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Wi-Fi is the technology that makes your business more flexible, letting your employees work wherever they are in your business, and giving visitors a stable way of getting online.Getting the right business Wi-Fi is essential for smooth operation.

 

In just two decades we have moved from a position where a small number of businesses relied on the web to operate in an optimum way, to a point where it’s now become the overwhelming majority, and how you approach networking will have a huge impact on your business. Areas such as security, accessibility, reliability, and control all need to be considered.

 

    However, networking doesn’t have to be intimidating, so long as you ensure that you ask the right questions when selecting your set-up. In this post we’re focusing on wireless internet connectivity, and have pulled together a list of the key things to look out for when setting up your business Wi-Fi.

 

1. Coverage

 

Let’s start with one of the most obvious requirements when it comes to business Wi-Fi. If your router doesn’t have the power output or decent antennas—via technology such as MIMO, where both the source and destination devices use multiple antennas to greatly extend range—there’s a very good chance that it won’t be able to connect a large office area, let along multiple rooms. Also, look for beamforming as an option, which enables you to focus your signal into a specific area. They might not look aesthetically appealing, but a good rule of thumb is the more antennas, the better the overall range.

 

2. Power output

 

So we’ve already flagged up range as an important factor, but what if you want to try and control that range (and avoid those outside of your office space being able to connect)? It’s not a perfect solution—your signal may move beyond your premises—but with a router that enables you to modify your power output, and selectively activate antennas, you can often effectively limit and control reach.

 

The ASUS BRT-AC828 is a dual-WAN VPN Wi-Fi router with up to 2Gbps aggregated bandwidth.

 

3. Speed

 

An 802.11ac wireless router is a must to deliver the best speeds, but make sure that you buy a router with enough bandwidth to go around. As all Wi-Fi bandwidth is shared, the more users you have, the slower the share each one gets. The route around this issue is to buy a router with faster headline speeds.

 

802.11ac routers have two quoted speeds: one for the 2.4GHz network and one for the 5GHz network. On the 2.4GHz band, a 400Mbit/s router is good, but look for 800Mbit/s or higher for even better performance. On the 5GHz band, a 1,300Mbit/s speed is good, but look for 1,733Mbit/s or higher for the best performance.

 

4. Go with a mesh system

 

Using a Wi-Fi mesh network, you can expand the range of your wireless network without having to run cabling everywhere. And, mesh networks neatly pass clients from one satellite router to another, keeping a strong signal everywhere, while taking the pressure off of a single router. Products such as the ASUS AiMesh system could dramatically improve your business network.

 

5. Dual WAN

 

If the internet plays a vital role in your setup, either by supplying it to guests, or in the operation of your business, then it makes sense to subscribe to two different internet suppliers. This enables you to switch providers if your connection fails, have two different flavours—for guest and employees, for example—or even aggregate two connections for super-fast speeds. Look out for dual WAN ports to achieve this.

 

6. Accepting guests

 

In many businesses, it’s important that you provide guests with access to your wi-fi network. To do this, you must ensure that there is a way of authenticating them, and providing them with access (some routers support the use of an active portal—a web page where users can login). Guests should only have basic access to the internet, and not your corporate network. That way, you provide your guests the convenience of an internet connection without compromising your own security. At this stage, it’s also worth checking on the number of concurrent connections a router can handle.

 

7. Security

 

For many IT managers, the idea of employees logging into mail on an open wireless network whilst on the road or at home will bring them out in a cold sweat. The preferred choice of many admins is to require the use of IPsec VPN to make secure connections when outside of the network. So make sure that whatever device you’re considering addresses your specific security needs.

 

8. Regularly change your passwords

 

Once set up and users know how to get on the Wi-Fi, it's tempting never to change your wireless settings. Yet, that can be dangerous. As staff join and leave your company, the number of people that have your Wi-Fi details grows. You don't want too many people having access to your network, so regularly changing your network password can limit access to those who are still part of your business.

 

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