We're Working to Bring You Faster WIFI!
IT is working to bring you faster wireless internet speeds by migrating to WiFi 6. Campus by campus, we are migrating and installing WIFI 6 Wireless Access Points (WAPs) to provide faster connection speeds and a better video conferencing experience. However, even with the upgrades, it’s good to know that a wired connection still provides the best experience for high bandwidth applications.
For those who are looking for the IT details, this move will bring faster connection speeds for devices that have 802.11AX WIFI chips and the Wifi 6 WAPs are backward compatible for 2.4GHz and 5GHz devices that are aging.
When Is My Campus Getting Faster Wifi?
Currently, the URC (as of January), ATC, and AO (both as of February) sites have all new WIFI 6 WAPs. Deerwood Center has 9 new WIFI 6 WAPs, but there are 26 older non-WIFI 6 WAPs that will be replaced soon. Although all of Deerwood's WAPs are on the new Wireless controller, all remaining non-WIFI 6 WAPs will be replaced there during the month of April.
Reported Project Issues & Resolutions
As the project progresses, we have identified that the WIFI 6 signal coverage does not extend as far as older WIFI coverage. The design of WIFI 6 provides much faster connection speeds for clients, however, the WIFI signal does not reach as far. The farther away the device is from the WAP, the slower the connection speed to the client device. Since the default design is to have very fast connections, the devices that are not near the WAP may be unable to connect until they are closer to the WAP where the connection speed is fast.
We are also looking into devices that are mobile and may be connected to one WAP, then move to another as they move throughout the building. This should be seamless, however, there may be times when they do not connect or have the expected fast connection speeds when transitioning to the next WAP. We are working to create a better configuration for our environment to address this issue.
We may be able to resolve these issues, and others that may arise, by adding new WAP or relocating WAPs to provide a better WIFI signal where users need it most. To assist in identifying where users rely heavily on WIFI, we need feedback from you.
FEEDBACK IS NEEDED
The WIFI 6 deployment has intentionally been slow to determine if critical issues are encountered along the way, before moving on to the next site. Our on-site support staff has been asked to provide any feedback they receive from wireless clients after a location is upgraded. It is important for us to know when issues arise or if you have any negative experiences while connected to wifi. These issues could present as buffering, dropped audio or video, or similar experiences in online conferences.
To provide your feedback, good or bad, contact the Technical Help Desk via help.fscj.edu.
When reporting an issue, it’s imperative to include your location (building and room number), what type of device you are using (laptop, tablet, etc), model, (Apple, Android, or Windows), and whether you were stationary or moving around between rooms or offices as the issue occurred.
