阿鲁巴802.11ac wireless access points deployed to improve Wi-Fi security, coverage and performance
提供超快速的Wi-Fi对大学的体验越来越重要，但对于年长的大学来说尤其具有挑战性。格罗夫市学院位于匹兹堡以北一个小时，成立于1876年。
“At Grove City College, all students enjoy the benefits of college-issued wireless devices. Our primary objective was to ensure that older buildings were able to keep pace with student expectations, while controlling associated costs,” explains Grove City College CIO Vince DiStasi. “For us it was a business imperative to increase performance, coverage, and flexibility of our Wi-Fi network to deliver on a high quality experience for our 2,500 students.”
Extending existing infrastructure
A long-time user of Hewlett Packet Enterprise (HPE) datacenter, core, and wireless solutions, Grove City College had a legacy Wi-Fi network in place but it provided limited coverage in many of the residence halls and meeting areas, such as the campus library. This ageing Wi-Fi network was time-consuming to maintain and could not deliver the ultra-fast Wi-Fi connectivity the college required.
“We wanted to provide a consistent Wi-Fi experience throughout the campus while delivering higher-speed wireless services,” says Michael Aque, Network Architect for the college. As Grove City College was evaluating upgrade options, HPE acquired Aruba, now an HPE company.
他继续说：“我们一直等到我们评估了将Aruba产品集成到HPE中的路线图，然后制定了将我们的Wi-Fi基础设施迁移到Aruba网络产品的策略。”
Deploying 802.11ac connectivity
格罗夫市学院实施了分阶段的实施计划，首先关注覆盖范围有限的建筑物。“我们想实施一个Wi-Fi网络，该网络可以依靠教师，学生，管理员和客人，这意味着通用无线覆盖范围，” Dissai说。“这就是为什么我们首先专注于较旧的宿舍和校园图书馆，那里的无线表演不如校园其他地方那么强。”
克服障碍
Our Wave 2 APs increase Wi-Fi performance and future-proof our wireless network.
Vince DiStasi,格罗夫市学院的CIO
阿鲁巴installed波2 802.11ac访问点（APS）连接到7200 Series Mobility Controllersin the Henry Buhl Library, which was built in 1954.
“This older facility is filled with books and had brick-and-mortar obstacles to Wi-Fi performance. Although it’s an essential learning area for students, it had poor Wi-Fi coverage,” says Aque. “We installed 22 APs in the library as a proof of concept, and we immediately went from dozens of coverage complaints per month to zero coverage complaints in the library.”
The college is also expanding its wireless switching infrastructure by deploying5400R Switch Seriesplatforms to augment its existing Aruba switches. This powerful Layer 3 modular switch series delivers high-performance, low latency, and resiliency, and is providing Grove City College with a better mobile-first campus experience.
扩展Wi-Fi连接
格罗夫市学院then added 802.11ac APs to several solid brick cinderblock residence halls, and is now aggressively expanding Wi-Fi coverage across the campus.
“我们的目标是在接下来的三个月内在每栋建筑物中进行802.11AC的覆盖范围，” Distasi说。“到那时，我们还将在大约一半的宿舍里运行802.11ac APS。”Distasi希望在此时间范围内至少有825 Aruba 802.11ac APS运行。
Streamlining network operations
The college is leveragingClearPass Policy Manager安全地验证用户和空波network managementto obtain a single view of the network to analyze and understand usage trends.
用ClearPass认证用户
格罗夫市学院最初部署ClearPass为了简化客人的身份验证并支持新用户的登机，现在正在扩大其用法以使用户能够注册自己的设备。
“ClearPass delivers visibility, policy control, and workflow automation in one cohesive solution, and we’re now using it to improve wireless network security, better understand network usage, and provide a single portal for user authentication,” says DiStasi. Grove City College is enabling a seamless roaming experience across the campus, and giving visitors simple and secure guest network access while enabling students, faculty, and other members of the campus community to securely access college resources over the wireless network.
优化Airwave的性能和覆盖范围
The college is currently using HPE Intelligent Management Center (IMC) to manage its wired and wireless networks, but over the next few months will be implementing空波管理Wi-Fi基础架构。Airwave是一个功能强大且易于使用的网络管理平台，它将为其在无线网络上运行的设备，用户和应用程序提供颗粒状可见性。
“我们会用电波HPE IMC和补充provide a single view into our wireless infrastructure,” says Aque. Through a centralized and intuitive user interface, AirWave will provide IT with real-time monitoring, proactive alerts, and historical reporting. IT staff will also use it to streamline troubleshooting and continuously optimize wireless coverage and performance.
未来的无线基础架构
“We’ve relied on HPE wireless solutions since 2004 and I think we’ve deployed every solution that HPE has offered,” states DiStasi. “Now we’re focusing on delivering consistently high performance anywhere on campus.”
波2阿鲁巴岛802.11 ac APshave an integratedBluetooth Aruba Beaconthat simplifies the remote management of Aruba beacons while also providing advanced location and indoor way finding, as well as proximity-based push notification capabilities. It is enabling Grove City College to leverage mobility context to support applications that deliver an enhanced user experience.
“我们将使用Meridian Mobile App Platformto build mobile apps that can be used across the campus,” states DiStasi. “For example, prospective students will be able to take a self-guided tour, and students will be able to look up the availability of reference materials in the library from their mobile devices.”
提高性能和可靠性
The use of Bluetooth and beacons is helping Grove City College future-proof its wireless infrastructure.
Distasi说：“我们正处于利用这些技术的早期阶段，但将越来越多地利用它们来增强学生的无线体验。”“通过部署Aruba 802.11ac AP，我们已经能够提高50％以上的性能，而我们的管理工具正在提供帮助我们确保可靠，校园范围内的Wi-Fi覆盖范围的见解。”
他总结说：“ Wi-Fi现在正变得越来越融入课堂体验。It’s difficult to captivate students for 50 minutes to an hour-and-a-half in a classroom experience if there are Wi-Fi problems, and by increasing the performance and reliability of our wireless network we are better preparing students to enter the world when they graduate. In the past we viewed Wi-Fi as a matter of convenience, but we now view it as a mission-critical resource that is central to the education of our students.”
