As part of FY07 wireless initiatives, IT Services has begun converting older, autonomous wireless access points to newer, lightweight protocols. This will allow easier management and monitoring of the more than 1,800 access points around campus. In certain areas, the new access points will also provide increased performance, with automatic load balancing. In other areas, the new access points will be able to recover from hardware failures by automatically increasing the wireless signal of neighboring access points.
Green and Meyer Libraries Move to IT Services Wireless Network
Stanford University Libraries and Academic Information Resources (SULAIR) has decided to transition its wireless service to the IT Services wireless network to take advantage of the increased capabilities that the Light Weight Access Point Protocol (LWAPP) affords. Both Meyer and Green Libraries have recently been converted to IT Services' new LWAPP technology. The branch and coordinate libraries will be converted during FY08.
Upgrading Old Access Points
IT Services is also physically upgrading the original install base of older 350 series access points to the newer 1130 series lightweight access points. The new access points will bring higher wireless bandwidth and manageability to areas such as the Main Quad, the Museum, and the Clark Center.
Upgraded Wireless Guest System
The back-end technology for the Wireless Guest system has been upgraded to provide better supportability. While the functionality of the Wireless Guest system (including the need to sponsor guests) remains the same, the web login page has been modified to present guests with the acceptable use policy.
More information on Wireless Guest access can be found here:
http://www.stanford.edu/services/wirelessnet/visitors.html
Outdoor Wireless Access
As mentioned in the January 2007 issue of Speaking of Computers, IT Services has been working on expanding outdoor wireless coverage. The following outdoor areas now have wireless coverage:
Main Quad, Memorial Court, Rodin Sculpture Garden, Canfield Court, and Koret Park.
Additionally, the areas listed below will have wireless coverage added during Fall Quarter:
Dohrman Grove, Kennedy Grove, White Plaza, Roble Field, Artificial Turf Field.
IT Services is also continuing to investigate solutions for bringing wireless coverage to the Oval.
For More Information
For information about the University-provided wireless network on campus, including an interactive map of wireless locations (which lets you click and zoom to a specific area on campus; see example screenshot above) and how to connect your computer, see:
