Wifi Project

[hometownfl]

I'm looking to install a wifi service for my hotel. The hotel has 3 floors and 36 guest rooms. There are cat5 runs to several of the rooms but not all. There are no drop ceilings so I really want to cut into the drywall as little as possible.

Anyone have any ideas? Are there products that will allow me to use the cat5 runs to spread out the wifi, but not take up all the cat5 jacks? How would I go about mounting a device without it sticking out or looking unprofessional?

 

[RealBeast]

I have one bit of advice, use commercial grade APs for that many users, not consumer stuff, think Cisco Aironet. Consum

I would probably put one AP on each floor in a middle of the layout area unless the halls are real long.

 

[hometownfl]

Any slick APs out there that I can use with the current wall jacks?

 

[RealBeast]

Sure, any of them will connect to an Ethernet cable. Your biggest issue will be configuring the radio channels to avoid interference if you use too many inexpensive APs or cheap routers configured as APs. While I know you have 3 floors, 36 rooms, it depends on how long the halls are and the construction materials how far you can reach with your wireless signal.

Consumer grade APs and routers only reliably handle 8 to 10 wireless connections and many guests now have laptops, tablets and phones that they will want to connect -- you total connections could be quite a bit higher than 36, particularly if any employees access the wifi.

 

[007networkpro]

Panoptic makes some APs that fit into existing wall jacks. They might be what you need.

 

[hometownfl]

Thanks everyone. Do the jack packs work well? Any experience with them?

 

[hometownfl]

I was also taking a look at these. Any thoughts? http://www.ruckuswireless.com/products/zoneflex-indoor/7025

 

[007networkpro]

I work for a wireless provider for hotels. We use the Jack Pack for our newer installs, where cables have been run to most of the rooms. They work really well for us.