We’re moving into a new office and I need to figure out the WiFi layout before the renovation is finished.
The contractors want AP locations and cable runs finalized next week, but half the walls aren’t even up yet. No furniture, no meeting room equipment, basically an empty shell right now.
I’ve got the architectural plans, but I’ve never done a predictive survey for a space that’s still under construction.
What software would you guys recommend for this? And how close do the predictions usually get to the actual coverage once everything is installed?
Last thing I want is to tell the contractors where to run all the cables and then discover the WiFi sucks in half the meeting rooms.
For a regular office, predictive can be pretty reliable if your floor plans and wall materials are accurate. I’d look at NetSpot or Ekahau. Both can do predictive planning, though Ekahau is more of an enterprise investment. NetSpot is a solid option if you’re not doing large-scale wireless deployments every week. You can model the walls, try different AP locations and see the predicted signal change as you move them around.
@Training-Today9031 NetSpot sounds interesting. I’ve used WiFi analyzers before but never actually planned a network with one. Would you trust the predicted coverage enough to tell the contractors where to run the cables?
For an office like yours? I’d use it to make the initial cable plan, sure. Just wouldn’t treat the heatmap as a guarantee that every room will measure exactly the same once the building is finished.
I’ve used Ekahau for years and most of my office predictives have been pretty close to the post-install surveys. Warehouses are a different story. Metal racks, machinery, weird ceiling heights… those can really screw with your predictions. Doesn’t matter what software you’re using if half the stuff affecting the signal isn’t in the model.
Whatever tool you pick, tell the contractors to leave extra cable at the AP locations. Seriously. Moving an AP a few feet after the final survey is a lot easier when you don’t have to open the ceiling again.