www.cooperbussmann.com/BussmannWirelessResources 73
Cooper Bussmann BU-245U-E Wireless Ethernet & Device Server User Manual
4.6 Testing Radio PathsConnection and Signal Strength
The general procedure for radio range testing a link is fairly simple. Configure two units to form a link using automatic radio rates.Install the
Access Point at a fixed location.Take a laptop computer and the Client to each of the remote locations, and analyze the link using the Connectivity
webpage. If a beacon is heard from the Access Point,the Client will update its Connectivity webpage with the received signal strength of beacon
messages from the Access Point.
If the signal is strong enough, a link may be established,and the Connectivity webpage of the Access Point may be opened. If the link is weak, the
LINK led will go out, and the remote Connectivity webpage of the Access Point will fail to load.Using this procedure, the signal strengths of units
at both locations may be analyzed, and traffic is sent between the units whilst remote Webpages are opened.
Throughput Test
A more thorough test is to perform a throughput test which will check the amount of data that can be reliably achieved via the Wireless link.There
are a number of software tools that we can use to check the data throughput, i.e.,FTP - file transfer protocol, Iperf, Qcheck, etc.
The preferred application is “Iperf” which has been configured in each modem and can be enabled to perform this test.It can also be run
externally using Laptops at either end of the radio link.
All of the above applications measure the raw data throughput and from this we can determine the amount of interference from the measured and
calculated data throughput levels.
The way “iPerf” works is a Server is enabled at one end of the link and a Client at the other.The “iPerf” Client will then will pass data over the link
and calculate and display the throughput accordingly.
“iPerf” server can be run internally on the modem by enabling this feature on the Advanced Radio page of one of the modems,see section 3.24
“TCP Throughput Test.”It can also be run externally on a PC or laptop connected at each end of the radio link. See Appendix E “External Iperf
Test”for a detailed procedure on how to use Iperf to externally check radio data throughput.
The internal “iPerf” is a basic cut down version of the standard “iPerf”and should be used as a guide only. For a more comprehensive test “iPerf”
should be run externally using Laptops or PCs at each end of the Wi-Fi link.
3A1576Rev1.6