Wireless LAN management software maker AirMagnet is readying a new product that integrates an RF spectrum analyzer with a site survey tool.
The idea is to give IT managers a predictive view of all possible problems in a wireless LAN, based both on the location of the access points and how they perform relative to any radio interference problems, officials said.
The combo offering combines the new AirMagnet Survey 3.0 with AirMagnet Spectrum Analyzer 2.0. It supports Intels Centrino wireless LAN chipsets.
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It also supports Microsofts MapPoint application and allows for the mapping of GPS coordinates, which should be helpful for customers who are designing outdoor wireless LANs, such as the mesh networks that are popping up all over the country for municipal Wi-Fi services.
AirMagnet officials said they are looking to team up with the hardware companies that specialize in outdoor wireless LANs.
“Were certainly talking to most of the mesh players out there,” said Wade Williamson, a product manager at AirMagnet. “Theres a content delivery aspect to this market—folks trying to figure out how theyre going to get next-generation content to customers homes.”
AirMagnet Survey 3.0 also includes a new capacity planning tool that helps mitigate the problem of overloaded access points, as well as the ability to identify and classify 15 more potentially problematic devices than previous survey tools—including various microwave ovens and European Bluetooth devices.
The Spectrum Analyzer also records data that can be played back on demand in case the IT manager wants to review unusual RF patterns; Williamson informally called this “Tivo Mode.”
It will be available later this February.
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