Wireless trough concrete and aluminum/steel framing?

[j-sicard]

What can be expected if using wireless trough half-foot reienforced concrete. How about aluminum/steel framed walls? I know I should get a site servey to anwser that (and will) but by experiance what would you say?

Thanx

JC

[shaun.oliver]

Wireless signals will be partially blocked by reinforced concrete or metallic framed walls. It is almost impossible to guess how much of the signal will be blocked.

The antenna type & placement, wall type/thickness, and AP power settings will all make a big difference to the coverage area.

The best method is to do a complete Site Survey using a variety of antenna types & Access Point locations/settings, until you find the best solution for your WLAN requirements.

You might find that you need twice as many (or half as many) APs as you'd initially thought - so make sure the Site Survey is done *before* you go and buy all the hardware.

Ask your local Cisco rep about finding a certified WLAN specialist in your area.

[blue.modal]

Quick and Cheap - put wireless cards in two laptops (one on each side of the wall) and check the signal strength through ACU.

There's no numerical answer that is guaranteed to be right for all concrete because different materials result in different densities.

Plan on using 350 series PC cards and the 352E2R type AP with external antennas to ensure that you get as much signal as possible.

Matthew Wheeler