sparky2488

Thanks both, I have just downloaded Meraki onto my PC and am having a play with it now... certainly looks to be what we need, will grab a unit tonight when the kids have finished with them and have a proper play.

Hi Folks, Please forgive if this question has been asked to death, however I'm looking for some advice for our small independent school. We currently have 8 iPad's used by staff whilst tutoring ASD kids, one was recently stolen which has prompted the review of security around them. We do not allow staff to have mobile phones, yet obviously the iPad's have cameras on which is a cause for concern for me as our policy of non camera use in school has no management once the iPads are handed out. Whats the best / most cost effective way to manage 8 iPad's (potentially another 21 on the way in March)? We only have Windows PC's in the school, should we invest in a Mac and use the iOS for IT or is there a better way? Many thanks

For cat5/Cat6 I use a Peak UTP05 Peak Electronic Design Limited - Atlas IT - Network Cable Analyser - Model UTP05 £78 but lets you test either end remotely, small £3 ones do the job for patch cables but if your testing across multiple rooms the Peak gives you a little more flexibility with the numbered ends. A tone generator is always worth having in your kit if you have a bundle of cables to track.

Just drill out the panel you currently have.... even if you have to cut off the vertical bits of metal using the current plate will save you a fortune.

As someone that used to carry out WiFi surveys for a living I would in all honesty say the issues you mention above were down to sloppy surveying. 1:If the surveyor didn't discuss with you prior to carrying out the survey exactly what the system would be used for and the coverage needed then the survey was a pointless one from the very start... I used to have to survey buildings for systems we installed to enable lone worker systems, if a user was likely to have to crawl in a roof space then I too would have to survey in there... I've been under a kettle of molten lead, I've been up on a crane gantry, I've crawled through roof spaces. If the survey requires it then that's where you have to go. 2:All of the software I've used and seen used does show coverage into adjoining areas, even if you haven't walked that particular area then it does try to get smart and show you a predicted heat mapping, sometimes handy, sometimes not but this is down to the software used not the surveyor or the company. 3: point three comes down to the surveyor again... even with crappy plans you can still do a good survey. The system I used meant you created an X/Y axis and walked the whole building in a 2mtr/4mtr/6mtr grid pattern logging your X/Y position on a terminal... as part of my kit I would use a Disto laser measure to ensure I was within one meter of my proposed next position of data scan. Even with misshapen plans as soon as you start measuring then this will pick up the errors in the plan and enable you to create a more accurate plan of the building. Not all surveyors are cut from the same cloth i'm afraid . . . . were not all bad

Only sure fire way is down under the floor then back out in a floor box OR if the floor is solid then I'd look at a channel cut into the concrete then a plate over the top to protect wires . . . bit of work but stops all the trip hazard issues.

GSM in Barnard Castle was the mob I used to survey for, ask for Tom Sealby 01833 637647

I've used Ekahau RTLS before in a previous job, but most work we did was with RFID tags and proximity sensors on doors to track entry and exit..... very expensive though to install

Hi all, Wonder if anyone out there can shed some light on this issue.... recently set up a DrayTek Vigor 2830 into our small school, over the past few weeks I have been tinkering with the CSM filters resulting in me blocking a few sites from Pupils and Staff that were downloading P2P or continually watching Movies over our limited 5mb connection. Since blocking one site in particular one user spent over 1000 minutes connected to I am now keep getting the site I blocked showing up on the Draytek Smartmonitor as a media use on the IP address of our Server.....times of access lead me to think it's teacher related, but as a school that teaches Autistic pupils they have been given access to media sites to watch video etc. Any ideas or can anyone shed any light on what Xunlei is ?

Hi, Please excuse what may be a silly question, but I'm currently setting up a DrayTek 2830 Router/Firewall for our small independent charity school, I have limited knowledge of setting up firewalls etc so I may be missing something really obvious . . . . I have all the CSM filters checked that I wished to be blocked, but we occasionally get a blockage of a site I know to be safe or that we need access to within the school. I don't want to turn off the filter, but am trying to create a rule for a safe site that the firewall will pass..... is this possible?

ProSurvey from what used to be a company called Barcoding in Barnard Castle, think they were bought by GSM

If your certain there's no corners of media stuck in there, it can only be a switch actuator popped out OR dust on a photo interrupter switch.... switches can fail but in all honesty in all the time I worked for Tektronix/Xerox I never replaced one that wasn't damaged from user intervention.

I know it's an old post, but I'm bored and trawling the forum for interesting discussions..... I've carried out surveys all over the UK and Europe mainly within warehousing but loads of schools and offices. Depending on the quality of the network you need, if a simple room by room network is needed then go for it, stick em on the wall and as long as you get the channel allocation correct they will work (of sorts), but if you need to guarantee full coverage for VOIP or Lone Worker support systems then a survey will save you a lot of time and heartache. I subcontracted to companies using a software system called BlueSky, written initially for industry but was used all over, this combined with a Spectrum Analyzer on the laptop, a powered trolley and a handheld terminal to take readings we could guarantee 100% coverage even into stairwells and areas a worker may crawl for maintenance, to do this a surveyor simply doesn't walk around with his finger in the air, knowledge of wall construction would determine AP placement. Also an A band survey will give you better penetration in thick walls, but less distance of signal, a B/G gives you distance but poor penetration. You have mentioned £750 a day as a figure, I know £500 was the norm back when I did it, so not an excessive charge. Regardless of whether they charge you or not you will be paying for the surveyors time at some point, as others have said surveyors travel/time on site/hotels etc paid for so it will have to come from somewhere.

I'll second the Zebra kit, pretty easy to use with designer pro software

Have you scheduled a power down for all the screens over the weekend, I have had issues with the memory buffer filling up and causing the internal PC to shut down and reboot incorrectly... probably not the same cause but worth checking