Wireless Andrew 2 Project Launched

Computing Services will break new ground in wireless networking as they begin a major upgrade of our wireless infrastructure. 

The upgrade project, dubbed Wireless Andrew 2.0, will entail the complete replacement of all wireless access points on the Pittsburgh campus with new equipment supporting the emerging 801.11n standard. At the initial deployment, the 802.11n-based network will provide speeds close to 100 Mbps (megabits per second) – comparable to that available on most of the campus wired connections.

See article published in the 8 1/2 x 11 Newsletter: 

Pioneering Computing Services To Upgrade Wireless Andrew

Computing Services, which brought the first wireless computing network to a university campus in 1998, has begun a major upgrade to Wireless Andrew. Called Wireless Andrew 2.0, the project will result in a more powerful, faster network that provides users with computing speeds near 100 megabits per second, a speed experienced with most wired connections on campus. Working with hardware vendors Aruba Networks and Xirrus, Inc., Computing Services will install new, wireless access points throughout the Pittsburgh campus.

Wireless Andrew 2.0 will enable users to access the Internet, check their email and download files nearly 10 times faster than they do today. The Wireless Andrew 2.0 project is expected to be completed by the end of 2008.

See article published in November's The Piper:

Wireless Network To Undergo Powerful Upgrade

Bruce Gerson

Wireless Andrew is getting an upgrade. The group responsible for the world’s first wireless computing
network on a university campus will unveil a new and improved one, sporting the power and speed that
users experience with most wired connections.

Computing Services, which made history in 1998 with the installation of Wireless Andrew, has
joined with hardware vendors Aruba Networks and Xirrus, Inc., to equip the 144-acre Carnegie Mellon
campus with new, more powerful access points that will increase the current wireless computing power
nearly tenfold. Wireless Andrew 2.0 will elevate wireless computing speeds from today’s rate of 11
megabits per second in most areas to near 100 megabits per second, enabling users to access the Internet, check their email and download files almost 10 times faster than they do today. In technical terms, the new access points support the emerging 802.11n standard.

“Carnegie Mellon is one of a handful of universities that are taking the next step in wireless computing,” said Joel Smith, vice provost for Computing Services and chief information officer. “This university has been at the forefront of computing since the Andrew Network was created in the 1980s. From Andrew, came Wireless Andrew and now Wireless Andrew 2.0. This is a logical next move for Carnegie Mellon.”

“Today, we view Wireless Andrew as a complementary network to our campus wired network,”said Director of Network Services Chuck Bartel, “but with the speeds 802.11n will offer, we can start to consider Wireless Andrew 2.0 as a replacement for the wired network for some applications used on campus.”

Bartel said the project goal is to provide connectivity that will rival the wired connections on campus, so the university community can benefit from the latest technological advances in wireless communication.

Dan McCarriar, assistant director of Network Services, said over the next several months Computing Services will be working with technicians from Aruba and Xirrus to survey campus buildings in an effort determine the best placement for the new antennas.

“The new technology will provide more power, more speed and greater coverage, all with less hardware,” McCarriar said. “The equipment will be much more efficient.”

Aruba’s three-antenna access points will be deployed in the core academic and administrative buildings. Xirrus, whose access points are circular with internal antennas, will cover the residence halls.

McCarriar said the site surveys should be completed by January 2008, and installation will begin in early spring. He expects the project to be completed by the end of 2008.

You can stay abreast of the progress of Wireless Andrew 2.0, by visiting the project Web site at www.cmu.edu/computing/news/wireless2/.