The fiber optic service from Centurylink to the building is plenty good
enough.  I think they told me it was over 900gb delivered to the building's
router.
If I had access to the equipment to check the things you mentioned, I
wouldn't be asking questions here: I would know what the products are, and
what their configuration options and likely or actual settings are.
 
I'm only looking for what I asked for, and hoping someone here is familiar
enough with this sort of equipment and "apartment building" installation to
make some educated guesses.
 
The building manager is not technical and is a bit paranoid, and has not
seriously addressed the problem since April or before.  She gives monthly
reports at resident meetings: "we're looking into it.."       I think they
have some dumb or outdated "management settings" or allocation parameters in
otherwise good-enough equipment.
 
 
Chuck


  _____  

From: tclug-list-bounces at mn-linux.org
[mailto:tclug-list-bounces at mn-linux.org] On Behalf Of r hayman
Sent: Friday, October 21, 2016 4:34 PM
To: tclug-list at mn-linux.org
Subject: Re: [tclug-list] Need basic internet access info for a large
facility


I think I'd first determine if the problem is with the wired speed of the
Internet connection.

I'd try to determine speed of wired connections at the demarc point and at
the access points and every segment in between that has a switch or router
segmenting it.

I'd check to see what the wireless is using for radio protocol and
frequencies:
802.11n with 802.11a compatibility
802.11n with 802.11b/g compatibility
802.11n only, 2.4GHz
802.11n only, 5GHz
other?

I'd scan the wireless channels looking for interference.

I'd check to see if they have configured their LAN subnet appropriately -
avoiding typical problematic subnets (problematic because a lot of devices
default to these subnets)
192.168.1.0/24
192.168.10.0/24
...

I'd also perform a wireshark scan if I made it this far and didn't find
anything yet. I'd want to analyze the traffic to see if there are some high
traffic or nefarious issues.



On Fri, 2016-10-21 at 20:57 +0000, Wayne Johnson wrote:

Not an expert here, but first question I would ask is what is the signal
strength?  I've seen facilities like these that have cinderblock walls
separating each apartment.  Cinder block is not friendly to wi-fi.  USI has
the same problem in Minneapolis with their community wifi.  It doesn't go
through stucco real well.  1-2 bars is not adequate for a decent wi-fi
connection in my experience.  


There are some nice tools for Android that can scan and graph wi-fi signal
strengths.  WifiAnalizer from VREM Software works well with me.
 
--- 
Wayne Johnson,             | There are two kinds of people: Those 
                           | who say to God, "Thy will be done," 
                           | and those to whom God says, "All right, 
                           | then, have it your way." --C.S. Lewis




  _____  

From: Chuck Cole <cncole at earthlink.net>
To: 'TCLUG Mailing List' <tclug-list at mn-linux.org> 
Sent: Friday, October 21, 2016 3:31 PM
Subject: [tclug-list] Need basic internet access info for a large facility


Need wifi setup or management parameter help..
 
Some blind folk at Cherrywood Pointe  (senior living)  in Savage have tech
support from MN Services for the Blind for Dragon (and related) screen
reading software which needs internet to function properly.    Cherrywood is
an Ebenezer managed facility with about 70 "independent living" residents
who are cabalbe and typically affluent (rent is quite high).  Wifi is
included in rent.  The wifi connection is erratic, and at such low speed
that the software doesn't work.  I'm trying to help identify the problems so
thet can be fixed.   "Bandaids" used before have not worked. 
 
 What is a typical building setup?  My info is only approximate now.
Centurylink has a "big" fiber-optic feed to the equipment room.
Cherrywood/Ebenezer equipment in the "communications room" converts to wire
distribution.  There is a "building router" that has multiple "CAT5" feeds
that support offices and 3 pairs of access points that distribute wifi in
the facility .
 
All I need to know is basic bandwidth and connection info: I do not need to
know anything private, and do not seek any actual admin access.
 
What is  a likely building router make and model?
What is  a likely wifi access point make and model?
 
Are there typical bandwidth or speed restrictions affecting residents and
guests?
The connection speed of the 802.11g/n  links is usually only 11MHz, and
only once in a while 54MHz.
The internet speed is usually only about 1.5 mb/sec,  and  occasionally 3
mb/sec  or so.
 
Those numbers seem far below a typical "wifi hotspot" connection.   I've
never experienced such bad connections as these.  What does a typical
hotspot like a Dunn Bros coffee shop offer?
 
 
Please assist as you can.
 
Chuck Cole


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TCLUG Mailing List - Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minnesota
tclug-list at mn-linux.org
http://mailman.mn-linux.org/mailman/listinfo/tclug-list



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