Using signal strength detection to place Orbi Satellites
Using signal strength detection to place Orbi Satellites
This document describes how to use signal strength detection of WiFi signal to optimally place Orbi satellites – location AND number of satellites. It is a common problem for users to place more satellites than they should – the common thinking is “the more the merrier”. But the opposite is true! Houses that have too much saturation of Orbi units have too much overlap of WiFi signals, causing all kind of disconnect problems, inability for devices to properly switch Orbi units as they are moved around the house, and more. In the mesh world, often times deploying LESS units is the better solution!
To do this right, you need a software app that shows real time WiFi signal strength. There are several free ones. I use a Mac laptop and walk around the house running either/both of 2 tools - WiFi Explorer Lite and iAnalyzeWiFi. Both are free and in the Mac App store. I am sure there are comparable tools in the Windows world, if not more of them. Both of these Mac tools will give a real time view of ALL signals in your house where you are standing.
As a bonus, you'll even see neighbor's signals if they are close enough. So, if you choose, it is easy to determine channels to set up with the Netgear routers for 2.4GHz and 5Ghz so that contention between your network and your neighbors’ networks is minimized.
Now there's two options with how you do this – it depends on whether a given satellite (RBS)’s backhaul is to be wired or wireless. With wired backhaul, you want to pick the WORST signal area that you can get a wire to, to increase the house coverage. Think about it – you don’t have to worry about poor WiFi coverage in that location because you will use wired backhaul for the RBS, and it will bring a strong satellite signal to an area of the house that did not have it!
On the other hand, with WiFi backhaul, you should pick a STRONG signal area so the backhaul connection is fast and reliable. But you want to choose the fringes of a strong signal area if possible – again, the theory being to bring satellite signal into an area of the house that did not have it.
So in summary of the theory, it’s a waste to place an RBS with wired backhaul in an area with a strong WiFi signal, and it’s also a waste to place an RBS with a WiFi backhaul in an area with very weak signal. Do the opposite!
You will determine these strong/weak areas by walking around with a laptop displaying real time signal strength. Take some notes so you get a picture of the signal strength throughout the house, starting with JUST the router running, and then as you add satellites one by one update your diagram.
I would recommend to first power down everything but the router (RBR). Walk around with your laptop signal app and place the second RBS – based on the proper signal strength coming from the router (strong if WiFi backhaul, poor if wired access is available).
After the router and first RBS are in place and powered up, continue the process with the next RBS satellite.Walk around the house and see where the dead spots are, and whether you care (ie you may not need a strong signal in some obscure part of your house!) That will tell you whether you need to add the next RBS. Try putting the next RBS as far as you can in the house from either the RBR or RBS - Netgear recommends 30 feet minimum, but the farther, the better, as long as you have a good signal for backhaul!
With the Mac apps, you can see signal strength in RSSI so it doesn't take any "figuring" to know if the signal is good enough for WiFi. The guidelines I use, is look for RSSI signal strength to be at least -67 dBm or greater (remember, greater would be say -50 dBm), as this should handle backhaul requirements fine. You can probably stretch it to -70dBm if you need to, that should be an ok signal strength for backhaul data by my guess.
With 2 RBSs in place, just keep walking around checking signal strength - and do some speed tests. Only then will you know if you have an objectively weak signal area demanding a 3rd RBS. Keep in mind as well, if that area for the third (or even the second) RBS is weak but small, you may need to reduce the signal power as a percentage less than 100% (found on the router admin web page) to avoid overlap.
Note on the two signal apps I mentioned above, I can see signals from each RBR and RBS individually - so I know if I have a strong overlap in a region of the house. I know this by seeing a nearly identical signal strength from two or more Orbi units at some location. Devices will have difficulty managing their movement between Orbi units as the devices are carried around the house.
I think you may be shocked at how few satellites you may need – less than you thought!
