With the advent of Voice over Wireless LAN (VoWLAN) technology, packet-based telephony has come full circle. Just as the first analog cordless telephones provided a new degree of freedom for landline telephones, so VoWLAN can bring the same degree of freedom to telephone systems based on Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP).

Early cordless phone systems had difficulties that adversely affected the user experience. VoWLAN systems can also have difficulties, including choppy audio, roaming delay and dropped calls.

AirMagnet has developed a new software tool, Vo-Fi Analyzer, dedicated to troubleshooting VoWLAN applications. According to Wade Williamson, product manager for AirMagnet, wireless voice communications is increasingly the critical application driving Wi-Fi system development for health care providers. The capabilities enabled for mobile users are well suited for physicians and nurses.

Williamson also stated that Enterprise networks are also adapting VoWLAN, though not as quickly. This is mainly because it enables the benefits of VoIP without the penalties of new cabling.

While AirMagnet’s Survey tool can be used to optimize the physical design of a wireless network, The Vo-Fi Analyzer tool provides real-time end-to-end analysis of phone calls. The call manager permits calls to be placed to suspect equipment for diagnostic purposes. Furthermore, the system can provide proactive alarming for voice problems before noticeable difficulties are encountered by users.

While the most immediate benefit of VoWLAN would be support of a mobile workforce, another benefit is derived from convergence in wireless handsets, which now can include Wi-Fi functionality. Not only might this enable seamless wireless communications for the user moving between indoor and outdoor environments, stated Williamson, but it could also eventually allow handsets to roam between enterprise and cellular networks.

In a separate project, AirMagnet and Aruba Networks have partnered to develop and integrate hardware and software components that together form a highly controllable Wi-Fi platform for enterprise networks. In essence, the AirMagnet software deployed on an Aruba platform forms a networked troubleshooting system. The basic hardware components of the system are Aruba’s access points (APs) and an Aruba switch, which transfers AP data to AirMagnet’s Analyzer software. The software can then perform remote analysis and troubleshooting of the wireless network.

Under control of the Analyzer software, the APs can operate in Data mode or AirMonitor mode. The former uses single channel scanning that performs analytical traffic capture without disconnecting clients. The latter uses full-channel scanning under remote control for ideal analysis.

Using all of these tools, network designers will be able to provide secure and seamless electronic communications to users, including voice.

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