[ale] Outdoor Wifi - quick summary

Mon Jun 28 13:20:30 EDT 2021

Use the Nanostations for PTP or PTMP connections.  One Nanostation per
location out in the field where you really need a network drop plus the
first Nanostation as the main link.  Attach your AP of choice to the
Nanostations to provide local area WiFi network coverage for the POS
terminals, etc. or drop a switch at that location to provide wired
Ethernet access.  Each Nanostation gives you a bridged network drop that
connects directly back to the first Nanostation so you can add anything
to its Ethernet port.

If you want to service the parking lot as well, you can do the same
thing, put one more Nanostation in the parking lot and add an AP or
switch just like above.

Note that the regular Ubiquiti AP AC's (the UFO-style) are not water
resistant so outdoor use isn't possible so if you want outdoor WiFi you
need to either get an outdoor rated AP or a regular AP with a removable
antenna.

You could use the UAP-AC-M as an outdoor-rated AP that covers both 2.4
and 5.0 GHz WiFi bands:
https://store.ui.com/collections/unifi-network-wireless/products/unifi-ac-mesh-ap

If you only need the WiFi then you can link the UAP-AC-M and the
Nanostation with a straight cable and their supplied POE injectors:

Nanostation -- POE INJ 1 -- POE INJ 2 -- UAP-AC-M

If you need more things wired, then just put a switch at the location.

The UAP-AC-M's are inexpensive as well and they can handle meshing on
their own so over a small local area like the tent you can have a
Nanostation/UAP-AC-M combo to light up the tent with network service and
then drop additional UAP-AC-Ms elsewhere in the tent to fill in holes.
Similar thing for the parking lot.

If you decide this should be a more permanent arrangement then you may
want to move up the price range towards some of the endpoint stations
that already have built-in switches and PoE passthrough. The switch and
passthrough allow you to put both the endpoint and the AP in the same
location bridged with a short patch cable and have a single POE injector
feed both

There's also the outdoor rated PoE switch (also inexpensive):

https://store.ui.com/collections/unifi-network-switching/products/usw-flex

That gives you four PoE ports plus the uplink in a weatherproof housing.
 You could have something like:

UAP-AC-M  ----\
Nanostation -- USW-Flex --- POE INJ -- x3 --- bare RJ45s (x3)

That lets you have three wired network drops plus an AP plus the
wireless backhaul to the main Nanostation all on one pole.  You could
even preassemble poles like this and then just put up the pole when you
need network service then take it down and store it until the next event.

On 2021-06-28 09:08, neal at mnopltd.com wrote:
> Thanks.  Please, keep the ideas coming.   There were comments about
> power - nope, no conduit, Scout building and rear tent power all come
> from separate lines back to the transformers on the pole.
> 
> What I'm getting from the Ubiquiti forum is that UAP-AC-LR-US 802.11ac
> Long Range Access Point will likely peter out at 300 ft.
> 
> Note that the satellite view is stale - the two trees right at the back
> of the church building are gone - they were sending roots towards the
> foundation. So, it's a clear shot up to the trees beyond the driveway. 
> Unclear to me how much a couple of trees at that distance can block WiFi.
> 
> Responses do suggest that we may have TWO distinct groups to cover or
> not: Vendors in the parking lot, and our beer/food vendors at the back
> of the tent.   The parking lot may have to get tossed over the side as
> 2nd priority.   Frankly, I think most of the vendors do other festivals,
> and have worked out how to do their credit cards on their phones; they
> would just rather not spend their data.  I think cell coverage in the
> parking lot is adequate.
> 
> So, if I understand your approach, it involves two NanoStations?  Or two
> NanoStations to get from building to back field, and an access point on
> the field NanoStation to provide the Wifi to the tablets?
> 
> regards,
> 
> Neal
> 
> On 2021-06-28 10:40, Alex Carver via Ale wrote:
>> Just to add fun to the festivities I have a couple of these NanoStations
>> that work very well as PTP bridges:
>>
>> https://store.ui.com/collections/operator-airmax-and-ltu/products/nanostation-loco5ac
>>
>>
>> The radiation pattern is more directional than the UFO-style AP's like
>> the UAP AC so it tends to work better for that purpose.  They're also
>> able to work in a multi-drop configuration so you can have multiple
>> endpoints instead of cable.  When they're in PTP mode they're not
>> directly accessible with normal WiFi products, the protocol is different
>> so it's harder to have someone "tap" into your connection from a
>> sidelobe.
>>
>> They're also inexpensive at $50 each and rated for outdoor use.
>>
>> These should work at the range you're wanting but you can always go up a
>> bit and get something like this if range really is an issue:
>>
>> https://store.ui.com/collections/operator-airmax-and-ltu/products/litebeam-5ac-long-range
>>
>>
>> Built-in dish makes a tighter beam and a lot of range (like several
>> miles in unobstructed LOS).
>>
>> Many options in Ubiquiti's airMAX and airFiber device groups.
>>
>>
>> On 2021-06-26 09:12, Neal Rhodes via Ale wrote:
>>> Thanks to all that replied.   My goal was to figure out the options, and
>>> focus some other people's attention in a productive direction.   I do
>>> NOT want to be the expert on this, as on the day, I'm busy doing sound
>>> or playing music on stage.
>>>
>>> I will quickly summarize the high points I've passed on.  Not to
>>> preclude further comments from the ALE group, which I value.   But I'm
>>> gonna let this simmer and see if some other folks pick up the ball.
>>>
>>>
>>> WHAT IS THE ENVIRONMENT? You can look at Google Maps for 1826 Killian
>>> Hill road, Lilburn
>>> From back window to the far tree line at back of field: 450ft (137
>>> meters)
>>> From back window to the scout building: 170ft (52 meters)
>>> From scout building to back of field: 304ft (92meters)
>>> A straight line of Cat6e wire from back door, across the driveway on the
>>> choir room side, to the trees, then along the side of the property, back
>>> to the cross near the fire-pit: 500 ft ( 152 meters)
>>>
>>> So from Back wall of building to where the Beer is sold is 480ft.
>>>
>>> OPTIONS:
>>> A) Run a 500 foot Cat6e cable from the switch in the sanctuary, out the
>>> choir room fire escape, out the Choir fire escape door, across the
>>> driveway in a 1/2” PVC pipe,  with pieces of 2x4 slant cut on either
>>> side to make a ramp to drive over, along the tree line, to the cross
>>> near the fire pit, and place an access point there.  We would already
>>> have power there for audio speaker.
>>>
>>> B) Implement a Mesh network, using existing Virtual Studio Raspberry PI
>>> processors, from the back window, to the scout building, to a unit at
>>> the tent.   While possible, this leaves one more essential component of
>>> Oktoberfest that Only Neal Understands.
>>>
>>> C) Place a purpose built long range Access point outside, perhaps on the
>>> classroom fire-escape wall, where it will be in the shade of the steps. 
>>>   This could be a permanent installation.   Some of these can be powered
>>> by the CAT6 cable connection.  (POE)   Neal is not an expert.  I am
>>> reading that some units claim coverage of up to 600 ft.  This would
>>> include coverage of the rear parking lot.
>>>
>>>
>>> Possible products: This is by no means exhaustive; consider
>>> https://www.mbreviews.com/best-outdoor-wifi-range-extender/ for more
>>> details/ideas.
>>>
>>> A) Ubiquiti Networks UAP-AC-LR-US 802.11ac Long Range Access Point  $109
>>> https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1189144-REG/ubiquiti_networks_uap_ac_lr_us_802_11ac_long_range.html
>>>
>>>   There are indoor, and indoor/outdoor flavors of these.  Some powered
>>> by POE.
>>>
>>> B) TP-LINK CPE210 N300 Outdoor Access Point $39
>>> https://www.microcenter.com/product/482831/tp-link-cpe210-n300-outdoor-access-point
>>>
>>> This unit appears to be designed to mount on an outside wall, and has
>>> directional antenna which focus the signal in one direction only.
>>>
>>> C) CPE510 5GHz 300Mbps 13dBi Outdoor $49
>>> CPEhttps://www.tp-link.com/us/business-networking/outdoor-radio/cpe510/ 
>>> Unclear what you get for the additional $10.
>>>
>>> Now that I'm writing this, I'm wondering if the TP-Link units really
>>> only work talking to each other, and not to a tablet out in the grass.
>>>
>>> regards,
>>>
>>> Neal
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>>
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