Designing and Troubleshooting 802.11ac Networks Correctly the First Time is Now Easier and Faster with the Fluke Networks AirMagnet Wireless Lifecycle Solution

SANTA CLARA, Calif., Aug. 6, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Fluke Networks, a world-leading provider of network monitoring and test solutions, is rolling out a range of new 802.11ac features in AirMagnet Survey PRO/Planner and AirMagnet WiFi Analyzer PRO to help organizations optimize their migration or co-existence path to the new 802.11ac technology standard. With new modeling applications, toolkits, and the industry's only 3x3 portable capture and analysis capability, businesses can now leverage the industry's first complete wireless lifecycle solution to design, deploy and troubleshoot 802.11ac networks accurately, quickly and more cost effectively.

As enterprise networks rely more heavily on Wi-Fi networks and increasingly face bandwidth and capacity challenges, IT is transitioning from the 802.11a/b/g/n wireless standard to Gigabit 802.11ac for more reliable connections, better performance, and higher capacity. Independent research firm Infonetics Research estimates 802.11ac access points (APs) "…could well account for three-quarters of access point shipments by 2017."*

But just moving to 802.11ac will not solve all of IT's challenges. According to Gartner, "More bandwidth is good, and 802.11ac can better support high transaction dense environments; however, this does not solve the underlying problem of poorly or inadequately implemented WLANs."**

Wireless engineers and system integrators are already facing challenges integrating new equipment and ensuring deployments meet and maintain the Gigabit Wi-Fi standards. However, with the AirMagnet tools, the users are assured of designing and deploying networks that "simply work" and with the maximized performance possible.

To help address these challenges, AirMagnet Survey PRO, the industry's most accurate wireless design and site survey solution, and AirMagnet WiFi Analyzer PRO, the premier solution for mobile auditing and troubleshooting Wi-Fi networks, now include 802.11ac functionality to help IT teams effectively phase new wireless infrastructure into existing WLANs without blindly performing a 1-to-1 rip-and-replacement of existing equipment. The AirMagnet tools also enable IT teams to solve 802.11ac network issues correctly the first time, which prevents costly repeat visits and—more important—minimize user downtime.

802.11ac technology also places greater capacity demands on an organization's wired infrastructure, which means they must validate the capacity and quality of their Ethernet backbone before any rollouts. Fluke Networks not only offers market-leading Wi-Fi solutions with its AirMagnet tools, but also wired analysis solutions such as the OptiView® XG Network Analysis Tablet, OneTouch AT Network Assistant and LinkRunner Pro, which verify the readiness of the wired backbone to support Gigabit Ethernet.

New 802.11ac features include:

• Optimizing the migration/co-existence path to 802.11ac:
  • AirMagnet Survey PRO's planning capabilities allow wireless engineers to quickly and easily design an 802.11ac network, including determining the number of APs needed, location, and configuration settings, before rolling out any new infrastructure. This allows IT to estimate budgets before making investments, solidify migration strategies, and ease the potential transition pains.
  • Users can see how they can reuse existing Ethernet and power infrastructure for the new APs, visualize impact of introducing new 802.11ac APs in performance-hungry locations, and then measure and validate true performance delivery (instead of relying on estimates).
  • AirMagnet WiFi Analyzer PRO provides users a unique toolkit to not only predict the capacity readiness of the network for the new influx of 11ac APs and clients, but also to identify the root cause of poor connectivity performance for any conversation in the network.
• Industry-first 3x3 802.11ac portable analysis tool: Fluke Networks is the only vendor to provide a portable analysis tool to support monitoring and troubleshooting enterprise and carrier-grade 3x3 802.11ac APs. Using the new Fluke Networks 802.11ac 3x3 capture and analysis wireless adapter (or the Apple MacBook Pro's built-in 802.11ac 3x3 adapter) with the AirMagnet WiFi Analyzer PRO, IT teams won't miss any traffic and can solve any problem in an 11ac network.

Organizations can also avoid the systemic issues associated with troubleshooting from a fixed AP in the ceiling or from providing only a single-sided AP-centric view for performance measurements. They can also use the tool's ability to locate threats, classify them and record the details of unauthorized conversations as forensic evidence.

AirMagnet Survey PRO/Planner will be available later this month, and AirMagnet WiFi Analyzer PRO will be available in Q4 2014.

Quotes:
"The skyrocketing use of mobile devices, greater user expectations, and the growth of business reliance on Wi-Fi networks has spurred the 802.11ac wave," said Dilip Advani, director of Product Marketing for the Fluke Networks AirMagnet Tools and AirCheck product lines. "Adding more 802.11ac capabilities to our AirMagnet products will help wireless engineers and technicians deploy Gigabit Wi-Fi networks right the first time, without costly redesigns or network overhauls. Using Fluke Networks, they will get the Wi-Fi performance they're paying for and can solve problems accurately and faster than ever before."

Learn more:
For more about the 802.11ac standard, visit the Fluke Networks 802.11ac resource page.

About Fluke Networks
Fluke Networks is the world-leading provider of network test and monitoring solutions to speed the deployment and improve the performance of networks and applications. Leading enterprises and service providers trust Fluke Networks' products and expertise to help solve today's toughest issues and emerging challenges in WLAN security, mobility, unified communications and data centers. Based in Everett, Wash., the company distributes products in more than 50 countries. For more information, visit http://www.FlukeNetworks.com or call +1 (425) 446-4519.

For additional information and updates, follow Fluke Networks on social media.
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* Infonetics Research. "Wireless LAN Equipment and WiFi Phones: Quarterly Worldwide and Regional Market Share, Size, and Forecasts: 4Q13" by Matthias Machowinski, March 11, 2014

**Gartner, Inc. "Mobile Device Proliferation Is Forcing Network Leaders to Redesign Enterprise Wireless LANs" by Bjarne Munch and Christian Canales, May 19, 2014

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SOURCE Fluke Networks