‘low’ end Superior throughput Backwards compatible ‘Cleaner’ spectrum Improved battery Life Focus on 5GHz spectrum Improved modulation efficiency Channel bonding up to 160Mz Up to 8 spatial streams MU-MIMO TechnologyBenefits Data rates up to 6.9Gbps

6. 6 © 2014 XIRRUS :: All Rights Reserved 802.11N vs. 802.11AC 802.11n Up to 600Mbps Up to 64 QAM Modulation Up to 40Mhz channel width Up to 4 data streams MIMO- Single client link 802.11ac Up to 1.3GBps / 6.9Gbps Up to 256 QAM Modulation Up to 80/160Mhz channel width Up to 4/8 data streams MU-MIMO-Multiple client links v v

7. 7 © 2014 XIRRUS :: All Rights Reserved STANDARDS ROLL OUT PLANS 3 Streams 80 MHz channel width 256 QAM Product Availability: Now 4/8 Streams 160 MHz channel width 256 QAM MU-MIMO Product availability: 2H ‘14 Wi-Fi Alliance has launched Wi-Fi Certified™ ac http://www.wi-fi.org/discover-and-learn/wi-fi-certified%E2%84%A2-ac Wave 1 product certification completed Wave 2 products certification: expected 2015 Final standard approved by the IEEE Feb’14 http://grouper.ieee.org/groups/802/11/Reports/802.11_Timelines.htm WAVE 2

8. 8 © 2014 XIRRUS :: All Rights Reserved 802.11AC MYTHS vs. REALITY Only high-end clients need this much bandwidth/speed ­ Key value of 11ac is raising the lower end Just wait for Wave 2 (MU-MIMO, 6.9Gbps, …) to be safe ­ Probably a few still waiting for 11n 600Mbps (4x4) Only limited # of 11ac clients in use ­ Default chipset http://wikidevi.com/wiki/List_of_802.11ac_Hardwarehttp://wikidevi.com/wiki/List_of_802.11ac_Hardware LTE growth will significantly reduce need for Wi-Fi ­ Think Wi-Fi offload, Passpoint, 802.11u, NGH, ….. 802.11ac will require a complete network rip and redesign ­ Technology (wired and wireless) continues to evolve, planning for it is key 11ac allows you to reduce # of APs to offer same bandwidth ­ Yes, in Theory, No, in Reality – where do you want to live?

9. 9 © 2014 XIRRUS :: All Rights Reserved IS IT TIME TO CONSIDER TO 802.11ac? 802.11ac sales will accelerate, reaching over 90% of all Wi-Fi devices by 2015 Growth of 802.11ac capable Wi-Fi devices reach nearly 2 billion by 2015 Assuming 3 year replacement rate = 70% 802.11ac market share by 2015. What Wi-Fi technology is your existing system based on? What is the current feedback users?

10. 10 © 2014 XIRRUS :: All Rights Reserved DESIGNING HIGH-PERFORMANCE WI-FI

11. 11 © 2014 XIRRUS :: All Rights Reserved THE MIXED CLIENT ENVIRONMENT REALITY = 2.4GHz = 5GHz 300Mbps 65Mbps 150Mbps 52Mbps 6Mbps 1.3Gbps 45Mbps 150 Mbps 6Mbps 120Mbps 24 Mbps 2.4G and 5G 450Mbps Max 2.4G and 5G 150Mbps Max 2.4G only 65Mbps Max = = = In a Wi-Fi network, the user data rates varies with distance, device type, Wi-Fi band, channel width capability, interference, …..

12. 12 © 2014 XIRRUS :: All Rights Reserved MIXED CLIENT OPTIMIZATION The Problem ­ Wi-Fi is shared medium - slow clients reduce speed of fast clients The Solution – Client Classification and Segmentation ­ Separate high speed and low speed clients on different radios ­ Maximize system performance for ALL clients

13. 13 © 2014 XIRRUS :: All Rights Reserved It’s the New Default You will still Need to Support a Mix of Client Type Plan for the future, Scalability is Required Plan for the future, Upgradability is Required There will be a continual Need to Support 2.4GHz There is No Right Answer – It Depends SUMMARY: IEEE 802.11ac and You

14. 14 © 2014 XIRRUS :: All Rights Reserved XIRRUS Recognized for Product Innovation, we are deployed in over 4000 networks and serve the most demanding customers worldwide. First AP - Ever Xircom’s Netwave (1994)

15. 15 © 2014 XIRRUS :: All Rights Reserved WIRELESS ACCESS PORTFOLIO XR-500XR-600XR-2000XR-4000XR-6000XR-500hXR-2000H AP Modular Array AP 11n 2x211n 2x2/3x3, 11ac 2x2/3x3 11n 2x2 / 3x3, 11ac upgradable 11n 2x2 External Antennas 11n 2x2 External Antennas 2 Radios 2 or 4 Radios4 or 8 Radios8 or 16 Radios2 Radios 4 Radios Common Feature Set Integrated Controller Application Control Zero Touch Provisioning On-Premise or Cloud Management

16. 16 © 2014 XIRRUS :: All Rights Reserved 11AC RESOURCES 802.11ac Resource Center: http://www.xirrus.com/11achttp://www.xirrus.com/11ac 802.11ac Poster 802.11ac White Paper 802.11ac FAQ 802.11ac AP & Array Data Sheets 802.11ac Gartner Webinar

17. 17 © 2014 XIRRUS :: All Rights Reserved