Clear To Send is a podcast about wireless engineering where we educate you on WiFi technology, talk about design tips, troubleshooting, interviews, and the tools.
CTS 348: Bridging the Gap – Networking and Learning with Eva Santos
Oct 28, 2024
In this episode, we sit down with Eva, a support product specialist at Cisco Meraki, who shares her unique role bridging the gap between network support and engineering. We delve into the importance of having a solid networking foundation, the need for adaptability in the ever-evolving tech landscape, and the value of continuous learning and certifications. Eva also gives us insights into her career journey, transitioning from network engineering to Wi-Fi deployments, and how she’s leveraging her expertise in her current role.
Eva begins by explaining her role as a support product specialist, where she serves as a crucial link between the network support and engineering teams. Her work involves identifying and resolving product issues, making recommendations for new features, and evaluating the impact these features have on the support team. Eva emphasizes the importance of a strong foundation in networking basics, such as DHCP, DNS, and spanning tree, to effectively troubleshoot Wi-Fi problems. She also discusses the need to stay adaptable and continuously learn new protocols and features to succeed in the fast-paced world of networking.
The discussion shifts to the importance of continuous learning and adaptation in consulting. Eva, Rowell, and François explore the concept of “learning how to learn,” a critical skill for consultants who need to stay on top of evolving technologies. They also discuss the value of certifications in the industry. While certifications are beneficial, Eva and Rowell stress that they are not the sole determinant of success; practical experience and a commitment to ongoing learning are just as important for employability and career growth.
As the conversation moves forward, Eva expresses her interest in signal processing and the electrical engineering side of Wi-Fi. She shares her struggles in finding structured learning resources in this area and contemplates pursuing further education in signal processing. Rowell highlights the value of understanding hardware, while François leans more towards the software side of networking. The discussion touches on the relevance of APIs in networking, with Eva sharing her experience working with APIs in the Meraki dashboard and how mastering APIs is a great starting point for those looking to expand their technical skillset.
Eva goes on to share her experience with automating network tasks using Python scripts, detailing how she was able to save time by automating repetitive tasks such as renaming access points and mapping their locations. Rowell agrees that Python automation can significantly reduce the workload for large-scale projects. Eva also talks about her personal transition to a remote role at Cisco Meraki, a move prompted by her father’s illness. She emphasizes how her Wi-Fi expertise helped her secure a flexible position that allowed her to balance her career and family needs.
Summary
This episode features Eva Santos, a support product specialist at Cisco Meraki, discussing her role in bridging network support and engineering. The conversation covers the importance of a solid networking foundation, adaptability in the tech industry, and continuous learning. Eva shares insights on her career transition, the value of certifications balanced with practical experience, her interest in signal processing, and her experience with API usage and Python automation in networking. The episode also touches on Eva’s personal journey, highlighting how her Wi-Fi expertise enabled her to secure a flexible remote position to balance career and family needs.
CTS 347: Wi-Fi Tools You Should Keep in Your Bag
Oct 22, 2024
https://youtu.be/Y3hkhyuU70s
In this episode of the “Wi-Fi Hardware and Devices” series, we dive into the essential Wi-Fi tools that every network professional should keep in their bag.
We’ll discuss various categories of tools, including Wi-Fi scanners, survey kits, packet capture tools, and protocol analyzers. We’ll explore popular options in each category, such as Wi-Fi Explorer Pro, Ekahau Analyzer, NetAlly AirCheck G3, and Wireshark.
Additionally, we’ll cover the importance of having laptops or tools with Ethernet ports for testing wired connections, as well as the necessity of carrying various cables and miscellaneous items like flashlights and battery packs.
This will help you build a toolkit that’s ready for any Wi-Fi troubleshooting or analysis scenario you might encounter in the field.
Key Topics:
Wi-Fi scanners for network detection and analysis
Survey kits for RF visualization and spectrum analysis
Packet capture tools for 802.11 traffic analysis
Protocol analyzers for in-depth packet inspection
Ethernet-enabled devices for wired connection testing
Essential cables and miscellaneous items for field work
CTS 346: Why Wi-Fi Devices Aren’t All the Same
Oct 14, 2024
https://youtu.be/kxdC9IkIbLI
In this episode of the “Wi-Fi Hardware and Devices” series, we explore why Wi-Fi devices aren’t all the same. We discuss the various factors that contribute to the differences in Wi-Fi devices and how these differences impact network performance and deployment.
Key Points:
Wi-Fi devices are built for different purposes, leading to variations in their design and capabilities.
Access Points (APs) differ in:
Form factors (e.g., regular omni AP vs. wall-mounted AP) and their impact on antenna design
Antenna configurations (number, design, size, and pattern)
Wi-Fi chipsets used
Additional features like IoT radios, patterned antennas, scanning radios, and spectrum analyzers
Client devices vary in:
Form factors (e.g., laptops vs. smartphones) affecting Wi-Fi specifications
Wi-Fi drivers, which influence AP connection and roaming decisions
Wi-Fi chipsets, determining certifications and supported features
Takeaways:
Understanding the differences in Wi-Fi devices is crucial for optimal network design and performance.
Consider the specific needs of your network when selecting Wi-Fi devices, as not all devices are suitable for every situation.
Stay informed about the latest developments in Wi-Fi technology to make informed decisions about device selection and network optimization.
CTS 345: Choosing the right Wi-Fi Antennas
Sep 23, 2024
In this episode, we discuss choosing the right Wi-Fi antennas for enterprise environments. The main topics covered include:
Types of antennas used in enterprise Wi-Fi:
Omnidirectional antennas
Directional antennas
Understanding antenna patterns:
Elevation and Azimuth
Beamwidth
When to use different antenna types:
Omnidirectional antennas for most environments
Directional antennas for high ceilings and high-density user areas
Aesthetic considerations and available options for antenna installations
This episode is part of our “Wi-Fi Hardware and Devices” series, focusing on the crucial aspect of antenna selection for optimal Wi-Fi performance in various enterprise settings.
CTS 344: Overview of Wi-Fi Access Points
Sep 16, 2024
In this episode of Clear To Send, François Vergès and Rowell Dionicio provide an in-depth overview of Wi-Fi access points. They delve into their evolution, form factors, and how different models cater to varying user needs.
They start by discussing the importance of understanding the functionality of your Wi-Fi access points and how they fit within the overall network architecture. They then dive into specific models, including the Juniper Mist AP45, Cisco AP 9166D1, Cisco AP 9120, Aruba AP 635, and various Ruckus APs.
Each model is examined with a focus on its unique features and specifications. The hosts also discuss how these APs can be best utilized in different environments and scenarios. From businesses to public spaces and homes, they cover a broad spectrum of use-cases.
This episode will equip you with the knowledge and understanding to choose the right Wi-Fi access points for your specific needs. Whether you’re a network engineer, a business owner, or simply a tech enthusiast, this episode is packed with valuable insights.
Don’t miss out on this informative discussion! Tune into CTS 336: Overview of Wi-Fi Access Points now.
CTS 343: Exploring Wi-Fi Security and Encryption
Sep 09, 2024
In this episode of Clear To Send, François and Rowell dive into the world of Wi-Fi security and encryption as part of our “Back to Basics” series. We break down the evolution of Wi-Fi security, from the outdated and unsafe methods to the current gold standards.
Here’s what we cover:
A brief history of Wi-Fi security, including the now-obsolete WEP and WPA (TKIP) methods
Current security techniques: WPA2 (PSK and Enterprise) and WPA3 (SAE and Enterprise)
Guest access options: Open Authentication and Enhanced Open (OWE)
The importance of staying updated with the latest security protocols
We also discuss why older security methods are no longer safe and why it’s crucial for both home users and enterprises to adopt the latest standards. Whether you’re a network admin or just curious about your home Wi-Fi security, this episode has something for everyone.
Bonus: We’ve created a handy Security Comparison Table to help visualize the differences between various Wi-Fi security methods. Check it out in the show notes!
Don’t forget to like, subscribe, and leave us a review if you found this episode helpful. Got questions? Hit us up on social media or leave a comment below.
CTS 342: Optimizing Wi-Fi Performance and Coverage
Sep 02, 2024
https://youtu.be/F-jrkxog6NA
In this episode of Clear To Send, François Vergès and Rowell Dionicio dive into the topic of optimizing Wi-Fi performance and coverage. As part of our “Back to Basics” series, we explore various strategies and best practices to enhance your wireless network’s efficiency.
Key points discussed in this episode include:
Coverage optimization:
Why more power isn’t always better
The importance of choosing the right antenna
Designing with secondary signal in mind
Performance enhancement:
Proper frequency band selection
Effective channel planning
Maintaining consistent channel width for APs
Planning for capacity
The benefits of disabling legacy data rates
Implementing 802.11r/k/v for improved roaming experience
Whether you’re a network administrator, IT professional, or Wi-Fi enthusiast, this episode provides valuable insights to help you maximize your wireless network’s potential.
Don’t forget to like, subscribe, and share your thoughts on this episode. Got questions or topics you’d like us to cover? Reach out to us on social media or leave a comment below!
CTS 341: Meter Command – Dynamic and Adaptive Network Management (Sponsored)
Aug 21, 2024
https://youtu.be/8u0hXi-tMIk
Meter is going one step beyond AI chat bots with their product Command. It’s a generative UI that goes beyond command line interface and adds visuals to create custom dashboards using a natural language interaction.
A network operator can make queries for their network, configure SSIDs, new networks, and other network changes by using plain English.
Meter Command allows a network operator to be highly efficient and productive. A simple English query can yield results of the network. Or if you need to build a custom dashboard for a CTO, you can ask Meter Command to build that for you. No extra coding experience required.
Another great aspect of Meter Command is it is built to be collaborative with other team members. Troubleshooting can be kept in a single canvas and updated dynamically. Dashboards can be created and modified on the fly by collaborating with other team members.
Wi-Fi 7 is just around the corner. It offers new features and complexities to help increase throughput and maintain low latency. In this episode, we’re joined by Arista Networks who gives us a run down on the different versions of MLO.
With their testing, they’ve seen a few versions of MLO being used. As well as seeing when MLO gets triggered and how much throughput you can acquire when connecting to the same AP on different bands.
For stability, Arista Networks displays how preamble puncturing works when interference is detected in a wide channel. The specific channel seeing the interference is removed from the channel width without affecting the other channels.
CTS 339: Cisco Meraki Brings New Functionality at MFD11
Jul 01, 2024
https://youtu.be/z-goZs5Z7aY
Meraki starts with telling us the Wi-Fi trifecta of readiness. That is Regulatory/specs/certifications, Clients, and Infrastructure. You need all of this.
And when you have all of this in place, Meraki adds useful features for the network operator.
Features such as Proactive PCAP and Root Cause Analysis. This isn’t just a PCAP file you download. Meraki goes further to tell you what is wrong within the PCAP and what potential solution can resolve the issue.
We’re seeing what the APs are capable of and how the dashboard can help resolve today’s network issues.
Fortinet has had a strong portfolio. They’ve been able to show all the solutions that are pertinent to a secure Wi-Fi network at every Mobility Field Day they’ve attended. This one is no different. Their end-to-end solutions make it easy for any organization to select Fortinet. It’s no shock that they’ve been able to develop […]
CTS 337: Live Heatmap Views at Your Fingertips (Sponsored)
Jun 10, 2024
Rowell and Jussi discussed the integration and functionality of a new live view feature in Hamina. Jussi explained that the feature pulls data from the vendor, including details such as AP locations, maps, transmit powers, and more, to create a more accurate network coverage prediction. The discussion also touched on the system’s ability to account […]
CTS 336: Network as a Service with Meter (Sponsored)
Jun 03, 2024
In this episode, we’re speaking with Anil Varanasi – the CEO at Meter. He’s an engineer that set out to solve an infrastructure problem with his brother, Sunil. Meter, founded in 2015, is a Network as a Service company that provides end-to-end networking solutions. From firewalls, to switches, and Wi-Fi – they provide the infrastructure […]
Live demos are awesome to see. And when executed very well it is impressive. Arista Networks came to Mobility Field Day 11 ready to wow the delegates. With a Wi-Fi 7 access point in the room and a Google Pixel phone, they were able to show how MLO works in Wi-Fi 7. From their dashboard, […]
CTS 334: Juniper Networks Announces New Features at MFD11
May 27, 2024
Rowell was fortunate to be a delegate for Mobility Field Day (MFD) 11 which was located in Santa Clara, CA. Juniper Networks was the first presenter at MFD11 and just like in previous MFD events, there were many announcements and new features coming to the Mist dashboard. A lot of the discussion does revolve around […]
CTS 333: Understanding Wi-Fi Channels and Frequencies
May 06, 2024
In episode 333 of the CTS podcast, your hosts François Vergès and Rowell Dionicio delve deep into understanding Wi-Fi channels and frequencies. During the podcast, they discuss the intricacies of Wi-Fi channel operations and the science behind the frequencies used in Wi-Fi connections. This episode is a treasure trove of knowledge for anyone seeking to […]
CTS 332: Intro to Wi-Fi Standards and Technologies
Apr 29, 2024
We’re headed back to the basics with a series of episodes focused on Wi-Fi fundamentals. How do devices and access points communicate with each other? How does it work in varying environments? A standards body defines how different vendors and manufacturers use a standard way to communicate over the air. Since the inception of Wi-Fi, […]
CTS 331: 10 Things We Learned From WLPC Phoenix
Mar 04, 2024
Coming back from WLPC we feel highly motivated. But we also took the time to reflect on the conference, the content, and the people we connected with. In this episode, we talk about the lessons we’ve learned from WLPC Phoenix. Those lessons are:
CTS 330: HPE And Juniper Networks Unite!
Feb 19, 2024
In a big surprise to us, HPE has announced they will be acquiring Juniper Networks. We’ve been working with Mist Systems since Juniper Networks acquired them. We’re hoping the acquisition doesn’t impact Mist negatively but we can see why HPE wanted the MistAI technology. In this episode, we’re going to provide our opinions on the […]
CTS 329: Network Access Control in the Cloud (Sponsored)
Feb 05, 2024
Network Access Control (NAC) has always been a challenging technology to implement. It usually meant utilizing someone with an expert level certification to come in and deploy it on your network. I remember when I was a systems administrator and watched a seasoned network engineer struggle to get it working the right way. Today, Juniper […]
CTS 328: Simple 3D Designs and Validation with Hamina (Sponsored)
Dec 13, 2023
Rowell and Jussi discussed the use of 3D modeling for Wi-Fi design and validation using Hamina. Jussi demonstrated the tool they use, showing how it can predict signal behavior in a warehouse environment. They also discussed the importance of 3D modeling for validating project details like shelf heights and the construction of walls. There’s immense […]
CTS 327: The Evolution of AP Form Factor
Dec 11, 2023
In this episode, we discuss the evolution of the Wi-Fi access point form factor. You may have noticed that the size of Wi-Fi access points is increasing. Why is this happening? We provide some answers in this episode. We also talk about the challenges vendors face in providing directional antennas on the 6 GHz band, […]
In WLPC Prague 2023, there were a lot of great presentations. It’s a must-attend Wi-Fi conference where you can connect with smart Wi-Fi people. You’re guaranteed to leave feeling inspired and you’ll have ideas of what you will want to do next with your Wi-Fi network or even your career. In this episode, we’re going […]
CTS 325: Transitioning to OWE and WPA3 in Higher-Ed
Nov 14, 2023
Rowell and François discussed their experiences with deploying OWE and WPA3 on a higher education Wi-Fi network. Rowell noted that the adoption has been slow due to device compatibility issues, particularly in higher education where many devices are personal and outside of their control. They opted for a slow rollout strategy to monitor and gather […]
CTS 324: Interview with Greg Ennis author of Beyond Everywhere – How Wi-Fi Became the World’s Most Beloved Technology
Oct 16, 2023
In this episode, we are having the pleasure to welcome Greg Ennis on the show. Greg is the author of the book called Beyond Everywhere, How Wi-Fi Became the World’s Most Beloved Technology. Greg is one of the founders of the Wi-Fi protocol. He has worked with organizations such as the IEEE and the Wi-Fi […]
CTS 323: What Arista Guardian for Network Identity brings to wired and wireless networks
Oct 10, 2023
This episode is sponsored by Arista. In this episode, we are welcoming Sriram Venkiteswaran, Director Product Management at Arista. The focus of this episode is to talk about Arista’s NAC solution called AGNI (Arista Guardian For Network Identity). Here are the topics discussed during this episode: Check out the YouTube video if you want to […]
We had the pleasure of having Kevin Robinson, President and CEO of Wi-Fi Alliance Services, on the show with us. He introduced the new Wi-Fi Alliance subsidiary called Wi-Fi Alliance Services and discussed the AFC services they offer. Wi-Fi Alliance Services was announced on August 3rd. The subsidiary is currently focused on providing AFC services […]
CTS 321: Network Automation Forum with Chris Grundemann
Sep 21, 2023
Shownotes Chris Grundemann joins the show to talk about what the goal is of Network Automation Forum. It’s an event to discuss everything about automation, orchestration, and observability. The Network Automation Forum will bring together people to further the discussion and help the community discover, design, develop, and deploy more software enhanced and autonomous networks. […]
Wi-Fi Alliance defines three modes of operations for WPA3-Enterprise: This Episode is sponsored by WiFi Scanner Download your trial today at WiFiScanner.com Specifications WPA3-Enterprise Only Here are the important specifications: WPA3-Enterprise Transition Here are the important specifications: WPA3-Enterprise 192-bit Here are the important specifications: Beacon Frames WPA3-Enterprise Only WPA3-Enterprise Transition Comparison between WPA3-Enterprise and WPA3-Enterprise […]
CTS 319: Multi-Function Radio with Arista Networks (Sponsored)
Jul 24, 2023
This episode is sponsored by Arista Networks We’re taking a dive into how a multi-function radio can help network engineers with many tasks. A multi-function radio is an additional radio not used for client access. It’s mostly used in listening mode. These are the six functions of the multi-function radio: An advantage of a multi-function […]
In this episode, we’re diving into WPA3-Personal and understanding what is different between previous Wi-Fi security, such as WPA2. WPA3 has been around since 2018 but we’re barely implementing it in our networks because of 6 GHz. As we see more compatible 6 GHz compatible devices and access points we will see 6 GHz networks. […]
Kelly Burroughs, our special guest from iBwave, joins the podcast to discuss the shifting landscape in Enterprise from a ‘one and done single technology’ solution view to an agile ‘one and what’s the next technology’ roadmap view that includes Wi-Fi, LTE, IoT, 5G, etc. Different use cases require the right technology to be implemented and […]
Opportunistic Wireless Encryption (OWE) is a way to secure open Wi-Fi networks. Encryption keys are created between a device and an access point (AP). In Wi-Fi 6E, you can no longer create open Wi-Fi networks. OWE is a requirement when creating an open Wi-Fi network in 6 GHz. In this episode, we dive into how […]
CTS 315: 5 Wi-Fi Books You Need to Read
Apr 24, 2023
If you want to become a better Wi-Fi engineer, then look no further to these 5 Wi-Fi books. We recommend having these books on your shelf and using them as reference. All of these books include a plethora of knowledge and have helped us in many situations where we need to refresh or learn a […]
CTS 314: Is ChatGPT useful to a Wi-Fi Engineer
Apr 17, 2023
Is ChatGPT useful to a Wi-Fi Engineer AI is really starting to make its mark on the world. ChatGPT has already provided us a many ways to improve efficiency in how we do research and solve problems. François has been using ChatGPT for many use cases and we dive into whether it can be used […]
Informing others on WLPC WLPC is the Wi-Fi conference to attend. Clear To Send attended the conference in Phoenix in February 2023. It happened to be right before the SuperBowl. This episode is sponsored by Optifi It’s a great feeling to attend WLPC and catch up with all our peers and friends. We feel energized […]
Finding the right resource for survey work can be challenging due to the amount of Wi-Fi experts available. In this episode, we talk about why you would want to outsource the work and who you should outsource to. We have a discussion into what has worked after outsourcing a few projects and what hasn’t worked […]
The CWNA is our most recommended certification and first path to becoming a Wi-Fi specialist or expert. You’ll gain an immense amount of Wi-Fi fundamentals that will lead you to become the go-to Wi-Fi person in your organization. These are our 5 reasons why you should get your CWNA. Get Wi-Fi Fundamentals The CWNA provides […]
CTS 309: Wireless with Ekahau (Sponsored)
Dec 05, 2022
Ekahau AI Pro brings many features and benefits for any Wi-Fi engineer. That’s why we’re being joined by Matt Sterling and Mac Deryng of Ekahau to educate us on what these features are. First off, Sidekick 2 is updated to support 6 GHz with packet captures and be fully useable with Ekahau Analyzer. Then there […]
Jiri Brejcha joins us on this episode to discuss his testing of 6 GHz capable clients (iPad and Google Pixel) and how they discovery 6 GHz Wi-Fi networks. Jiri demonstrates how important the Reduced Neighbor Report plays an important role in 6 GHz AP discovery. Jiri is an enterprise architect at Cisco UK and part […]
CTS 307: How Wi-Fi Tools Are Made – Building Hamina (Sponsored)
Nov 21, 2022
Our special guests are Jussi Kiviniemi and Joel Crane of Hamina. I’m a previous episode, cleartosend.net/286, Jussi gave us a rundown of Hamina before it was a beta product. In this episode, Hamina is a full product now, available for everyone to use and we decided to learn how Wi-Fi tools are built. Jussi and […]
Multiple BSSID sets out to aggregate individual beacon frames from an access point to a single beacon frame. It helps solve the issue of beacon overhead. As it is today, each SSID broadcasts a beacon. The more SSIDs you’re broadcasting, the more the beacons eat up airtime. Airtime is a precious resource for Wi-Fi devices. […]
We had the pleasure of attending WLPC in Prague for 2022. It was the first time joining a larger conference since the pandemic started. It was great to be around our peers having insightful discussions and catching up. In this episode, we’re providing our thoughts about WLPC EU and which presentations were our favorites. In […]
Wi-Fi gets all the blame for any type of network or device issue. Lean teams struggle to streamline their IT operations and lack the actionable insights needed to make smart decisions. In this episode, we’re talking to Wyebot and how they are able to help many organizations troubleshoot Wi-Fi efficiently with the use of network […]
CTS 303: Warehouse Antenna Challenges
Aug 08, 2022
Selecting the right antenna for a warehouse can be challenging. There are many factors to take into consideration and different mounting options available. You can mount antennas from top down or at the end of an aisle. When selecting the antenna of choice, keep the device capability in mind. There are various antennas available that […]
CTS 302: MFD7 – Your Ally for Wi-Fi Troubleshooting
Jul 24, 2022
NetAlly has had a history of announcing new products at Mobility Field Day. At MFD7 they continued that tradition with the announcement of the AirCheck G3. James Kahkoska gave us a historical rundown of NetAlly innovations prior to the announcement. With Wi-Fi 6E upon us, the AirCheck G3 will have 6 GHz capability. It has […]
CTS 301: MFD7 – Private 5G So Easy Anyone Can Do It
Jul 23, 2022
Private 5G is another wireless solution aimed at use cases requiring low latency and dedicated throughput for critical applications. But 5G for Wi-Fi engineers is an enigma. We know of 5G but how many Wi-Fi engineers have configured and deployed it? Celona believes that private 5G is so easy that any Wi-Fi engineer can deploy […]
With over 15 patents and 300+ well known customers, monitoring Wi-Fi from the client perspective is a big deal. 7Signal plants sensors on the network to monitor and gather various Wi-Fi metrics to determine root cause analysis. This is done through passive or active monitoring on one of their two products, Mobile Eye or Sapphire […]
Cisco has been an occasional presenter at Mobility Field Day (MFD7). We were expecting Cisco to reiterate their announcement from Cisco Live. Briefly mentioned was the additional Catalyst access points capable of being managed by a controller or in the Meraki dashboard. Jim presented incredible detail and analysis of 6 GHz compared to 5 GHz […]
Fortinet is a security-based company pulling in $4.1B in revenue. And as you’d expect, they are securing Wi-Fi users differently from others. Today, their customers are facing many challenges from sophisticated attacks, operational technology, work from anywhere, and the application journey. Their vision is to reduce complexity and have rapid response. There’s a convergence of […]
Ruckus Networks unveils their latest logo of the iconic dog, creating a Ruckus. I couldn’t help noticing how much more confident the dog appeared. Is it possible to teach an old dog new tricks? Ruckus dived into the scalability of their platform, empowering property owners, hospitality, and higher education with the tools of efficiently managing […]
Mobility Field Day (MFD) is the traditional format of Mist product announcements. It’s no different for MFD7. In the room with MFD delegates sits two new Juniper EX4100 network switches. Described to be deliver cloud-native telemetry data to improve Marvis and the AI-driven dashboard. Speaking of Marvis, Mist announced an expansion with the Marvis Windows […]
Mobility Field Day 7 is taking place from Wednesday July 13 to Friday July 15 2022. As always, it will be streamed live on LinkedIn as well as on the Tech Field Day website. Tune in at: https://techfieldday.com/event/mfd7/ This year, the presenters will be: Juniper / Mist Ruckus Networks Betacom Fortinet Cisco 7Signal Celona NetAlly […]
CTS 294: Introduction to Wi-Fi DevOps
Jul 04, 2022
In this episode, we introduce the topic of Wi-Fi DevOps. François and Rowell defines what Wi-Fi DevOps is and how it can improve some of the operations of Wi-Fi Engineers. DevOps is used more and more on the wired network side but is coming, slowly but surely, to wireless. Listen up in order to understand […]
CTS 293: Cognitive Unified Edge with Arista Networks (Sponsored)
Jun 27, 2022
In this episode, Heather Paunet and Ed Chapman from Arista talk about their new product: Cognitive Unified Edge. Arista is making a move in the commercial enterprise space by offering a new product that will let its customer manage the full stack of network equipments: APs, switches, firewalls and WAN appliance. Here are a few […]
CTS 292: Use Case for Wi-Fi Telemetry Data
Jun 20, 2022
Our guest, Kjetil Teigen Hansen is a System Engineer at Conscia Norge AS in Norway. In this episode, we have a discussion on how he leverages Grafana to graph Wi-Fi telemetry data from the Cisco Catalyst C9800. Telemetry data is network monitoring data streamed from network devices. Kjetil has built his own dashboards with Telegraf, […]
CTS 291: Wi-Fi Cisco Updates with Jim Florwick (Sponsored)
Jun 12, 2022
Jim Florwick, of Cisco, joins us on this episode to discuss many new features about the Catalyst 9136 access point. 6 GHz is a big competitive landscape with many new access points hitting the market. The Catalyst 9136 will be available with 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz, and 6 GHz radios. Jim Florwick provides us an […]
Ekahau has just released their latest version of the desktop software but with a new name, AI Pro. With revamped features and algorithms we will look into how AI Planner has changed. We will also dive into the newest additions such as Network Simulator. We find this feature to be useful for client projects. Wall […]
In this episode, we’re bringing on special guests to provide insight into career interviews in wireless positions. We’re joined by Dave Benham and Sam Clements, experts in their field who have hiring responsibilities for their team. Both Dave and Sam bring their own experience and perspectives. If you’re trying to find your path to a […]
It can be challenging trying to migrate to a Wi-Fi only role. But it’s not an impossible task. In this episode, we’re going to share some of our own experiences and tips. There are many more tips for getting Wi-Fi experience. But this is a way to get started right now. We ask that you […]
Does hiding your SSID make it more secure? Will hiding your SSID keep the hackers away? We’ll show you how to reveal a hidden SSID with ease using your laptop. If the SSID is hidden, how does a device know how to find it? In this episode, we’ll discuss why hiding your SSID is not […]
CTS 286: Predictive Surveys with Hamina (Sponsored)
Mar 21, 2022
What if you could design your next Wi-Fi project without downloading any software onto your computer. It’s entirely possible to design Wi-Fi in the browser leveraging CPU and GPU resources. Hamina is giving us our first look into a new Wi-Fi design tool. With any laptop you’ll be able to increase your productivity and efficiency. […]
CTS 285: 6GHz - What is it going to change for us?
Mar 14, 2022
As 6GHz access points are starting to ship, we wanted to talk about how 6GHz will change our day-to-day life working as a Wi-Fi Engineer. In this episode, we talk about how 6GHz will impact the way we design and configure Wi-Fi networks. Here is a quick agenda of the topics covered in this episode: […]
CTS 284: Zero Trust Wi-Fi Access with Beyond Identity (Sponsored)
Mar 07, 2022
Wi-Fi security hasn’t changed much in many years. The most common security method is using a pre-shared key, one that hardly changes. Next, you have a more complex configuration using 802.1X with certificates. But what if we could flip this model and think about it differently by leveraging the cloud? We could use passwordless multi-factor […]
CTS 283: News – 6E APs, WLPC, Acquisitions, 5G and more
Mar 01, 2022
Wi-Fi news is heating up this year. With vendors coming out with Wi-Fi 6E access points to surprising vendors in 5G space. This episode is about the latest Wi-Fi news. Check out the video version of this episode and see who won our Juniper Voucher giveaway! In this episode we’re talking about 6 GHz APs […]
CTS 282: Network Assurance with Arista Networks (Sponsored)
Feb 22, 2022
Gone are the days of not knowing what is happening on your Wi-Fi network. Traditional WLAN systems would be able to tell you if a client is connected or not but it wasn’t enough to understand the end-user experience on your Wi-Fi network. Network Assurance is how you’re able to understand the client journey, from […]
CTS 281: Python Institute Certifications
Feb 15, 2022
We’re continuing our discussion of certifications and career growth by diving into something different – Python certifications. Automation and scripting is making its way into Wi-Fi. As Wi-Fi engineers, we need to educate ourselves and determine whether we can find good value by leveraging Python. François came across Python Institute which has its own set […]
Are you interested in taking the Juniper Mist JNCIA-MistAI or JNCIS-MistAI certifications? Rowell recently took the JNCIA-MistAI and he provides his thoughts on the exam. The JNCIA is an entry-level type of certification. There won’t be any configuration type of questions. But what you will need to know is identifying the different components of MistAI. […]
CTS 279: Getting Started with Wi-Fi in 2022
Jan 10, 2022
Wi-Fi has always been important. People are mobile and it seems as though any issue gets pinned on Wi-Fi. That’s why this year it is your time to get into Wi-Fi, learn the fundamentals, and become the Wi-Fi expert at your workplace. In this episode, we’re going to discuss how to get started and what […]
The year is coming to a close and this is our last episode. We want to thank you, the listener, for supporting us. Thank you for listening to our episodes and sharing them with others. If you have 5-10 minutes, please fill out our annual audience survey. It will help shape the direction of the […]
CTS 277: Pandemic Impact to Office Wi-Fi
Dec 20, 2021
With the pandemic to continue on, how does this impact future carpeted office Wi-Fi projects? More workers are wanting to work from home, avoiding long commutes, easier way of life, and just avoiding the office altogether. Some businesses have opted to move towards a more remote workforce thus reducing their office footprint. Many other businesses […]
In this episode, Arista Networks joins the podcast to provide an overview of their Wi-Fi solution – Arista Cognitive Wi-Fi. Arista Networks acquired Mojo Networks in 2018. Today, it forms CloudVision Wi-Fi that provides network administrators with a view of end user experience on their Wi-Fi networks. Robert Ferruolo and Metka Dragos join us from […]
A common question we get and see on the CTS Slack is what equipment we have in our AP-on-a-Stick (APoS) kit? In this episode, we discuss the core components of our APoS kit including the tripod, AP stand, casters, cases, etc. The most common question about APoS is the tripod. Which one should you get […]
CTS 274: Designing Wi-Fi for Lecture Halls
Sep 27, 2021
Designing Wi-Fi for university lecture halls can be challenging. From dealing with BYOD, high density, aesthetics, and more.. How do you tackle it? What should you consider? And what will the results be? There are many challenges to consider such as high density, high capacity, BYOD, aesthetics, application usage, and more. All must be considered […]
In this episode, we talk about what updates Fortinet brings to Mobility Field Day 6. Fortinet reminds us that they have a full stack offering with security first. We like to call it their FortiOffering. Security is always at the heart of their solutions. They have products to answer a lot of needs – Very […]
CTS 272: NetAlly’s BLE Survey & LANBERT
Aug 30, 2021
NetAlly continues to add features to their existing handheld tools. In this episode, we’re going to take a look at two features for the EtherScope nXG, the BLE survey and LANBERT which was showcased at Mobility Field Day 6. BLE is integrated into more and more APs nowadays (Mist, Aruba, Meraki…). BLE is leveraged for […]
A new release that has both of us excited is the VenVolt 2 from Ventev. We do quite a number of AP-on-a-Stick surveys that require a portable battery pack for an access point. The previous VenVolt provided a lot of runtime when it came to the battery. But the unit itself was rather large and […]
At MFD6, Mist has released their framework for how to design Wi-Fi networks. There are many videos to go through with supporting content. Many more videos are in the works. The Wi-Fi design framework was developed by Peter Mackenzie. There’s a lot of great information on the site and they make it entertaining with characters […]
Arista Networks rejoins Mobility Field Day and in this episode we’re discussing Arista’s cloud solution and the openness. The solid cloud solution presented by Arista comes with their own Autonomous Artificial Intelligence named Ava. The AI has a lot of data at her disposal. It’s an impressive amount of data stored in the cloud giving […]
CTS 268 – MFD6 Aruba Central & Wi-Fi 6E AP Reveal
Jul 26, 2021
Aruba Central is the future of Aruba Networks. The vision of cloud being a central platform is taking shape with the addition of services beyond AP management: Edge Services Platform AI Insights AI Ops Remote Troubleshooting Over the last few years, Aruba Networks has improved Aruba Central significantly as it becomes a huge part of […]
CTS 267: Tackling Mental Health and Burnout
Jul 19, 2021
You are probably burned out. This pandemic had some of us working in overdrive to connect users, COVID clinics, remote users, and more. So how do we, as IT professionals, tackle mental health and burnout? We’re working to capacity and often more than 8-10 hours a day. Morning, day, and night we’re working. In between […]
We welcome Brian White, Director of Systems Engineering at Celona. He handles customer deployments and interactions and provides initial education consulting of the product with the customers. One of the primary reasons for using private cellular is the promise of reliable mobility. It lends itself to specific use cases. We’ve had Celona on the show […]
CTS 265: Wi-Fi News – 6 GHz, Wi-Fi 6E AP, Stress Test, Tools/Apps
Jun 21, 2021
In this week’s episode we are talking about what has been happening in the Wi-Fi world in the past couple of weeks. 6GHz More and more countries are allowing licence-exempt use on 6GHz. In the Americas, most countries are allowing use of the entire 1200MHz. Follow Chuck Lukaszewski on Twitter to get the updates: https://twitter.com/RF_ChuckCanada […]
It’s been a while since we last talked about Spectrum Analysis (SpecAn). It was all the way back on Episode 39. In this episode, we’re going to define what Spectrum Analysis is. We’ll then discuss why we should perform SpecAn. Maybe it’s because you want to locate a source of interference. What are the different […]
CTS 263: Wi-Fi Vulnerability – FragAttacks
May 17, 2021
Mathy Vanhoef, a well respected Wi-Fi security researcher, has identified a dozen vulnerabilities in the 802.11 protocol called FragAttacks. FragAttacks is short for Fragmentation and Aggregation Attacks. It’s based upon how wireless frames are received and reassembled on a device or access point (AP). Unfortunately, this vulnerability has been present since Wi-Fi existed and nearly […]
CTS 262: Troubleshooting Common Wi-Fi Problems with RUCKUS
Apr 30, 2021
In this episode, we are trying to assess how easy it is to troubleshoot common Wi-Fi problems using RUCKUS cloud. We want to give you an idea of what it would look like to perform troubleshooting from our point of view. We outline what we like and what we would want to see improved. We […]
CTS 261: Troubleshoot Common Wi-Fi Issue with Mist
Apr 12, 2021
In this episode, we are trying to assess how easy it is to troubleshoot common Wi-Fi problems using the Mist solution. We want to give you an idea of what it would look like to perform troubleshooting from our point of view. We outline what we like and what we would want to see improved. […]
CTS 260: Troubleshoot Common Wi-Fi Problems with Meraki Health
Mar 29, 2021
In this episode, we are trying to assess how easy it is to troubleshoot common Wi-Fi problems using the Meraki Health solution. We want to give you an idea of what it would look like to perform troubleshooting from our point of view. We outline what we like and what we would want to see […]
CTS 259: Optimizing for Client Devices
Mar 22, 2021
Are we relying too much on proprietary tech to optimize Wi-Fi for client devices? Recently, Rowell had to optimize a wireless network which became this episode. What do we think about features like client load balancing? Can it work efficiently and how do client devices react to it? Is there a better way to load […]
CTS 258: This Week In Wireless – 802.11-2020
Mar 09, 2021
New IEEE-802.11 Standard The IEEE published, on February 26th, a new version of the IEEE 802.11 standards. It is called IEEE-802.11-2020. Did you get your copy yet? But take note: 802.11ax didn’t make it to this version – womp womp. You can buy it here if you cannot wait: https://standards.ieee.org/standard/802_11-2020.html Here is the timeline of […]
In this episode, Rowell and I talk about some of the reasons why we do some AP-on-a-Stick site surveys. Both of us share some of the APoS work we have been doing in different environments. We get into some of the equipment we used to make our measurements. And we also talk about what we […]
This week, we have Troy Martin on the show to talk about IoT. We talk about the IoT landscape and which wireless technologies are used both at home and in the enterprise space. Troy Martin, CWNE #90 and CWNE Advisory Board Member, works as a Principal Consultant for Trogen Consulting. He also co-host a podcast […]
CTS255: Our Warehouse Wi-Fi Design Walkthrough
Feb 01, 2021
Following episode CTS 252 where we talk about our general Wi-Fi Design methodologies, we wanted to do a deep dive on warehouse Wi-Fi. Enjoy the episode: We covered a few things that are even more relevant in a warehouse / manufacturing environment: Installation heights Choosing the right antenna Choosing the proper installation type Choosing the […]
CTS 254: How Wiflex uses APIs for their Services
Jan 25, 2021
We’ve had many discussions about using APIs with Wi-Fi. Mostly it’s been around learning Python, practicing with simple projects, or using scripts to enhance our work with clients. Today, we bring on Jonas Dekkers from Wiflex. Wiflex is an cloud-based service to help organizations onboard their customers and end users onto the Wi-Fi network. Jonas […]
CTS 253: Mist AI JNCIA Certification with John Breth
Jan 18, 2021
In this episode, we are welcoming John Breth to talk about the Mist AI JNCIA certification. John Breth work as an IT/Cyber Architect. His focus is security but he decided to go for all Juniper JNCIA certifications last year, which led him to try out the JNCIA Mist AI certification. It was nice to hear […]
CTS 252: Our Wi-Fi Design Walkthrough
Jan 11, 2021
We’re providing a view of how we use Ekahau Pro to perform predictive modeling of an office floor plan. In a future episode, we will do a walkthrough of a warehouse predictive model. François and I perform Wi-Fi design differently. This episode we talk about our differences, the goals we’re trying to achieve, and an […]
CTS 251 – Fast BSS Transition Frame Exchanges (CWAP)
Jan 04, 2021
In this episode, we’re going to cover a small topic of the CWAP certification. We’re taking a look at the frame exchanges that occur during 802.11r or Fast BSS Transition. In our scenario we’ll use my iPhone which associates to AP1 and roams to AP2. Without 802.11r, the roam will take additional time to complete. […]
After 47 episodes we’re closing the book in another year of podcasting. We missed 5 episodes which is not bad for publishing every week. We run this podcast in addition to our careers and while being with our families. We’ve certainly enjoyed the process along the way and have learned a lot. There was plenty […]
In this episode, we talk about the different behaviours that an RF signal can have while travelling through different environments. This will help you better understand what happens to Wi-Fi signals as they travel away from their transmitters. This is a very nice episode if you are studying for your CWNA or if you are […]
CTS 248: Deploy FreeRADIUS on your WLAN Pi
Dec 14, 2020
This week, we are showcasing how you can deploy freeradius on your WLAN Pi. This is, yet, another way to take advantage of your WLAN Pi to do your work as a Wi-Fi Engineer. Why would you want to deploy freeradius on a WLAN Pi? Here are a few reasons why: Start a quick radius […]
CTS 247: The Best Wi-Fi Apps for MacOS
Dec 07, 2020
We have the author of the best Wi-Fi apps for MacOS, Adrian Granados, joining us on this episode. Adrian went full-time with his company, Intuitibits, to dedicate more time to his applications so we can be better working with Wi-Fi. We last had Adrian on the show on Episode 7! He describes what it was […]
CTS 246: Wi-Fi Coffee Hour – Unboxing, Quadrants, UNII4, and more
Nov 30, 2020
This episode comes from our live stream of Wi-Fi Coffee Hour where we discuss industry news. Watch the video version below. And be sure to follow us on YouTube! I’ve had a brand new access point sitting in a box for a while now, why don’t we unbox it. And what are the differences between […]
CTS 245: Celona Edge Architecture and Live Demo
Nov 18, 2020
Celona joins the podcast to show us the platform capabilities of Celona Edge and enterprise integration. We also take a look of a live demo running on San Jose State University. Take a look at how CBRS can be used in a private network environment. For a visual look at the solution, check out the […]
CTS 244: Handheld Wi-Fi Tools with netAlly
Nov 09, 2020
Which tools are best to use for Wi-Fi troubleshooting? Maybe you’re using a handful of tools to complete the job. Each tool performs a specific function and in the end we need to merge the data collected into a single report or next action. For a few months, I’ve been testing the netAlly EtherScope nXG. […]
Power saving is a normal function of mobile devices. It’s required to conserve battery. In this episode, we summarize what we’ve read about Power Management from the 802.11 standard. Power save (PS) is a power management mode in which a station (STA) alternates between two states: Awake: STA is fully powered Dozing: STA is not […]
Dynamic bandwidth operation occurs when a transmitter attempts to acquire the medium for a bonded channel but is only cleared to use a smaller channel width. For example, let’s consider an access point configured to serve devices with a 40 MHz channel width. A device would transmit an RTS for 40 MHz but the receiver […]
CTS 241: Cisco Meraki Solutions Specialist Certification
Oct 12, 2020
Meraki has been around for a long time. With over 508k customers, 2.5 million active networks, and in 190 countries, it’s about time there’s a certification around Meraki technologies. The Meraki-specific certification is the Cisco Meraki Solutions Specialist Certification. The exam is called Engineering Cisco Meraki Solutions, exam number 500-220 ECMS. Meraki’s ECMS certification covers […]
CTS240: New Mist Training & Certifications
Oct 05, 2020
Juniper is coming out with a new certification track for Mist under the Juniper certification portfolio. This track will be focused on Wi-Fi as well as anything Mist related. JNCIS-MistAI is the first official certification. Became available on September 28th 2020. JNCIA-MistAI will be coming before the end of the year. The new Juniper Mist […]
Inside of Google’s in-house incubator, Area 120, is the birth of Orion WiFi. A new way for network operators to offer their Wi-Fi to carriers and generate revenue. In this episode, we have two guests from Google: Raj Gajwani Rich Mazzola Orion WiFi lets businesses such as public venues sell their Wi-Fi capacity to cellular […]
CTS 238: Integration of Juniper Switches in Mist
Sep 21, 2020
In this episode, we’re bringing on some special guests from Juniper Networks. We’re going to discuss the integration of Juniper Networks switches into the Mist dashboard. Our special guests are: Sujit Ghosh Ahbi Shamsundar Jussi Kiviniemi Our agenda for this episode is to get a look behind the scenes of integrating other platforms, such as […]
CTS 237: Wi-Fi for Automated Vehicles
Sep 14, 2020
In this episode François talks about a recent project he worked on. He was asked to assess a couple of Wi-Fi environments for the use of Automated Guided Vehicles (AGVs) in manufacturing environments. Context Wi-Fi assessment for use of automated vehicles in manufacturing environments Make sure that the AGV will have a stable and reliable […]
CTS236: 802.11be – The Future of Wi-Fi
Sep 07, 2020
In this week’s episode, we talk about the future of Wi-Fi following up on the publication of the following document from the IEEE: Current Status and Directions of IEEE 802.11be, the Future Wi-Fi 7 (https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/9090146) The authors of this document are: Evgeny Khorov, Ilya Levitsky and Ian F. Akyildiz IEEE 802.11be has been named EHT […]
CTS 235: Campus Outdoor Wi-Fi Deployment
Aug 31, 2020
As universities get closer to the start of the academic year, many are planning to hold classes outdoors. At my campus, outdoor Wi-Fi is still in the works. It’s even an initiative. Since we’re in California, the weather is perfect for outdoor classes. The challenge was rolling out equipment as fast as we can prior […]
We’re taking a look at a high level look at 802.11k and 802.11v. How have we seen it in the environments we go into today and do the devices support 802.11k and 802.11v? First, determine if the Wi-Fi infrastructure has 802.11k/v enabled. This is fairly easy to determine and François has a great blog post […]
CTS 233: Python scripting, Ekahau and Meraki
Aug 17, 2020
In this episode Rowell talks about an issue he is troubleshooting for one of its customer. François talks about some python scripts he has been working on. Ekahau Python Script The objectives of the script is to produce a document that will hold all the information related to access points installations. The script creates the […]
CTS 232: Introduction to 5G with Andrew Von Nagy
Aug 10, 2020
In this episode, we are talking with Andrew Von Nagy from Celona about 5G. What will 5G technology bring to the table? Increase speed, more spectrum band use, CBRS at 3.55 GHz, C-Band (3.7 to 4.2), 6 GHz for unlicensed 5G (licensed assisted access), and millimeter wave (60 GHz). With 5G, comes new use cases. […]
CTS 231: Transitioning to Industry 4.0 with Kilian Löser
Aug 03, 2020
We had the pleasure to have Kilian Löser on the show to talk about Wi-Fi in manufacturing envrionments. We took the opportunity to talk about what is coming up and how these environments are evolving with Industry 4.0. Feel free to follow Kilian on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/loeserkilian/) and Twitter(@KilianLoeser). In this episode, we’ve talk about the […]
Mobility Field Day 5, pySerial, Podcast Update
Jul 27, 2020
Welcome to the coffee hour ☕️ This is a casual Clear to Send (CTS) conversation over coffee where we talk about different topics. In this hour, we run through different topics from recent evThis is a casual Clear to Send (CTS) conversation over coffee where we talk about different topics. In this hour, we present […]
In this episode, we welcome’s Tiago Rodrigues, CEO of the Wireless Broadband Alliance, and Matt MacPherson, Wireless CTO at Cisco to talk about OpenRoaming. The Wireless Broadband Alliance recently took over the ownership and management of OpenRoaming from Cisco. We had a great time and great discussion with Tiago and Matt and hope that you […]
In this episode, we are providing an introduction to WPA3. We also show how to configure it on a Cisco controller as well as how you could validate it by looking at Wi-Fi frames: Introduction WPA3 is the improved version of Wi-Fi security. It updates WPA2 which is commonly used everywhere in Wi-Fi networks. Why […]
In this episode, we had the pleasure to have Sunalini Sankhavaram and Robert Boardman from Mist to talk about Contact Tracing. We have recorded this episode in the video format as well so we could demo the solution for you guys. (Thank you Rowell for spending a few hours editing the video!) Here is the […]
What is Wi-Fi Capacity Planning? In this episode, we discuss what Wi-Fi capacity is, how it can be done, and what are some of the “gotchas” when you are doing capacity planning. When it comes to Wi-Fi capacity planning, many rely on the built-in tools to help us determine how many access points (APs) are […]
CTS 225: Pod-a-Thon fundraising for COVID-19 relief
Jun 22, 2020
This is the recording on the live episode we recorded part of the Pod-a-Thon organized by the WLA. The goal was to raise fund for the COVID-19 relief cause. In this episode, we talked about the behind the scene of the Clear To Send podcast. This includes talks related to the latest recordings we have […]
In this episode of WiFi Coffee Hour, Rowell and François go on a live stream to discuss the shift from in-person to virtual conferences. There’s no doubt the virtual conference will not live up to an in-person event. Some of you may have been planning to attend a conference for the first time only to […]
In this episode, we have Ben Robson, RF Engineer, with us to explain how an antenna works. He went into great details on how the antenna works. It is probably the longest episode we have recorded so far! But it is well worth it! Thank you Ben for coming on the show to educate us! […]
CTS 222: Wi-Fi Alliance with Kevin Robinson
Jun 01, 2020
In this episode, we were delighted to have Kevin Robinson, Senior Vice President of Marketing at the Wi-Fi Alliance, with us. We talked about the Wi-Fi Alliance as well as the upcoming Wi-Fi 6e certification program. Enjoy! Agenda Introducing Kevin Robinson, Senior VP of Marketing Overview of the organization Who is the Wi-Fi Alliance Alliance, […]
CTS 221: Industrial Wi-Fi with Scott McNeil
May 25, 2020
In this episode, we are talking about Wi-Fi in the Industrial environment with Scott McNeil. Scott has great experience designing, deploying and troubleshooting Wi-Fi and these environments and share his experiences with us! We are also talking about how the Industrial 4.0 revolution will impact how we will be using Wi-Fi in an industrial environment. […]
What tools come to mind when you're doing remote troubleshooting? Have you ever used a WLAN Pi? In this episode, François and I did a live stream on the CTS YouTube channel, highlighting the capabilities of the WLAN Pi.
CTS 219: Wireless Broadband Alliance with Tiago Rodrigues and Gabriel Desjardins
May 11, 2020
In this episode we wanted to introduce the Wireless Broadband Alliance to you guys. In order to do so, we invited 2 special guests: Tiago Rodrigues CEO at Wireless Broadband Alliance Gabriel Desjardins Director of Product Marketing, Broadcom Wireless Connectivity division and Board Member at WBA Topics In this episodes, we are talking about the […]
CTS 218: 6GHz PSD & AFC with Chuck Lukaszewski
May 04, 2020
In this episode, we have Chuck Lukaszewski, VP of Wireless Strategy & Standards for HPE, to talk about two technical aspects of 6GHz: Power Spectral Density (PSD) Automated Frequency Coordination (AFC) On top of explaining these technical concepts, Chuck gives tones of useful information on 6GHz regulations for both the US and Europe. Podcast Content […]
CTS 217: Bringing 6GHz to Fruition with Chris Szymanski
Apr 27, 2020
Chris Szymanski, director of product marketing and government affairs for Broadcom, joins us on the show to talk about the process of getting the 6GHz band available for unlicensed use. Chris has been involved in the process for more than 4 years and shares some of his insights on the whole process. Episode Agenda FCC […]
With the current offerings from Ubiquiti UniFi, there's just the one-time cost to keep things simple. Paying for the hardware will include some advanced features, analytics, and monitoring tools often excluded from other SMB Wi-Fi solutions.
SMB Wi-Fi Here are the important criteria to consider when choosing an SMB Wi-Fi solution: Price Ease of configuration Reliability Feature Set Security Listen to this episode in order to know how the EnGenius Cloud solution is doing on each of these criteria. EnGenius Wi-Fi Offering Price Cloud Managed APs: ECW115 2×2 WiFi 5 Wall-Plate: […]
CTS 213: How to Approach a Wi-Fi Validation Survey
Mar 30, 2020
In this episode we wanted to take some time to talk about the practical aspects of a validation survey. We are answering the following questions: Which steps do you need to take in order to make sure that the task runs smoothly? What are the relevant questions to ask your customer before going on site? […]
News The spread of COVID-19 is getting serious. We talked about its effects on Wi-Fi and on our jobs 2020 WLPC videos are available There will be a WLPC 2020 in Mexico in Spanish Wireless Update #2 is out on The Wi-Fi YouTube Channel Aruba announced a new technology called Aruba Air Pass designed to […]
Welcome to another episode of This Week in Wireless (TWiW) where we discuss recent news in the wireless industry. Kr00k Products affected: (Broadcom and Cypress Chips) Aruba 200 series 344 & 345 504 & 505 514 & 515 Cisco C9115 C9120 The vulnerability wouldn’t be too easy to pull off without being in proximity of […]
News François wins 2020 Content Contribution of the Year at WLPC from Wi-Fi Awards Other winners: David Coleman – Lifetime Achievement Award Lariana Liu – Rookie of the Year Ekahau – Innovation of the Year Award Wi-Fi Explorer – Product of the Year Award Cisco – Company Leadership of the Year Award Meraki Releases New […]
Application Programming Interface: communication protocol or interface used to interact between different pieces of software. In networking, you could have an API available to interact between a Wireless Controller and a script coded by the network admin. APIs make it very easy to interact with our networking equipment to configure, operate and monitor them. In […]
CTS207: The New CWNP Track with Tom Carpenter
Feb 10, 2020
Following up CTS 204 (https://www.cleartosend.net/cts-204-cwnp-certifications/) where we talked about the different CWNP certifications, we invited Tom Carpenter (CTO at CWNP) to come and talk about the new CWNP track. The new CWNP Track – The Rest of Wireless (IoT) In this episode Tom presents the new track, explain who is the target audience and share […]
News Next Generation CBRS Standard: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200123005555/en/Wireless-Innovation-Forum-Issues-Next-Generation-CBRS-Standard Client Distribution at CLEUR: https://twitter.com/SNMPguy/status/1222794787398602752?s=20 Ekahau about to launch a new tool: https://twitter.com/ekahau/status/1223368179000455168?s=20 Register for the product launch: https://wifi.ekahau.com/new-tool-to-win-the-war-against-bad-wifi-networks?utm_campaign=2020%20TOF%20Webinars&utm_content=114769185&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter&hss_channel=tw-26760583 Eight Wi-Fi Trend expected in 2020 by the WFA: https://www.wi-fi.org/beacon/the-beacon/eight-wi-fi-trends-expected-in-2020 Conference on Port Wireless Solutions: http://www.portcomms2020.com/ CWNP JTA 802.11k (Radio Resource Measurement) 802.11k was published in 2008 and added to […]
CTS 205: 5 Tips For Migrating to the Cisco Catalyst 9800
Jan 27, 2020
Dave Benham was first introduced on the show as a highlight to him and what he does. We interviewed him at a previous Cisco Live. Today we have the joy of having him speak on the show about his tips for migrating to the Cisco Catalyst 9800 wireless controller. The Cisco Catalyst 9800 wireless controller […]
In this episode, we talk about all the CWNP certifications available today. We provide an overview of each and give some tips on how to study for them. Enjoy 🙂 The Wi-Fi Track CWNP Entry Level Certifications CWS (Certified Wireless Specialist) https://www.cwnp.com/certifications/cws-100/ Objectives: https://www.cwnp.com/uploads/cws-100-objectives.pdf Study Guide: https://amzn.to/38kIgqM CWT (Certified Wireless Technician) https://www.cwnp.com/certifications/cwt-100/ Objectives: https://www.cwnp.com/uploads/cwt-100-objectives.pdf Study […]
CTS 203: TWIW – Wi-Fi 6E, Powershell, Antennas, Training
Jan 13, 2020
In This Week In Wi-Fi (TWIW) we have a number of things to share. One of them being a bigger part of the new year and an interesting one too. We’re going to provide you with what we found this week in the news relating to wireless Before we get started, make sure to complete […]
The purpose of having a lab Why do we build our own labs? For many of us, it started with certification. It allowed us to learn about our jobs. We wanted to get better at what we do every day. Learning is a big part of what we do to become experts. Having a lab […]
CTS 201: RTLS Stories & Failures with Jussi & Wes
Dec 30, 2019
In this episode we have Jussi Kiviniemi and Wes Purvis to talk about RTLS, and especially RTLS failures! We talked about the important considerations to keep in mind while deploying a network to be used for location based services in order to avoid failures. Both Jussi and Wes had some experiencing designing, deploying and validation […]
CTS 200: What We Learned After 200 Episodes
Dec 23, 2019
Merry Christmas Everyone 🎄 Because we and our friends at WiFi Training are in the giving mood and we’ve reached 200 episodes, we have a phenomenal giveaway! CWNA Lab Workbook 20hrs of lab access Please fill out the form below These are the top 5 episodes 2019. The most listened to of this year. Looks […]
CTS 199: Starting Up A Consultancy Business
Dec 16, 2019
Starting a business can feel quite overwhelming. In this episode, Rowell and I share how we got started, what we have learn from going through the process and give you guys some tips on what needs to be done when starting up a consultancy business. What to do to start Here is a list of […]
CTS 198: Fast BSS Transition – 802.11r
Dec 09, 2019
What is the purpose of 11r. Published in 2008 and rolled up to the 802.11 standard in 2012. An amendment to improve handoff from one AP to another. This handoff is the same with or without 11r, the device is what ultimately decides when and where to roam. As security was added, so were the […]
CTS 197: Getting Into Wi-Fi Consulting
Dec 02, 2019
We’re going to talk about a slightly different topic. We want to start a series on the business aspect of wireless. Some of you may be consultants, started your own business, or are thinking about starting your own consulting business. 2 1/2 years ago, I started a consulting business. The process of starting and managing […]
CTS 196: Awards, Wi-Fi Design Day, Ekahau
Nov 25, 2019
We’re approaching episode 200! And we’ll make it there before the end of the year. I can’t believe we’ve made it this far. A lot of this we thank you, the listener. IT Blog Awards hosted by CiscoClear To Send is a Finalist under Podcast and a Video Series! We can’t thank you guys enough […]
You’ve probably heard how a network engineer should learn how to code because the job is changing. Our network will be driven by APIs. The role is changing. It’s not going to be overnight. The role of a network engineer will always be important. The same goes for a wireless network engineer. But we can […]
From the WLPC Prague presentation. We’ll go over our presentation and what we’ve found about Wi-Fi 6 from our testing. You can watch our WLPC Prague presentation on YouTube from the WLAN Pros channel. It will include a live Wi-Fi 6 demo where we include the audience. The demo consisted of 10 WLANpi running iPerf3 […]
CTS 193: Fortinet @ MOBILITY FIELD DAY 4
Oct 28, 2019
We all know Fortinet as a security company, but they also provide wireless products. They actually started to do wireless when their customers asked them to secure their own Wi-Fi Networks. This year at Mobility Field Day 4, they wanted to talk about their overall wireless offering. If you want to catch back with the […]
CTS 192: Aruba @ Mobility Field Day 4
Oct 21, 2019
Aruba covered a lot of subjects during their Mobility Field Day presentations this year, bringing some of their brightness staff members on stage. In this episode, we are discussing hot topics such as IoT, Wi-Fi in the 6GHz band, Wi-Fi 6, new Wi-Fi security and Passpoint. If you want to catch back with the presentations […]
CTS 191: Mega Joint WLPC Prague Podcast
Oct 14, 2019
Hot off the press, an episode recorded in front of a live audience at WLPC Prague. We join WiFi Ninjas and Wireless Banter Show after a day of sessions at WLPC in Prague. This was Rowell’s first time attending WLPC, which was an amazing experience. As usual, this was a rare in-person event for Rowell […]
CTS 190: Adoption Rate of Wi-Fi 6 & CBRS
Oct 07, 2019
This is a unique episode of Clear To Send. We did a joint recording with the Wireless Banter Show. The recording only has 2/3 of the Wireless Banter Show, Jussi and Jerry. In the beginning we have a little bit of banter, because why not. The episode was recorded with as much wireless technologies as […]
CTS 189: WinFi – The New Windows Wi-Fi Scanner
Sep 30, 2019
Helge Keck, the creator of WinFi comes on the show and talks about his new application. The new Wi-Fi scanner for Windows is already very popular and over 50 thousands people have downloaded the free tool since Helge publicly released the beta version, 1 month ago. Join us on the show to hear Helge talk […]
CTS 188: MetaGeek @ Mobility Field Day 4
Sep 24, 2019
Metageek is back! It’s been awhile since we’ve heard of Metageek at any Tech Field Day events. It was very nice and refreshing to hear from them and hear them present what they have been working on. If you want to catch back with the presentations and watch them, here are the links you need: […]
WiFi Monitoring & Assurance Using NetBeez Wireless networks get blamed a lot for today’s network issues. Any sort of hiccup leads to users creating tickets describing slow or poor performing WiFi. Enterprise organizations rely on WiFi. Central network operations centers must monitor multiple sites and quickly determine what issues may be potentially impacting business operations. […]
CTS 186: NetAlly @ Mobility Field Day 4
Sep 16, 2019
NetAlly WAS the secret company. We tell you all about it in this episode. If you want to catch back with the presentations and watch them, here are the links you need: NetAlly Company Introduction: https://vimeo.com/showcase/6218644/video/354018315 NetAlly Technology Perspective: https://vimeo.com/showcase/6218644/video/354018633 NetAlly Product Portfolio: https://vimeo.com/showcase/6218644/video/354021245 NetAlly Product Update: https://vimeo.com/showcase/6218644/video/354021719 For more insights from the other delegates, […]
Recently, we hosted a webinar for our CTS listeners. We wanted to provide a way to give back to our community and interact with them on an intimate level. Usually, you hear us on a pre-recorded episode. This time around, we all get to interact with each other. You get to ask questions and we […]
CTS 184: Cisco @ Mobility Field Day 4
Sep 02, 2019
Cisco decided to join the party and also present something at Mobility Field Day 4 this year. They talked about their new wireless Catalyst line of product, IoT and OpenRoaming. If you want to catch back with the presentations and watch them, here are the links you need: Cisco Catalyst Access Expansion to Wireless: https://vimeo.com/353900415 […]
Mist is now regularly presenting at Mobility Field Day. They often like to talk about some of their success stories and update us on their “travel to the self-driving network” (i.e. how their Artificial Intelligent system is evolving). This year was no exception! If you want to catch back with the presentations and watch them, […]
CTS 182: Mobility Field Day 4 – An Overview
Aug 19, 2019
François was a first time delegate for Tech Field Day, attending Mobility Field Day 4 (MFD4). Since MFD4 was held in Santa Clara, we were able to record in-person together. We found an outdoor location called Santana Row. We apologize for any extra sounds you may hear because of that 🙂 In the beginning of […]
CTS 181: Cisco Catalyst 9800-CL Setup
Aug 12, 2019
Rowell’s post: https://rowelldionicio.com/deploying-cisco-catalyst-9800-controller-on-vmware-esxi/ François’s post: https://www.semfionetworks.com/blog/setup-cisco-catalyst-9800-controller-on-your-laptop Cisco introduced the new Catalyst 9800 Wireless LAN Controller: https://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/products/wireless/catalyst-9800-series-wireless-controllers/index.html One of the main new features was the fact that they released a cloud version (escentially a VM) that you could install pretty much anywhere you want: On a private Cloud On a public Cloud (AWS) Locally on a […]
CTS 180: Our Expectations for Mobility Field Day 4
Aug 05, 2019
Mobility Field Day offers the opportunity for vendors to present what they have been working on in front of a group of talented delegates. It usually generates really good conversations and interactions. This year, Mobility Field Day will be taking place in Silicon Valley from August 14th to August 16th . The event is organized […]
CTS 179: 20 Years of Wi-Fi with Bob Friday
Jul 29, 2019
Did you know Wi-Fi turns 20 years old this year? It’s quite amazing that we’ve come to rely on Wi-Fi daily. From connecting to the Internet from our homes, watching 4k streaming videos, doing some of our important work, and connecting with family across the world. Bob Friday, CTO and Founder of Mist, joins the […]
These are our Wi-Fi best practices and guidelines based on our previous experiences. So if you want to find learn how we are able to successfully deploy Wi-Fi networks with every one of our clients, then you’re in the right place. Keep reading… Why do we not have one industry set of Wi-Fi best practices […]
This episode was recorded at the Podcast Domain for Cisco Live 2019 in San Diego. In attendance is Rowell Dionicio, François Vergès, Gurpreet Singh, and Fred Niehaus. Fred has been with Cisco since 2000. Since 1993 Fred has been doing wireless. Gurpreet works for a VAR in Canada with all aspects of warehouses. Wi-Fi 5 […]
Things are evolving again at Cisco. This time with the certifications. Cisco is further driving the Intent-based networking model into certifications. There’s the need to drive multi-domain policy, introduce APIs and programmability. It could change the way we do things every day. Infrastructure engineers are becoming software developers? Maybe not completely but there are those […]
CTS 175: Wi-Fi Security Updates with Hendrik Lüth
Jun 24, 2019
In this episode, we are interviewing Hendrik Lüth on the state of Wi-Fi security today. Hendrik works as a System Engineer for CANCOM in Germany. You can follow him on Twitter @DO9XE and on Linkedin. You can also visit and read his blog at https://linux-nerds.de/. Agenda Start conversation with the “2018” status of WiFi security WPA2 […]
Welcome to this episode where we do a quick recap of how Cisco Live went this year in San Diego. This is one of the few rare moments when both hosts are in the same city. Cisco Live Recap with Rasika and Stephen Check out this short video we recorded with Rasika and Stephen getting […]
This week’s episode is the eve of Cisco Live. Rowell & François will be headed to San Diego for a week of learning, recording, and networking with other likeminded individuals. In this episode, we talk about various topics of Wi-Fi. You can take a look at an example of sessions we’re looking forward to at […]
This Week In Wireless Rowell recorded a video on Wi-Fi 6 on David Bombal’s YouTube channel Long version: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uZMA4p00c9g Short version: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r62vs2uyQjM Huawei Huawei is temporarily pushed out of the Wi-Fi Alliance Wi-Fi Alliance is fully complying with the recent U.S. Department of Commerce order without revoking Huawei Technologies membership. Wi-Fi Alliance has temporarily restricted […]
CTS 171: Designing Wi-Fi Networks In Higher Education
May 27, 2019
Recently, I joined the wonder folks at iBwave to deliver a webinar on the topic of designing Wi-Fi networks in Higher Education. Thanks so much iBwave for providing me the opportunity to discuss Wi-Fi design in front of their audience. The agenda items I cover in this webinar: Challenges we see today Approach to Wi-Fi […]
Historically, AP-on-a-Stick (APoS) surveys were the only way to find out where to place the access points. We didn’t have any of the fancy software we have today to predict how the Wi-Fi signal will behave in our space. However, we still perform APoS today. In this episode, we will explain why we still use […]
Rowell and François were invited to Cisco Headquarters, along with many others, as part of the #JustTheTech event which was planned in coordination with the Wi-Fi 6 announcement that happened on April 29, 2019. It was a jam packed day of discussions with key people from Cisco. The folks in attendance for #JustTheTech were: Rowell […]
With Wi-Fi 6 and 5G now taking the stage, one has to think – what about the coexistence of the two technologies? Rowell and François met together at Cisco HQ to speak with Jérôme Henry about OpenRoaming and Cisco’s vision of seamless roaming. Rowell and François participated at an event called #JustTheTech at Cisco HQ […]
1024-QAM Evolution of the modulation techniques we are using today with 802.11ax (256-QAM). With 1024-QAM, we are now able to encode 10 bits per cycle on each subcarrier. The way we are able to do that is by increasing the number of different levels of amplitudes used to encode the data. If you want to […]
There are multiple functions in which a client or AP can gain access to the channel. What we’re going to discuss is in addition to the HCF and DCF. TXOP duration-based RTS/CTS Intra-BSS or inter-BSS frame determination SRG PPDU determination Two NAVs MU-RTS/CTS EDCA using MU EDCA parameters GOOD NEWS, CTS IS NOT GOING ANYWHERE! […]
CTS 165: Ekahau Unveils New Products (Sponsored)
Apr 09, 2019
Ekahau Connect Jussi joins us on the show to talk about the latest announcement of Ekahau Connect and new products. Jussi has been on the show multiple times before: CTS 009: Jussi Kiviniemi of Ekahau CTS 069: Jussie of Ekahau CTS 109: Ekahau Sidekick, Spectrum Analysis, and Finnish Rap CTS 142: Jussi Kiviniemi Discusses the […]
Objectives of TWT Objectives of 802.11ax All the current power saving mechanisms defined today remain usable with ax. In addition, the 802.11ax draft defines a new mechanism called Target Wake Time or TWT. Target wake time (TWT) is used to help minimize contention between clients and reduce the amount of time a client in power […]
CTS 163: Cisco 802.11ax APs & Cisco Live
Mar 25, 2019
Cisco Live We have an episode full of Cisco goodness. Recently, Cisco released the data sheets to two 802.11ax access points. We have the details on these two APs, their capabilities, and some of our opinions. And speaking of Cisco, right around the corner is Cisco Live. We have our tips and the sessions we’re […]
With OFDMA in 802.11ax, the size of the subcarriers has been divided by 4. Going from 312.5KHz wide with OFDM to 78.125KHz wide. The symbol duration has been increased by 4 times in the meantime. Going from 3.2 microseconds with OFDM to 12.8 microseconds. View the full image here Advantages of having more subcarriers Allow […]
Why is there a need for BSS Coloring? To help a receiving device identify the BSS from which a receiving PPDU originates from so that there’s a reduction in BSS collision reporting a busy medium. 802.11ax allows the medium to be reused more often between OBSSs by identifying those overlapping BSSs. The primary purpose is […]
CTS 160: 802.11ax OFDMA Resource Units
Feb 25, 2019
802.11ax (Wi-Fi 6) brings OFDMA to wireless. It’s an enhancement over OFDM which was a single-user transmission. When a signal is sent or received it is done with one device. In OFDMA, it allows multiple access which means simultaneous transmissions to/from multiple devices. There is a downlink multi-user operation and an uplink multi-user operation. In […]
I decided to finally get myself a little familiar with 802.11ax. I’m not sure why but I’ve pretty much ignored it until now. In this episode, I’m going to provide my overview of 802.11ax, or Wi-Fi 6. This episode will be the start of a mini series diving into detail of the components of 802.11ax. […]
CTS 158: 802.11w – Management Frame Protection
Feb 04, 2019
802.11w applies to robust management frames protected by Protected Management Frame (PMF). Wireless environment includes: Rogues Susceptible to eavesdropping Data traffic is usually encrypted Management frame is usually unencrypted Goal of 802.11w is to protect management frames from forgery or spoofing. I see it all the time in San Francisco. Deauthentication attacks coming left, right, […]
CTS 157: The effect of rate limiting on Wi-Fi
Jan 28, 2019
Welcome to a new episode where we speak with Troy Martin. We’re following his presentation at WLPC Prague, Effects of Rate Limiting on Wi-Fi Flow. We ask Troy to go into more detail about rate limiting and the effect it has on Wi-Fi. Effect Of Rate Limiting on Wi-Fi Users often goes around obstacles. What […]
802.11 has different topologies to be aware of. They describe how 802.11 radios may be used to communicate with each other. Many are familiar with the most common ones such as BSS and ESS. But additionally, a client can operate in an IBSS, PBSS, and MBSS. IBSS: Independent Service Set BSS: Basic Service Set ESS: […]
Security is much more than protecting the wireless frames over the air. We must also protect the infrastructure side, have proper segmentation, and ensure the right role based access. In this episode we speak with Chris Hinsz about security beyond Wi-Fi. Securing wireless is much more than encryption. We have WPA2, upcoming WPA3 and OWE. […]
CTS 153: Recap of 2018 & Starting 2019
Dec 31, 2018
We made it to the end of 2018! In our final episode of the year, we wanted to recap the show and its top episodes. There are some good episodes to listen to or if you already have, listen to them again! Additionally, we wanted to share some brief stats about the show and how […]
In a previous episode, François discussed what it meant to be an engineer. We thought it would only be fitting to do an episode on what it meant to be a CWNE. They are two very different things. An engineer can be a CWNE but we feel that to be a CWNE can mean something […]
CTS 150: Wi-Fi Design Day, NAC, Troubleshooting, C9800, and More
Dec 10, 2018
Stephen Cooper flies from Australia to San Jose to record in-person for Clear To Send. But really he was in town for work and made time to meet with me, Rowell, to talk about different topics in wireless. Interview with Stephen Cooper We met at the Westin hotel which happened to be the quietest place […]
CTS 149: 6 Characteristics Of High Performing WLANs
Dec 03, 2018
To deploy a high performing WLAN, in which your workforce heavily relies on, requires more than guess work. 6 Characteristics of High Performing WLANs Wi-Fi networks were originally built with coverage in mind and access points were installed in rooms where it was known to need Wi-Fi. But as businesses began migrating from Ethernet to […]
CTS 148: What Does It Mean To Be An Engineer
Nov 26, 2018
François goes into what it means to be an engineer. Meet Daniel Cavazos Daniel resides in San Antonio, Texas and is a Wireless Infrastructure Sales Engineer for Ventev. Sorry, Daniel! We thought we had a photo of you but we must have missed it! What Does It Mean To Be An Engineer Definitions of an […]
CTS 147: This Week In Wireless – News Roundup
Nov 19, 2018
This week in wireless we have a round of news to cover. Below are what we discuss on the show with our opinions. I apologize for the briefness of the show notes. I, Rowell, am traveling this week. Cisco Catalyst 9800 Wireless Controllers: https://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/products/wireless/catalyst-9800-series-wireless-controllers/index.html Commscope to Acquire ARRIS: https://www.commscope.com/NewsCenter/PressReleases/CommScope-to-Acquire-ARRIS/ Ubiquiti Networks Enterprise technology segment soars: https://www.fool.com/amp/investing/2018/11/09/ubiquiti-networks-makes-it-3-straight.aspx Golden […]
CTS 146: Deploying Wi-Fi at Scale with Gurpreet Singh
Nov 12, 2018
Gurpreet Singh shares his story of how he got started in Wi-Fi. He also explains how to approach a large Wi-Fi deployment. Deploying Wi-Fi at Scale Gurpreet deployed a new Wi-Fi infrastructure for a large food chain and shared his experience. We talk about what is different when deploying at a bigger scale. Preparation is […]
CTS 145: 6 Tips for Creating Ekahau Reports
Nov 05, 2018
François and Rowell discuss tips to creating Ekahau reports. 6 Tips for Creating Ekahau Reports 1 – Use testing files If you have worked on any programming project before, you will easily understand this tip. Working on a report template is kind of working on a programming project. Here is a summary of the work […]
Rowell and François discuss their tips and advice when running a Meraki Wi-Fi network in challenging environments such as warehouse, hospitals, and dense office environments. Meraki Wi-Fi Tips There’s a big appeal for organizations to use Meraki. The ease of management is the biggest factor. With the management interface being user friendly and the hardware […]
Coming off the end of the CWNP WiFi Trek conference, we go over our tips for becoming a CWNE. Tips on Becoming A CWNE Sometimes, we get sone questions from you guys about what it takes to become CWNE and if we have any tips. After seeing how many people at the CWNP WiFi Trek […]
CTS 142: Jussi Kiviniemi Discusses the Ekahau Acquisition
Oct 11, 2018
Ookla, makers behind Speedtest.net, have acquired Ekahau. Ooklahau Announced October 10th, 2018 Ookla has acquired Ekahau. The makers behind Speedtest.net are getting their hands into the Wi-Fi world by acquiring the maker of Wi-Fi validation tools. It’s a headscratcher of an acquisition. Speedtest.net is Ookla’s flagship product. It’s used by many people around the world. […]
Nyansa provides visibility into your Wi-Fi network. What can you do with it? Analytics Data & Wi-Fi Coming off Mobility Field Day 3 (MFD3), Nyansa brings a couple of updates. There’s a lot of data collected and presented onto the dashboard. What could be challenging is understanding all the data you’re able to see. And […]
We discuss Mist System’s bet on Artificial Intelligence in Wi-Fi Mist Goes All In With AI Mist delivers an update from a year ago when they announced their Artificial Intelligence (AI) for Wi-Fi, Marvis. With a lot more features implemented, it’s possible for a user to ask questions in a natural language and instantly get […]
Understanding OWE operation from the Aruba Networks demo presented at MFD3. Aruba Networks Demos OWE Opportunistic Wireless Encryption (OWE) is a security improvement coming to open SSIDs. It’s aimed at securing the insecure. We see it everywhere. A Wi-Fi network completely open for clients to join. It’s unencrypted traffic between clients and the AP. OWE […]
CTS 138: CWNA with Coleman and Westcott
Sep 17, 2018
David Coleman and David Westcott join the show to discuss the new release of the Sybex CWNA Study Guide. Sybex CWNA Study Guide, 5th Edition David Coleman and David Westcott have released an updated version of the Sybex CWNA Study Guide, 5th Edition. It’s been refreshed for the CWNA-107 exam and it’s packed with a […]
Eric Johnson talks about how MIMO works. We also talked about outdoor Wi-Fi, MU-MIMO and 802.11ax. Nick Turner We interviewed Nick at Cisco Live US 2018 at the Ekahau booth (he works for Ekahau). He is the reason why Ekahau template reports are so popular. You should also check out his blog where he shares some […]
Jim Palmer talks about how he performs RF filtering and isolation to improve client connectivity. RF Filtering and Isolation We welcome Jim Palmer to the podcast. He’s one of the newest delegates for Mobility Field Day 3. I look forward to meeting Jim in person and learning more about him. Jim works at a major […]
CTS 135: Authentication and Encryption Types
Aug 27, 2018
There are authentication and encryption types any Wi-Fi professional should know about.. Meet Dave Benham Dave is a sharp Wireless Network Engineer and a great guy. He’s very knowledgeable in everything Wi-Fi and is cool to hang out with. This is one of the reasons we wanted you ask him some questions! Also, he has […]
CTS 134: Understanding the 4-Way Handshake
Aug 20, 2018
The 4-Way Handshake is critical for secure wireless transmissions. Learn more about it in this episode. Alan Wang We met Alan at Cisco Live US 2018 in Orlando, FL. He was also the winner of our CLUS giveaway during the conference! Learn more about Alan, the network engineer, in this episode. CWS & CWT Bundle […]
Let’s discuss the different 802.11 PHY types available for devices to use. Meet Glenn Cate Our featured wireless network engineer is Glenn Cate, CWNE #181. Catching up with Glenn at Cisco Live 2018 was great and we were able to get him talking about himself. Listen to the episode to hear a little bit about […]
Recorded at Cisco Live 2018 in Orlando, FL, we speak to Christian Gauer about Wi-Fi location-based analytics. Meet Greg Skeene Our featured wireless engineer for this episode is Greg Skeene. He’s a listener of the show and we finally met up during a meetup at Cisco Live. Listen to the episode to hear him answer François’ […]
CTS 131: 802.11 Authentication and Association
Jul 30, 2018
What frame exchanges are part of a device joining an SSID? CWS & CWT Book Giveaway We’re raffling off a two bundles of the CWS & CWT books from CWNP. Two winners will get a copy of each book. If you’re getting into Wi-Fi or would like to know the fundamentals so you can sell […]
Get your basics of Wi-Fi starting with RF characteristics. Before we get into RF characteristics, we want to introduce our series of interviews we did at Cisco Live 2018. We interviewed many wireless engineers to get to know them better. We ask ten questions, we get ten answers. So meet Jason Beshara. We introduce him […]
Recorded at Cisco Live 2018 in Orlando, Florida. We speak to Mike Geller and Pramod Nair about 5G technology and what Wi-Fi professionals would know about. 5G Technology We’ve been hearing a lot about 5G lately. But do many of you what is involved with 5G? We just know it’s the next number up from […]
CTS 128: The Value of White Box Wi-Fi with Mojo Networks (Sponsored)
Jul 09, 2018
We’re diving into a world where businesses and Wi-Fi network engineers have full control over their Wi-Fi infrastructure through White Box Wi-Fi. This episode is sponsored by Mojo Networks White Box Wi-Fi Rick Wilmer, CEO of Mojo Networks, got into the wireless industry through a CPE and core router company. He saw wireless networking being […]
Ensuring the stadium Wi-Fi implementation goes according to the design. Stadium Wi-Fi Implementation Chris Reed joins the show to follow up on his stadium Wi-Fi design episode to discuss the implementation portion. He joined us back on Episode 123 where he went into the design of Wi-Fi within large public venues or stadiums. A wireless […]
CTS 126: Using Eduroam in Higher Education
Jun 25, 2018
We took Anders Nilsson away from a party during Cisco Live and asked him to talk about Eduroam. Eduroam Anders Nilsson joins us on the show to discuss the basics of eduroam, how it works, and why higher education institutions decide to deploy the eduroam SSID on their campus. Anders is from Sweden and you […]
CTS 125: 802.11 Frame Captures on Windows
Jun 18, 2018
We take a look at what resources are available to capture frames on Windows OS. 802.11 Frame Captures on Windows Back in episode 121, we spoke highly of Macbook Pros being perfect tools for wireless frame captures. But not everyone has a Macbook Pro. Even I still have a Windows laptop and need to do […]
CTS 124: Wireless Session Quick List – Cisco Live Orlando
Jun 09, 2018
Clear To Send is headed to Cisco Live Orlando. Cisco Live Orlando One of the largest conferences is headed back to the East Coast – in Orlando, Florida. If you know anything about Cisco Live then you know there are a plethora of sessions to select from. But we’re passionate about Wi-Fi which is what […]
CTS 123: Design Principles of Stadium Wi-Fi
Jun 04, 2018
François Vergès and Chris Reed join forces on Clear To Send to talk about design principles of stadium Wi-Fi. Designing Stadium Wi-Fi What are important considerations when designing Wi-Fi for very high density environment such as stadium? Of course the tools come to mind such as Andrew Von Nagy’s Capacity Planner and Ekahau Site Survey […]
CTS 122: EasyMesh – Interoperability Between Vendors
May 28, 2018
Wi-Fi Alliance EasyMesh certification is meant to bring interoperability between vendors for mesh networking. Wi-Fi Alliance EasyMesh Mesh networking helps bring coverage in homes where one access point can’t quite do it. The Wi-Fi Alliance EasyMesh enables interoperability across access points from different vendors. The term given to an access point is Multi-AP. The Multi-AP has […]
CTS 121: Capturing Wireless Frames with a Mac
May 21, 2018
Capturing wireless frames is a must know skill for any Wi-Fi network engineer. Capturing Wireless Frames with a Mac The Macbook Pro is an excellent tool for capturing wireless frames. The built-in wireless adapter can be used to sniff wireless frames in the air. As I like to say, the best troubleshooting tool you can […]
CTS 120: 6 Warehouse Troubleshooting Wi-Fi Tips
May 14, 2018
Troubleshooting Wi-Fi in a warehouse environment can get complex. We outline 6 tips to help you out. 6 Warehouse Wi-Fi Troubleshooting Tips Warehouse environments are tricky. They’re complex. Many factors can limit how well Wi-Fi works. There are tall racks which go as high as 30 feet or more. Depending on what kind of […]
Coming off the Cisco Champion Radio podcast, François and Rowell share their RRM experience. Our Cisco RRM Experience We use Cisco RRM on a daily basis and in most of the environments we configure and manage. It’s come a long way since it’s introduction but we’re both still learning so much about Cisco RRM. […]
CTS 118: Quantenna – A Wi-Fi Chipset Company
Apr 23, 2018
Rowell had the pleasure of meeting with Quantenna at their headquarters in San Jose, CA. Quantenna Just around the corner from my own home is the headquarters of Quantenna, in San Jose, CA. Their sign is prominent from the street and I drive by it several times. This time, I find myself sitting inside one […]
CTS 117: A Wi-Fi Engineer Goes to DevNet Create
Apr 16, 2018
What’s coming up for Wi-Fi with developers and how can we learn to automate our Wi-Fi day-to-day? DevNet Create 2018 I was expecting to be amongst the developers but I left feeling inspired about what we can create while working with Wi-Fi. This was my first time attending DevNet Create and it certainly won’t be […]
Robert Boardman joins the show to share his experience as a first-time attendee at Aruba Atmosphere. Aruba Atmosphere 2018 Hosted at the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas, Aruba Atmosphere packed in about 3000 wireless professionals for a great conference. Robert Boardman joins the show to share his experience in attending for the first time. Robert […]
Free Space Path Loss (or FSPL) represents the amount of energy that a given radio wave loses as it travels through the air away from its source. Understanding FSPL will help us understand how far a Wi-Fi signal can go. It is also widely used by Wi-Fi survey tools to predict Wi-Fi signal propagation. Free […]
Automation and programming is making its way into the WLAN engineer’s daily work life. Jake Snyder joins the show to provide his experience and use cases. Automate or Die We’ve seen automation take over the server and networking world. Wi-Fi is the last to fully embrace programming, APIs, and automation. It’s slowly making it’s way. […]
CTS 113: The Wizarding World of Cisco Live 2018
Mar 19, 2018
Robert Boardman, of WiFi of Everything, joins the show to tell us his thoughts on the upcoming Cisco Live conference during the summer of 2018. Cisco Live 2018: What To Expect Cisco Live 2018 will be from June 10 – 14, 2018 in Orlando Florida. Robert and I are both Cisco Champions. We decided to […]
CTS 112: Wi-Fi Assurance With Sensors
Mar 12, 2018
Fred Niehaus and Wes Purvis, of Cisco, discuss how the network sensor brings an impact with Wi-Fi assurance. The Network Sensor This episode was all brought together because of a recent announcement of Cisco’s dedicated Wi-Fi network sensor. A smaller AP-looking device, similar to the Cisco 1815, that can be wall-mounted or placed close to […]
CTS 111 – Why You Shouldn’t Skip WLPC
Mar 05, 2018
This year, Rowell wasn’t able to attend WLPC. But François made it to Phoenix and presented too! Why You Shoulnd’t Skip WLPC WLPC 2018 was packed with a lot of great presentations by different people in the Wi-Fi industry. The format of this years’ conference was a little different: 3 Main sessions of 55 mins […]
CTS 110: The Wi-Fi Connected Classroom
Feb 26, 2018
Teaching & learning is taking advantage of Wi-Fi. Are you ready for the connected classroom? The Highly Connected Classroom Students are bringing more Wi-Fi capable devices into the classroom. Professors have used the “closed lid” method with students for a while now to prevent distractions from happening during lectures. Other professors have shifted their teaching […]
CTS 109: Ekahau Sidekick, Spectrum Analysis, and Finnish Rap
Feb 17, 2018
Special guests, Samuel Clements and George Stefanick join the show to discuss the Ekahau Sidekick with Rowell Dionicio and Jussi Kiviniemi. Ekahau Sidekick Wireless site surveys have been performed with USB adapters for a long time. Many have had grueling battles with getting these USB adapters working, we’ve had them fail, and have seen varying […]
CTS 108: Useful Wi-Fi Metrics To Track
Feb 12, 2018
Which Wi-Fi metrics are worth tracking and what can you do with those metrics? This episode was sponsored by Metageek Useful Wi-Fi Metrics To Track Today’s Wi-Fi networks are the main point of access to network resources and have become mission critical service to employees. To monitor the Wi-Fi network, which metrics should you track […]
CTS 107: What’s The Purpose of Cisco CleanAir
Feb 05, 2018
Are you fully utilizing CleanAir to it’s maximum capability? We dive into the intricacies of Cisco CleanAir. This episode is sponsored by Metageek Cisco CleanAir Download your free CleanAir Reference Sheet PDF The earliest Cisco WLC version where Cisco CleanAir was released dates back to the 7.0 days. Sometime around the year 2010. Cisco CleanAir […]
Vijay Nagarajan of Broadcom joins CTS to discuss what’s new with 802.11ax and it’s future with Broadcom. This episode is sponsored by Metageek Broadcom Delivers 802.11ax Solutions On August 15, 2017 Broadcom announced their 802.11ax ecosystem of products labeled Max WiFi. In this episode, Vijay Nagarajan joins us on the show to discuss the future […]
CTS 105: Measuring User Experience with Voyance
Jan 22, 2018
What’s new with Nyansa Voyance since Mobility Field Day 2? I take a look into Voyance in this new episode… This episode is sponsored by Metageek Wi-Fi Analytics with Nyansa Voyance I wanted to look back at what Nyansa has been doing with Voyance since Mobility Field Day 2. Nyansa has been around since 2013 […]
What is Cisco DCA and how does it work with RRM. This episode is sponsored by Metageek Cisco RRM DCA – Dynamic Channel Assignment DCA, or Dynamic Channel Assignment, is a core component of Cisco Radio Resource Management (RRM). It runs a critical algorithm which dynamically changes an access points (AP) client serving channel based […]
In this episode, we go over the Cisco Neighbor Discovery Protocol. The basis of Cisco RRM. This episode is sponsored by Metageek. Cisco WLC Neighbor Discovery Protocol (NDP) Cisco NDP, short for Neighbor Discovery Protocol and Neighbor Discovery Packets, is a critical component of Cisco’s auto RF feature, Radio Resource Management (RRM). The purpose of […]
François and Rowell discuss their experiences capturing wireless frames for analysis and what tools they used to do it. This episode is sponsored by Metageek Capturing Wireless Frames It’s one of my favorite things to do. Capture wireless frames anywhere there’s a wireless network present. I know. I’m a boring guy. But I can’t help […]
CTS 101: Ubiquiti AirFiber Install with Robert Boardman
Dec 11, 2017
Robert Boardman joins the podcast to discuss his install of Ubiquiti AirFiber24 at his campus. This episode is sponsored by Metageek Ubiquiti AirFiber24 Robert Boardman is a network engineer in Monterey, CA. He recently deployed a point-to-point link using Ubiquiti AirFiber24. These are 24 GHz radios operating in unlicensed spectrum. This is one of the […]
CTS 100: Retrospective – Episode 100!
Dec 04, 2017
A look back at the podcast all the way to the beginning! Be sure to check out the giveaway at the bottom of this post! This episode is sponsored by Metageek We Made It To Episode 100! I never thought I’d make it to episode 100 of this podcast. The first episode was published in […]
Steve McKim shares his experience in starting a new WISP in his town, how he gets customers, and what equipment he uses. This episode is sponsored by Metageek Starting A WISP Steve McKim, a good friend of ours, lives in Rossburn Manitoba, Canada. He recently started his own WISP to provide high speed internet to the […]
Raymond Hendrix joins the show to discuss his experience in deploying event Wi-Fi. This episode is sponsored by Metageek Event Wi-Fi Raymond Hendrix is the man behind Veni Vidi Wi-Fi. It is operated by Hendrix IT. He is located in Merselo, Netherlands. This episode is an expansion of his Ten Talk from WLPC EU. Raymond […]
CTS 097: Studying For CCNP Wireless Certification
Nov 13, 2017
François talks about this experience in studying for the CCNP Wireless certification and how you can get started. This episode is sponsored by Metageek CCNP Wireless In order to get the CCNP Wireless certification, you need to pass the following 4 exams: 300-360 WIDESIGN – Designing Cisco Wireless Enterprises Networks 300-365 WIDEPLOY – Deploying Cisco […]
CTS 096: Deep Dive into KRACK with Hemant Chaskar
Nov 06, 2017
Hemant Chaskar, VP of Technology and CISO of Mojo Networks, joins the podcast to talk about the technical details around KRACK. Hemant Chaskar On KRACK Let’s welcome Hemant Chaskar of Mojo Networks. Hemant Chaskar is a Vice President and CISO at Mojo Networks. His past work has spanned wireless, networking and security, with the recent […]
CTS 095: Deploying Wi-Fi During Natural Disasters
Oct 30, 2017
Ian Beyer and Jonathan Boyle discuss helping others by deploying Wi-Fi communications. When a natural disaster hits the first thing everyone needs is reliable communications. Ian Beyer and Jonathan Boyle join the podcast to talk about their experiences in deploying Wi-Fi for first responders, families, and departments running critical operations. Ian Beyer is the Region […]
We provide an overview of the KRACK Attack targeting Wi-Fi security. KRACK Attack On October 16th, 2017 a vulnerability within WPA2 security was released. In this episode, we provide an overview of what the KRACK Attack is, how it affects Wi-Fi networks, and what you can do to seal this security threat. KRACK Attack targets […]
CTS 093: DeMISTifying the Client Experience
Oct 02, 2017
Sudheer Matta, VP of Products, of Mist Systems joins the podcast to talk about how they are using machine learning and A.I. to build better wireless networks. Mist Systems The intention of Mist is to add artificial intelligence and machine learning into the wireless networking stack. This provides a lot of insight into the Wi-Fi […]
CTS 092: Update From Extreme Networks
Sep 25, 2017
Mike Leibovitz joins the show to speak about exciting times at Extreme Networks, what they’ve done with acquisitions and where they are headed, Extreme Wi-Fi updates with AC Wave 2, and more. Mike Leibovitz of Extreme Networks 10 years Mike has been at Extreme Networks. Since 2007/2008 he has focused primarily on Wi-Fi. He has […]
CTS 091 – New York City – A Connected City
Sep 12, 2017
New York City flipped the switch and enabled Wi-Fi and cellular network in all underground subway stations. Jeremy Ward, of Transit Wireless, joins us to talk about this large scale project and what it took to do it. This episode is sponsored by Metageek New York City – A Connected City Jeremy Ward of Transit […]
Containment of a WLAN is the act of shutting it down! We discuss how you can find out if you’re being contained. This episode is sponsored by Metageek WLAN containment is not a situation you want to deal with. The symptom you’ll see are devices dropping from your WLAN. When they are disconnected, they often […]
CTS 089: Mojo Networks & The Client Journey at MFD2
Aug 21, 2017
We provide our thoughts on Mojo Networks presenting at Mobility Field Day 2. Mojo Networks Mobility Field Day 2 went live with Mojo Networks on July 25th, 2017. We visited their offices in Mountain View to see what was new with Mojo Networks. First up on the agenda, CEO Rick Wilmer, talks about Mojo Networks’ […]
We recap the presentation Cape Networks provided during Mobility Field Day 2. It aired live on July 26th, 2017. This episode is sponsored by Metageek Cape Networks at MFD2 A company was born a little over 3 years ago. Their goal, to help network admins and MSPs to enable a great experience on their networks. […]
CTS 087: AirCheck G2 w/ Netscout at MFD2
Aug 07, 2017
We recap Netscout presenting at Mobility Field Day 2 (MFD2) which aired live on July 26th, 2017. This episode is sponsored by Metageek Netscout At Mobility Field Day 2 Netscout has a number of network and application tools but for Mobility Field Day 2 (MFD2) they brought out the AirCheck G2 and Link-Live. The greatest […]
CTS 086: Capacity Planner, Ubiquiti and FedEx Forum
Jul 31, 2017
Let’s welcome Andrew von Nagy of Revolution WiFi and Capacity Planner, Brandon Gilles of Ubiquiti, and Jeff Hansen also from Ubiquiti. They join us on this episode to inform us about the collaboration of Ubiquiti with Andrew’s latest version of Capacity Planner. Ubiquiti also goes into details about the FedEx Forum UniFi deployment to fill […]
CTS 085: Cisco Advanced Services Team at CLUS
Jul 17, 2017
This is a recording from Cisco Live 2017 in the Podcast Domain. We had a few Cisco Advanced Services members join the podcast to discuss various topics about wireless. This episode is sponsored by Metageek. Podcast Domain at Cisco Live 2017 We were fortunate to have a dedicated podcast space at Cisco Live 2017 called […]
CTS 084: Channel Widths with Devin Akin
Jul 10, 2017
Devin Akin joins us on the show to talk about using wider channels on wireless networks. What are the pros and cons, what should we know when configuring wider channel widths and how does it affect the clients? Channel Widths Devin Akin joins CTS to drop some knowledge on channel widths. Devin is the founder […]
Check out some of the Wi-Fi apps I’ve listed for Android. This is the last episode in a series of Wi-Fi apps for different platforms. This episode is sponsored by Metageek Android Wi-Fi Apps Ekahau Site Survey Mobile Use this app with your Ekahau Site Survey Pro software. It can provide a perspective from the […]
Here are Wi-Fi apps we use under iOS. Although limited to the adapter, there are many good apps available to use for Wi-Fi purposes. This episode is sponsored by Metageek. Wi-Fi Apps for Apple iOS Hurricane Electric Oscium Airport Utility Speedtest Nperf Speedspot Tamograph Throughput Test Client SSID Overhead Calculator Cisco Fast Traffic Cisco Wireless […]
We couldn’t do our work without the valuable apps used in the Windows operating system. That’s what we’ll discuss in this episode. Wi-Fi apps for Windows. This episode is brought to you by Here are the Wi-Fi apps for Windows that Rowell and I use regularly when we are working at client sites or for […]
Let’s face it, we enjoy our Wi-Fi tools and apps. This episode talks about the apps we use in macOS. So if you’re a Mac guy, this episode is for you. This episode is happily sponsored by Metageek Wi-Fi Apps for macOS Being a Mac user meant not having enough apps to do your job. […]
How do you like to configure and maintain your Wi-Fi infrastructure? Do you use GUI or CLI? If both, when do you use CLI? When do you use GUI? How we are trained might affect the way we approach management. In this episode we discuss the pros and cons of using both GUI (graphical user interface) […]
Cisco Live 2017 is coming up and there’s much to see. Clear To Send will be there to do a live recording. We will also be giving away Clear To Send stickers at Cisco Live if you can find us! Upcoming Cisco Live 2017 The Mandalay Bay will be hosting Cisco Live 2017 again in […]
When it comes to challenging environments, warehouse Wi-Fi makes it to the top of the list. Each warehouse is a different environment housing different types of inventory which affect how the RF propagates. François speaks about his experience designing for warehouses. Warehouse Wi-Fi François has done a few warehouse designs and deployments. He is going […]
High density, capacity, BYOD, channel planning, etc. All terms you hear when lecture hall or auditorium style seating comes to mind in a campus environment. We are joined by Robert Boardman as our guest to discuss the challenges and solutions around lecture hall Wi-Fi. Lecture Hall Wi-Fi Robert Boardman is our guest to discuss how […]
CTS 075: Controller vs Controller-less?
May 01, 2017
Today’s wireless networks can be built using controller-based hardware or controller-less (cloud managed). Which solution is best for your needs depends on what the requirements are. Wi-Fi Question Thanks Matt for submitting a question to the podcast: Hi Guys, I’m fairly experienced with networking but just starting to focus on wifi for my current employer. […]
CTS 074: Wi-Fi Monitoring with Sensors
Apr 17, 2017
Wi-Fi monitoring is an important aspect of operating a WLAN. Where hard-wired is easy to do nowadays, how do you monitor a network connection of hundreds or even thousands that use an invisible signal to connect back to your network? David Wilson of Cape Networks talks about how it can be possible to monitor Wi-Fi […]
This is Roundtable II, where we gather other Wi-Fi professionals in our industry to talk about a topic we all are passionate about – wireless. Roundtable II Thank you for listening to today’s episode. We have gathered three individuals to share Wi-Fi issues with the listeners and to discuss how they resolved them. That is […]
CTS 072: Guide to Using External Antennas
Apr 03, 2017
Why should you use external antennas in your Wi-Fi environment? There are many reasons you should use them. In this episode, we talk about what to look for in external antennas, what to watch out for when deploying them, and what details to keep in mind. We are used to internal antennas from our access […]
Our special guest, Anand Srinivas of Nyansa, joins the show to discuss Wi-Fi analytics with their platform Nyansa Voyance. As many organizations are shifting towards getting data usage on the Wi-Fi networks, Nyansa helps fill that void. Anand provides us his insight into analyzing data from our wireless networks. Wi-Fi Analytics with Nyansa Voyance Anand […]
CTS 070: Wi-Fi Troubleshooting with Debookee
Mar 20, 2017
We welcome Thomas Baudelet from France. Together, we talk about network and Wi-Fi troubleshooting in general and we go over the Mac OS application called Debookee that Thomas created which could be use to troubleshoot a Wi-Fi network. Thomas Baudelet works as an independent Network Engineer and specializes in troubleshooting. He has been involved in […]
Jussi Kiviniemi, Senior Vice President of Ekahau, joins the show as our special guest as we record together in Santa Clara. Jussi goes over the conferences he attended and the upcoming updates to Ekahau Site Survey. Interview with Jussi Video demo of Ekahau Site Survey version 9.0 Attending WLPC and Aruba Atmosphere Great presentations […]
CTS 068: Wi-Fi Network Access Control
Mar 06, 2017
In this episode, we welcome Andrew Chappelle from Calgary, Alberta, Canada. We talked about network access control focusing on securing the Wi-Fi network. He shared his experience with complex NAC systems such as Cisco ISE or Aruba ClearPass and also share his view of what the future of access control will look like. Andrew Chappelle […]
CTS 067: Giving Back To The Wi-Fi Community with Rasika Nayanajith
Feb 27, 2017
In this episode, we welcome Rasika Nayanajith (CWNE #153, 2x CCIE) from Australia. We discuss the different ways to give back to the Wi-Fi Community. We hope that this episode will inspire a lot of Wi-Fi engineers. Our Guest Rasika is the Team Leader Network at La Trobe University in Melbourne Australia. He created the […]
CTS 066: Spectrum Analysis with Joel Crane
Feb 20, 2017
Joel Crane is our special guest on CTS and he has a lot of knowledge bombs on spectrum analysis. Be sure to listen to this episode. Interference. The invisible killer of your spectrum. It creates a terrible user experience and your network is to blame for it. Spectrum analysis is how you’re going to identify […]
This is a new series on the podcast where we bring together a group of Wi-Fi professionals for a roundtable discussion of industry topics, casual banter, and camaraderie. Insults are on the house 😉 A couple of us Wi-Fi professionals had the idea of getting together in virtual space to discuss anything and everything happening […]
This is a new series on the podcast where we bring together a group of Wi-Fi professionals for a roundtable discussion of industry topics, casual banter, and camaraderie. Insults are on the house 😉 A couple of us Wi-Fi professionals had the idea of getting together in virtual space to discuss anything and everything happening […]
CTS 063: Wi-Fi Security – Securing Access
Jan 30, 2017
François Vergès discusses Wi-Fi security and securing the access to the Wi-Fi network. On episode 56, we have talked about the legacy Wi-Fi security mechanisms and we explained why they are not considered safe and secure anymore and why we should not be using them in our modern Wi-Fi networks deployments. In this follow up […]
Jim Vajda, CWNE #183, is our special guest who has done K12 Wi-Fi deployments. Jim provides insights into his requirements, challenges and design process. K12 Wi-Fi Deployments Requirements in a K12? A primary requirement for K12 involves a low cost solution. Many schools use tax dollars or E-Rate. When using tax dollars schools must be […]
CTS 061: Wi-Fi For The Non-Profit Community
Jan 16, 2017
Glenn Cate, CWNE #181, is our special guest who has done many Wi-Fi projects for the non-profit community. He provides his experience and tips on giving back. Wi-Fi has become an expected service throughout our communities. From shopping malls to restaurants to businesses to airports to our homes, we just anticipate using Wi-Fi connections with […]
The journey to CWNE is not a straight path. It takes preparation, determination, and patience with a lot of studying. This is my summary to CWNE #210. Deciding to tackle the CWNP certifications towards CWNE is a task you do not take on lightly. In 2015, I had decided to create a personal goal of […]
CTS 059: Become A Better Wi-Fi Engineer in 2017
Jan 02, 2017
Becoming a better Wi-Fi engineer with this list of resources. Even if you are just getting started in Wi-Fi, you should check out each resource. Happy New Year! We made it to 2017! I am so glad we are done with 2016. I spent a lot of time in 2016 studying for the CWNP exams […]
This is a pre-recorded episode. I’m off for Christmas 🙂 I hope you enjoy the rest of your year. I will see you in 2017! After this episode was recorded I found out I had become CWNE #210. It was a great gift to receive right before Christmas. I’ll discuss my journey to CWNE in […]
In this episode I want to talk about Hallway Design or lack of it. This was inspired by a #WIFIQ that Lee Badman threw out there. I’ll tell you now, I don’t like hallway design. What is Hallway Design? In a #WIFIQ thread, Jake Snyder said, “There is a difference between sticking APs in the […]
Pre-RSNA (Robust Security Network Association) is the main topic for this episode. Francois and I talk about why you shouldn’t be using these legacy security methods and in future episodes we talk about the Wi-Fi security mechanisms you should be using. This is part one of a multi-part series. In the 802.11 Standard there are […]
CTS 055: My Thoughts On The CWDP Exam
Nov 21, 2016
Thoughts on CWNP’s Certified Wireless Design Professional (CWDP-302). The CWDP validates your knowledge of designing wireless networks where you need a pretty good understanding of spectrum, protocols used, security implementation, site surveys – including predictive, manual, hybrid, and validation. An important part of CWDP, and also in the real world, is being able to gather […]
CTS 054: 4 Scary Things Lurking in Your Wi-Fi
Oct 31, 2016
In the spirit of Halloween I wanted to go into a theme of scare and fright. While these may not make the hair on your neck stand, I don’t know maybe they do, these issues can lead to managing a scary wireless network. Scary because of end user complaints and because these can be running […]
CTS 053: 3 Simple Tips for Passing the CWAP Exam
Oct 24, 2016
These 3 simple tips for passing the CWAP exam may seem easier said than done. Listen to the podcast to hear more details about each tip and how I used them to pass the CWAP exam. In September 2016 I sat and passed CWNP’s CWAP-402 exam. The exam costs about $225 as of this episode. […]
CTS 052: How To Validate Wi-Fi Infrastructure
Oct 10, 2016
In this episode, I talk with Francois Verges of Semfio Networks about how to validate the Wi-Fi infrastructure. Validating a Wi-Fi network involves many steps. This is not isolated to a new deployment but also to an existing Wi-Fi network. Francois and I talk about what to validate, look out for, and what resources are […]
CTS 051: Aruba Networks at Mobility Field Day Live
Sep 26, 2016
Aruba Networks, a Hewlett Packard Enterprise Company, hosts Mobility Field Day Live at their EBC in Sunnyvale to talk about their Mobile First Platform announcement of Aruba OS 8. On September 12th, 2016 Aruba Networks introduced their Mobile First Platform. A platform in which improves upon mobile users’ wireless experience. They’ve really put a lot […]
CTS 050: Introduction To DAS with Josh Gerst
Sep 12, 2016
Josh Gerst and I talk about an introduction to DAS, distributed antenna systems. Welcome back Josh Gerst, Vice President of Engineering at RF Connect. He originally came on the show back in episode 27 and he’s back to talk more about DAS. DAS stands for Distributed Antenna System where you take RF from one location […]
CTS 049: The Language on Cisco APs – NDP
Aug 29, 2016
If Cisco APs could talk to each other they would use NDP, Neighbor Discovery Protocol. NDP is important to Cisco RRM. It feeds a lot of the algorithms within RRM. The purpose of Cisco NDP is to allow APs to build a “map” of their locations in relation to each other. Every 180 seconds an […]
Cisco Mobility Express is a small to medium sized Wi-Fi solution which can be deployed in just under 20 minutes. In this episode, I talk about my what Cisco Mobility Express entails and how I configured a couple of Cisco 1800 series access points. Other access points that can be controllers with Cisco Mobility Express […]
CTS 047: Troubleshooting Wi-Fi with Wireshark
Aug 15, 2016
It’s that time, a new episode about WiFi! Our main topic is Troubleshooting WiFi with Wireshark. I saw this get shared on Twitter which is an article from The Guardian. Apparently, AirBnb WiFi is a security threat for travelers. This shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone but it is possible that the owner could be […]
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