Wireless router capability

[dhirender]

Hi!
We are contemplating setting a wi-fi network for a conference that is being held in October, and I was needed some information regarding how many connections a router could practically support, and the practical range for a network.
We are expecting about 350-400 people at the conference - is there a router which could support these many people.
Also, how difficult is it to configure the network to support 350-400 people.
Also, is it possible to have multiple wireless routers connected to one wired hub?
Would be extremely grateful for any help.
Thanks

Dhirender
Webtapestry.org

 

[IceNineJon]

From what I've read, most consumer wireless routers can handle ~128 connections. However, keep in mind that 128 clients connected to a single router is a lot of traffic. How much control do you have over where this event is taking place? What I would do is get a wired router or switch, run CAT5 to a couple locations around where the event will be held and put in some access points. This will allow you to 1) spread out connections a little more among access points, 2) maximize the coverage of your network, and 3) if the event is in a large area, people can "roam" (carry laptops around automatically switch access points on the fly so they won't get disconnected).

By the way, what's your budget for this?

 

[ktwebb]

You wouldn't use routers unless your trying to subnet that traffic and perhaps that IS what your trying to do, especially with that many users. Sounds to me like your confusing wireless router and AP. A wireless router is a router, with and integrated Access Point. What kind of traffic are you expecting. Internet connectivity to that many? Pulling down files from a fileserver? Pretty important piece of the puzzle there. If all your doing is sharing a phat internet pipe then the enterprise level AP's on the three non-overlapping channels with load balancing would be fine. If your expecting file transfers and/or large downloads from a local server then you want to probably take a look at 802.11A. You could use as many as 8 AP's in the same airspace without interference. You could also go with 3 802.11G AP's as well and still might be ok. Just depends on what you want to do and how you want to do it. The Router/Combo might not be a bad idea as you can segment your traffic but the client side setup would be a little more involved as you'd have to segment based on SSID and manually input that into the cards. Size of the space dictates alot, delivery requirements, type of data transferred. I'd suggest talking to a pro and having a detailed site survey done, then sitting down and discussing what you need and what you'll accept.

 

[dhirender]

Thanks IceNineJon,
Budget - as little as possible.
128 users seems quite a bit. That should serve us perfectly. Any specific brand/ model you could think of.
I was contemplating exactly what you are suggesting, and was wondering about the feasibility. You're right - it would be the better option.
Is it possible to set up an open network so that the users can "roam", and thus switch seamlessly between multiple access points.

Dhirender
WebTapestry.org

 

[IceNineJon]

I have a Netgear MR814 (wireless router) at home which works well...I'm not too sure about how it would handle all those connections (I only have 4 wireless devices connected to it). But as the poster above mentioned, you probably want access point (the router can act as an access point but I'm not sure if the MR814 can roam). Look around the net for reviews or maybe someone on here has some suggestions.

Not sure what you mean by open network but yes, you can set it up so the access points will hand off the signal to one another allowing people to roam.

 

[dhirender]

Thanks ktwebb,
We would be needing a wireless router to tap into internet backbone (broadband). But you are right - how many access points can on router support, and in turn, how many users can one access point support?
I don't think anyone is going to be transferring files - most are just going to use it for checking mail, surfing, or blogging (which I don't think would use too much of bandwidth).
I doubt if we are going to get A - we might have to go with B.
The area is an enclosed approximately 100 feet, by 150 feet.

Dhirender
WebTapestry.org

 

[dhirender]

Great.
Thanks IceNineJon,
That answers my question.
I tried out the MR814 as a trial at the venue, and the range was fairly limited. Perhaps it could have been the concrete and padding at the hotel, or do you experience it too?

 

[IceNineJon]

The range of the Netgear...I have it upstairs in my house and it works in every room in the house (the house is around 4,000 square feet). It even can reach my neighbor across the street. Not sure what it would be like with 15000 square feet...you probably should do the wired access point setup and spread them out.

 

[dhirender]

I probably have my dimensions wrong (I'm spatially challenged). In any case, I guess two or three access points spread around should do it.

 

[IceNineJon]

No, I think I'm the one who had it wrong...15000 square feet sounds right (I edited my post above to reflect that).

Where are you going to place the access point? On the ceiling?

 

[dhirender]

Yes, planning to place it at a height on a pillar. This is in the basement, and has a very high ceiling.

 

[IceNineJon]

Well, then a couple access points should serve you just fine.