Wireless Site Survey

Ekahau Site Survey (ESS) Application

User Guide

How to
✓ Use the Ekahau Site Survey (ESS) Application
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User Guide

Contents
1 Introduction .................................................................................... 3
2 First Steps ...................................................................................... 4
2.1. Accessing to the Virtual Machine ................................................................... 4
2.2. Launching the Ekahau Site Survey Application ................................................... 5
3 Simulating the Environment ................................................................. 6
3.1. Setting the Map and Scale ............................................................................ 6
3.2. Drawing Walls........................................................................................... 8
4 Defining the Network & Capacity Requirements ......................................... 9
4.1. Defining the Network Requirements ............................................................... 9
4.2. Defining the Capacity Requirements ............................................................. 10
5 Creating the Network Plan with the Auto-Planner ..................................... 16
5.1. Indicating Network Coverage Area ................................................................ 16
5.2. Indicating Exclusion Areas .......................................................................... 17
5.3. Configuring Auto-Planner ........................................................................... 18
6 Fine Tune the Network Design ............................................................ 19
6.1. Using Simulated Access Points ..................................................................... 19
6.2. Optimizing the Channel Plan....................................................................... 19
7 Analyzing the Wi-Fi Coverage & Performance .......................................... 21
8 Multi Floor Buildings ........................................................................ 22
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Implementation

1 Introduction
A Wireless Site Survey, sometimes called an RF Site Survey or Wireless Survey, is the process of planning and
designing a wireless network, to provide a wireless solution that will deliver the required wireless coverage,
data rates, network capacity, roaming capability and Quality of Service.
The survey usually involves a site visit to test for RF interference, and to identify optimum installation
locations for access points.

This requires analysis of building floor plans, inspection of the facility, and use of site survey tools. The tool
we are going to use in this guide is the Ekahau Site Survey (ESS) Application.

The Ekahau Site Survey (ESS) Application main features are:

• Automated Network Planning: Automatically determine the optimal the number and location for your
access points prior to physical deployment
• Verification: Perform active and passive indoor and GPS assisted outdoor site surveys to verify
coverage and performance
• Analysis and Optimization: Visualize network coverage, capacity, and performance, fine tune them,
and simulate changes in the network or environment
• Troubleshooting: Solve various Wi-Fi as well as non-Wi-Fi based issues
• Reporting: Generate reports of Wi-Fi coverage, capacity, and performance (Ekahau Site Survey Pro
only)

This guide objective is to help you to familiarize with the Ekahau Site Survey (ESS) Application, and to learn
how to use the Automated Network Planning feature offered by this application.

Notes
This guide is a quick start guide: it doesn’t include information about the installation of the ESS Application,
nor information about all the other features provided by the Ekahau application.
If you want to learn more about the other features provided by the Ekahau application, click here.
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2 First Steps

2.1. Accessing to the Virtual Machine

The Ekahau application is installed and hosted on a Virtual Machine, in the Alcatel-Lucent Enterprise
premises. To access it, follow the step by step below.

Windows Desktop
Open a Remote Desktop Connection
session

Enter the following information:

- Computer: Ekahau1
- Login: EkahauUser1@remote-lab.com
- Password: you will find the password
in the mail you automatically received
when you book this lab from the ALE
Knowledge Hub website
- RDP Gateway:
remotelab.education.al-enterprise.com
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2.2. Launching the Ekahau Site Survey Application

Windows Desktop
Click on the Ekahau
Site Survey shortcut
on the Windows
Desktop

Or

Click on Start > All

Programs > Ekahau >
Ekahau Site Survey

This Ekahau main

screen appears
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3 Simulating the Environment

Before beginning the On Site Survey, it is strongly recommended to determine what applications are used and
the anticipated number of users the network will host. From these information, it will be possible to define
the network coverage, capacity and performance needed.

Warning
IF THE MAP YOU ARE WORKING ON CONTAINS MORE THAN ONE FLOOR, PLEASE FOLLOW THE ADD-ON “MULTI
FLOOR BUILDINGS” IN ORDER TO GAIN TIME (MULTI FLOOR BUILDINGS IMPORT CAN TAKES MORE THAN 24
HOURS!)

3.1. Setting the Map and Scale

The Ekahau Site Survey mostly relies on the floor plan(s) of the customer facility. The first step consists in
importing the customer map.

Ekahau Site Survey Application

Select Site > Add
Map

Select the desired

map (ex. Example
Ekahau.dwg)

Click on the Open

button

Tips
Floor maps image formats supported are: BMP, WBMP, JPG, JPEG, PNG, GIF, PDF, SVG, DWG, and DXF.
However, the DWG and DXF formats are strongly recommended, as the Wall Outlining Wizard feature can be
used (see part 3.2 – Drawing Walls)
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You also need to set the scale for each map. To set the scale, you need to know the distance between two
points on the map.

Ekahau Site Survey Application

Drag & Drop the 2
pointers to map the
wall that has been
measured

Enter the
measurement

Don’t click on the

Import button yet

Result
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User Guide

3.2. Drawing Walls

There is no longer need to manually draw the walls when defining the environment. You can use the Wall
Outlining Wizard (WOW) to automatically import the walls from CAD floor plans which dramatically
reduces the time to design the network. The WOW supports both DWG and DFX files (CAD 2013 or older).

Ekahau Site Survey Application

Select the Wall Type
from the drop down
menu

Please note that

there is no need to
map all the layers.
The current active
layer is highlighted
with blue color.

Enter the
measurement

Click on the Import

button

Notes
If some of these parameters are not imported with the map, click on the following links:
- Attenuation areas
- Holes in the floor

Warning
MAKE SURE THAT THE SCALE, WALL PROPERTIES, ATTENUATION AREAS, HOLES IN THE FLOOR PARAMETERS ARE
CORRECTLY SET! IF NOT, THE RESULTS PROVIDED BY THE EKAHAU APPLICATION WON’T BE CORRECT.
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4 Defining the Network & Capacity Requirements

4.1. Defining the Network Requirements

In the Ekahau Site Survey Application, you define the network requirements by selecting the type of
application used in the network, such as “Data” or “VoIP”.

Ekahau Site Survey Application

Select Project >
Coverage
Requirements

Signal Strength Minimum signal strength for the strongest AP

Signal-to-noise Ratio Minimum SNR, given a minimum allowed data rate in the network
Data rate Minimum date rate
Number of Access Minimum number of audible APs, given a minimum signal strength
Points
Channel Overlap Maximum number of audible APs on the same channel, given a minimum signal strength
Round Trip Time Minimum round trip time for ping
(RTT)
Packet Loss Packet loss percentage, calculated from the last 10 packets

Notes
The Requirement defines what your network is used for. You can either:
- Select one of the predefined Requirements, such as Basic Connectivity or Voice over WLAN.
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- If none of the Requirements matches the purpose your network will be used for, you can either
customize the existing profiles or create new ones (New and Duplication buttons)

4.2. Defining the Capacity Requirements

In the Ekahau Site Survey Application, it is also possible to take the capacity of the Wi-Fi network into
consideration. Capacity planning feature provides insight in determining whether your wireless
environment has the capacity to support the client device traffic.
The capacity planning workflow consist of: (1) defining the capacity area(s), (2) assigning the coverage
requirement, (3) and assigning the capacity requirements for each area. The capacity requirements are
defined using device profile and usage profile.

Notes
There are no more project-wide capacity requirements like in ESS version 8.x and 7.x. In ESS 9.x version you
can only assign capacity requirements on an area that you define. If you do not define an area then you cannot
calculate the capacity for your project.

Ekahau Site Survey Application

Draw the capacity
area(s) on the map.

Go to Area Tool in
the “Planning” tab

Draw any exclusion

area(s) on the map.

Go to Exclusion Area
Tool in the
“Planning” tab.
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Example showing two

areas defined for
capacity:
(1) Capacity Area-1
(2) Capacity Area-2

Note: Orange dots

will indicate which
area is selected
currently.

The exclusion area

shown with red lines
on the map.

Select one of the

capacity area and
right-click to Edit
Area.

This will bring up a

pop screen to edit
the area options
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Editing the Capacity

Area Options

Rename the capacity

area name that is
displayed on the
map.

Use the dropdown

menu to select a pre-
defined coverage
profile or click on the
“Configure profiles”
link to configure a
new device profile

Editing the Capacity

Area Options

Click on “Add
devices” to select
the different type of
devices and usages
that will be assigned
to this area.
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Editing the Capacity

Area Options

Use the dropdown

menu to select a pre-
defined device
profile or click on the
“Configure profiles”
link to configure a
new device profile

Editing the Capacity

Area Options

Use the dropdown

menu to select a pre-
defined usage profile
or click on the
“Configure profiles”
link to configure a
new device profile
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Another method is to
custom define your
device profiles and
usage profiles prior
to the capacity area
workflow. Then
within the dropdown
menu you can select
the appropriate
custom profiles as
needed.

Select Project >

Device Profiles…

Or Select Project >

Usage Profiles…

Select Project >

Device Profiles…

You can create a new

device profile and
customize the name
and select the
different settings per
requirement
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Select Project >

Usage Profiles…

You can create a new

usage profile and
customize the name
and select the
different applications
settings per
requirement
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5 Creating the Network Plan with the Auto-Planner

2 possibilities are offered by the Ekahau Site Survey Application:
- Auto-Planner: automates the AP placement and optimizes the channel plan
- Manual: manual AP placement and channel plan configuration

The Ekahau Site Survey (ESS) Application can automatically plan and create Wi-Fi networks according to
your performance and capacity requirements. ESS will take into consideration the amount of wireless
clients defined in the application (see above) and simulate real-life application usage such as VoIP, HD
video streaming, and web browsing.
ESS automates the AP placement and optimizes the channel plan to minimize channel interference.

5.1. Indicating Network Coverage Area

Before using the Auto-Planner feature, the network coverage area has to be defined.

Ekahau Site Survey Application

Select Planning tab >
Coverage Area tool

Left click to add

points to the polygon

Right click to end the

polygon
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5.2. Indicating Exclusion Areas

It is also possible to indicate areas where no Wi-Fi coverage is required or no Aps should be placed (such
as elevator shafts).

Tips
In the Ekahau Site Survey, Exclusion areas are just Coverage areas insider another (bigger) coverage area.

Ekahau Site Survey Application

Select Planning tab >
Coverage Area tool

Left click to add

points to the polygon

Right click to end the

polygon

The
Exclusion/Coverage
area must be in
another bigger
Coverage area
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5.3. Configuring Auto-Planner

Ekahau Site Survey Application

Click on the Auto
Planner button

Configure the
settings

Click on the Create

Plan button

Access Points
Access Point type Select the Access Point type you want to use in the network plan
Transmit power Adjust the transmit power if necessary
Advanced Settings Check this checkbox to modify the Antenna height, Channel Bandwidth, Band Steering, Nbrs of SSID
for 2.4 GHz and 5GHz, and Max client associated per radio

Tips
If there are different floors, the plan will be deployed for all floors.

Notes
It is also possible to create a network plan manually, if you don’t want to use the Auto Planner feature. If you
want to know more about this method, click here.

At the end of this step, the plan is deployed for all floors in the building where you have defined the
coverage areas. For separate floor maps that are not defined as a building, the network plan needs to be
deployed separately for all floor maps.
If you are not satisfied with the network plan, you can just re-run the Auto-Planner with a different
configuration settings.
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Warning
EVERY TIME YOU RE-RUN THE AUTO-PLANNER, THE PREVIOUS ACCE POINT LAYOUT(S) AND THE AP
CONFIGURATIONS ARE CLEARED!

6 Fine Tune the Network Design

6.1. Using Simulated Access Points

With the Simulated Access Points feature, you can manually change the location of the Access Point(s) or
add more simulated access points.

Ekahau Site Survey Application

Select Planning tab >
Simulated Access
Point button

Place the Access

Point on the map
with a left click

If Always Refresh
Automatically
visualization option
is enabled, you
should instantly see
a visualization for
the placed access
point

If necessary, click on
the Edit button to
edit the AP
properties

Tips
- To move a simulated AP, simply drag it on the map when the Edit tool is selected
- To delete a simulated AP, right click on the AP on the map and select Delete

Notes
If you are optimizing your Wi-Fi network coverage for 5GHz band, you might run into a situation where you
need to start turn off 2.4GHz radios to avoid CCI. To disable a simulated radio, right click the radio with Edit
tool on the map view and select Disable Radio.

6.2. Optimizing the Channel Plan

The Ekahau Channel Planner allows to create an optimized channel plan for measured and/or simulated
AP.
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Ekahau Site Survey Application

Select Planning tab >
Channel Planner button

Click on the Create Plan

button to deploy the
channel plan

Optimize channels for Select for which access point set the channel plan is optimized for
Frequency bands Select the frequency band
Bandwidth (on 5 GHz) Choose the Channel Bandwidth on 5GHz band - The Channel Planner will automatically assign the
optimal primary channels so that APs can fallback to non-overlapping channels for simultaneous
transmissions
Channel assignment Define the Channel Assignment you want to use for your network plan
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7 Analyzing the Wi-Fi Coverage & Performance

There are various visualizations that allow you to estimate network coverage and performance. The
visualizations are displayed as "heat maps" on the map image.
The Visualization Options allow you to set parameters concerning the visualization accuracy, performance
and overall appearance.

Ekahau Site Survey Application

Select the visualization
Type (1)

Select the visualized

Access Points

Select the band (2.4

GHz / 5 GHz / Both)

Check the Always

Refresh button

Configure the
Visualization options as
desired

Visualization Mode See the visualization in Smooth mode (polygons) or Detailed mode (rectangles)
Extrapolation When Smooth Visualization Mode is selected, adjust the level of extrapolation in meters/feet
Speed vs. Accuracy Allows the visualizations to be refreshed more quickly at the expense of the accuracy, or vice
versa
Signal Prediction Enable or disable all signal prediction. Can be used to predict signal propagation through other
floors
Visualization specific In this case for Signal Strength visualization
options

Notes
For more information about the Visualization options, click here.
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8 Multi Floor Buildings

In multi-floor buildings, importing the map in Ekahau can take a long time (up to 24 hours for a 1 building – 5
floors map).
The solution is to use the DraftSight application to separate each floor, which makes it possible to import
them one by one in Ekahau.

DraftSight Application
Open the DWG file in
DraftSight

Zoom on one floor

Then

Save it (File > Save)

Repeat the process for

each floor

Once you have one file per floor, go back to the part 2 - Simulating the Environment to learn how to import
the maps in the Ekahau application.