Hardware manual

Preparing the test 4
Nov 98
§ Make throughput measurements in the exact same location each time. This includes the relative height of
the laptop. Antenna position and height can have a significant impact on results. A suggestion to ensure
consistency is to set the laptop down in a specific spot on a table for each throughput measurement.
Before you get started
The range (and throughput) of any wireless LAN solution is affected by the composition of material in the
floors, walls and ceilings of any building. It is best to draw a simple map of your testing environment to select
various areas of the building to test the throughput and performance of the wireless LAN system. When
reviewing products, it is best to complete a site survey of your entire building environment before selecting the
locations to measure performance. This ensures that the reported performance is representative for the
product, and not dramatically distorted by the interference of metal objects such as elevators.
Proxim includes a site survey tool with each wireless LAN adapter. The site survey tool runs from the client
(typically used on a laptop), and includes a simple Graphical User Interface (GUI) for ease of operation. This
tool is used during installation for determining the best possible placement of antennas and Access Points to
provide the best coverage for a wireless network. Using it to set up your test environment will ensure
throughput measurements in your facility are made from locations that can deliver the best performance.
The broadcast site survey tool
Proxim’s broadcast site survey tool measures both the link quality and received signal strength of all radios
within the same domain. This tool allows a quick read of the wireless LAN condition readiness state. It is
particularly helpful in diagnosing user performance problems. In Windows 95, the site survey tool requires
that the driver and the RL2API (for RangeLAN2) or RL802API protocol (for RangeLAN802) already be
installed before it will function.