moschops

Thanks Roberto Your comments were exactly what I needed to know. I have decided which quote I will choose. I have a few questions to ask them (from your last post) and will then get them to quote again as it has been nearly a year. I'm hoping it will not be too different. Thanks again Roberto and everyone else who posted.

Thanks Roberto Not the answer I wanted to hear but appreciated none theless. I went for Meru on some advice from county (they said lesslikely to go wrong and controller is very reliable) Idiot proofing (Against memostly) is essential. The possible components, how they are set up and how theywill perform in my school within just the Meru approach is mind boggling and noone I have asked can tell me how the quotes above stack up against each otherlet alone some advice on which to choose. Once I started to investigate Ruckus? beam flexing andchannel fly or whatever they are called I had to decide to stop. I have spentmore time on this than devising a new curriculum for the children in my schoollet alone the time I have missed planning and marking for my own class. In the end there seems to be too many variables in the realworld application of the different types of wireless technology I had to stopsomewhere. I have been researching this for a year and have to make a decisionin the next month. This site was my last place of hope before I started to flipa coin. I am the deputy at a primary school and teach year 6. I likecomputers and technology, I enjoy programming and building my home computersrather than buying them already assembled just because its fun. I have no qualitativeknowledge of wireless networks and definitely none that has allowed the vastamount of research I have done bring me any closer to a decision on whichwireless network is best for my school. Sorry that sounded like a rant - it was not. Your commentshave just echoed my own thoughts on my complete lack of skills and knowledge tomake this decision. I agree that not visiting is definite no but I would till appreciate some comments on the quotes they have given. Thanks again for your time it is much appreciated

Thanks again Company 2 came in and discussed amount of connections and where, type of access, how we might use it in the future. I am thinking that I might choose company 2 as they visited and then get them to do a survey before they start. TBH they could survey and make a poor job of it and I wouldn't know before it was installed. Which Ap is best and a stupid question - which quoted ap 832 as I couldn't see it? Thanks very much for your time

Hi njc235 is a RF wireless survey needed if my school is out of range of any other wireless networks? We are surrounded by fields. Quote 2 came in to specify exactly where in each room an AP should go. All three have sent simulations for AP channel interference. Thanks again

Hi and thanks for input. We have a county technician who comes in every other week. He has some experience of Meru. The quote (2) with external antenna was as a result with discussions with me and other staff we decided we wanted coverage in some outside areas where children work a lot. The other two companies just took maps and put Aps in rooms (Company 1 put an AP in each room without asking if they were used - 3 are not used at the moment and company two asked for a highlighted map and then ended up putting APs in a cloakroom) Company 2 also checked we had sufficient points in the correct places in classrooms as some classes only have two internet points which will be used for desktops. They all provide 3 year support although software upgrades are not mentioned specifically Last question why does quote2 option 1 have a 300mb throughput and quote 3 which is similarly priced (without external antenna and extra internet points) have a throughput of 800 m? Sorry I lied anther question does a primary school need a 1gb throughput? thanks again

Please could you give me advice on the quotes I have received for my schools Meru network. I asked for two quotes on a meru network for my school (230 children over a relatively large area for a primary school) Only one company came out to look at school. Due to visit the two quotes are quite different (They may not be but to me they look different) I then got another quote in the hope that they would enable me to compare it with previous quotes - they didn't visit and in a not very subtle way said we'll give you a meru quote but it is rubbish compared to Ruckus. So feel very confused - my research shows similar confusion or downright fanaticism for either approach (Ruckus or Meru) I am at a bit of a loss... may just go with company that visited. Any comments would be very welcome. (Has been almost a year since first quote and children are missing out. please help) Quotes below. Company 1 Total £11,267.33 exc vat Meru 13AP Bundle - 13x Meru AP1020e, MC1550 Controller, 20x AP Licenses, 3Yr Support 1 £5,680.75 10+AP Install Price 16 X £88.55 =£1,416.80 HP ProCurve 3500-24G-PoE+ yl Switch 1 £1,100.00 Meru AP1020e 802.11n Wireless Access Point X 3 £961.95 HP ProCurve E2530-24G-PoE+ Switch 1 £821.71 16x25 Mini Trunking 90 £5.75 £517.50 Configuration of Wireless Network and Existing Laptops 1 £398.00 HP 1410-24G Switch X 2 £231 Patch Panel X2 £33.06 £66.12 HP X121 1G SFP Transciever 2 £18.64 £37.28 Fibre Patch Cords 2 £9.72 £19.44 1m Patch Lead 16 £1.03 £16.48 Company 2 Gave two options and had some other additions after discussion with me. Wireless Network: Option 1 - 300Mb £7,781.04 1 Meru primary school bundle, inc MC1550 controller with license to connect 10 AP' & 3 AP1020e radios. £ 1,822.50 2 Meru primary school bundle, 5 x AP1020e radios with approprate licenses for MC1550 controller. 3,503.56 £ 2 Out door antenna for playing field and side play ground £218.50 5 Network points in rooms 15,12,14, ICT room & staffroom ( false ceilings) £475.00 7 Network points in otherside of the school with fix ceiling cables to run in void above ceiling. £840.00 3 8 Port POE switches with patch leads £341 1 Installation & configuration £750.00 Wireless Network: Option 2 - 1 Gb £11,137.91 Meru 1550 controller supports up to 50 AP's with 12 AP software upgrade licenses 1,527.86 £ 12 Meru dual radio 3x3 3-stream 802.11a/b/g/n/ac £6,382.56 1 Controller & AP software and hardware support £881.76 2 Out door antenna for playing field and side play ground £109.25 7 Network points in otherside of the school with fix ceiling cables to run in void above ceiling. £840.00 5 Network points in rooms 15,12,14, ICT room & staffroom ( false ceilings) £475.00 3 8 Port POE switches with patch leads £341 1 Installation & configuration £750.00 Company 3 £ 5,578.80 inc VAT *8 x WAP Meru School Wide Managed Wireless Network* (includes all cabling, POE switching, Installation & 3 Years Support) 1 MERU SPECIAL OFFER EDUCATION BUNDLE PRICE £ 4,649.00 £ 4,649.00 1 Meru Managed Wireless Bundle - 3 x AP1020i WAP’s & 1 MC1550 Controller 0.00 Includes: 10 WAP License & 3Yr Controller & License Support Platform can be upgraded to support up to 50 APs. Maximum throughput of 800 Mbps, and includes System Director software with Air Traffic Control, element management system, wireless security, rogue AP detection. Supports N+1 Wireless Controller Redundancy. 5 Meru 1020i Dual Radio A/B/G/N Wireless Access Point 0.00 With integrated antennas providing 180 degrees coverage. AP can be mounted horizontally and vertically. Other optional mounting brackets and screws also available. 8 Remote Krone CAT5e Network Point 0.00 8 Krone CAT5e 0.5M Patch Cable 0.00 1 Netgear GS510TP 8 x Gigabit T - 130W POE - 2 x Gigabit SFP Switch I know it is a lot to ask and I would pay for advice if I knew where to get it from. Thanks in advance