W-AIR Network Admin Guide - Sync over LAN

Watch the video tutorial about setting up a W-AIR Multicell Network (registration is required):

Description

System architecture

W-AIR is a Wildix cordless solution. The system supports auto-provisioning enabling instant connection to the Wildix PBX. Due to high scalability, new components are quickly and easily integrated to guarantee the better performance.

Wildix W-AIR system uses the wireless technology CAT-iq (Cordless Advanced Technology – Internet quality). 

The architecture consists of three components:

1. Base station - an essential component of a DECT system. Wildix W-AIR base stations:

• Multicell base stations: W-AIR Base Sync Plus, W-AIR Base Sync Plus Outdoor

• Single Cell base station: W-AIR Base Small Business. Documentation: W-AIR Small Business - Admin Guide

2. Repeater - extends the signal coverage of the base station.

3. Cordless endpoints:

Wildix W-AIR handsets: W-AIR Basic2, W-AIR LifeSaver, W-AIR LifeSaver-EX, W-AIR Med, W-AIR Office and W-AIR Headset. Follow the online Guides to get detailed information: W-AIR DECT Handsets Guide, W-AIR Headset Guide.

Multicell network scalability and features

Sync over LAN with W-AIR Base Sync Plus/ W-AIR Base Sync Plus Outdoor:

• LAN PTP Sync or Sync over the air (for sync over the air, refer to W-AIR Network Admin Guide - Sync over the air)

• Up to 16000 users per system

• Up to 30* users registered to 1 base station

• Up to 4000 bases per system

• Up to 8 concurrent calls** per base

• Up to 8 concurrent handovers per base

• Up to 3 repeaters per base 

  • Up to 50 bases - 3 repeaters

  • 50-125 bases - 1 repeater

  • More than 125 bases - no repeater

• Up to 5 concurrent calls per repeater

• Up to 100 repeaters per system

• Base station indoor range: 50 m; outdoor range: 300m

Open

Advantages of LAN PTP Sync

• PTP is using multicast for message transport

• A multicast IP and Port has been standardized

• PTP defines a domain number embedded in each datagram, which makes it is possible to run 128 parallel systems

• PTP defines a PTP-Primary role and a PTP-Secondary role; the role can be auto negotiated or forced by configuration

• Only one primary device can be active within a PTP domain.

• The device with the primary role dictates the synchronization, and the devices with the secondary role try to follow as close as possible

• PTP use the IP-network to keep the sync between the devices

Sync over the air: base stations must be able to see each other:

Open

Sync over LAN: base stations are not required to see each other, roaming and handover can be performed, as long as the handset can see both base stations:

Open

As a result:

• Easier deployments

• Better coverage

• Less Base Stations

Network requirements

In order to minimize the impact from other devices on the network, the following requirements to the network infrastructure are listed: 

• A maximum number of 3 cascaded Ethernet switches are supported between the primary device and secondary devices

• Only switches, which fulfil the requirements regarding Ethernet synchronization according to IEEE1588, are recommended and officially supported

• All base stations must be connected to a dedicated DECT VLAN

• The DECT VLAN must be configured to the highest priority in all the switches that are connected to the DECT infrastructure

• The backbone network load should not exceed 50 percent of the total link capacity

• The Ethernet switch must be able to use DSCP as QoS parameter

• The network must support multicast datagrams from IEEE1588 

Connecting 3 Repeaters in a chain:

Open

Base Station and Repeater positioning: phone must be able to see both base stations (dBm value must be between -75 and 0):

Open

Handover and Roaming

Handover

Handover is a process in which a call is transmitted from one base station to another without interrupting the session.

When the call is set up, the handset is located at Base 1. Thus, the DECT communication takes place between the handset and Base 1, and the SIP signalling as well as the RTP stream takes place between Base 1 and the PBX:

Open

After handover, the handset is located at Base 2, and hence the DECT communication goes on between the handset and Base 2. However, to avoid disruption of the audio, the RTP stream is relayed via the initial base station, since a transfer of the RTP stream to another base may cause the PBX to re-initialize the RTP stream with a small disruption of the RTP stream as consequence. Thus, RTP stream is not affected by the handover, and since the call control also remains at Base 1, SIP signalling is also unaffected, as shown below:

Open

Since the call control and hence the SIP User Agent remains at the initial base station, the SIP registration is also unaffected by the handover. If the handset makes yet another handover, the RTP stream will still be relayed via the base station at which the call was established (Base 1 in our case):

Open

Roaming

By roaming it is meant that the handset moves its SIP and DECT registration from one base station to another base station. Roaming can only be initiated from idle.

Roaming does not immediately result in a new SIP registration, to avoid unnecessary signalling. Therefore, the handset will not perform a new DECT Location Registration until it has resided on the same base station for a defined period of time*. Since the SIP registration is initiated by the completion of the Location Registration, a new SIP registration will also not be done until this procedure has completed on a new base station. Thus, a handset must stay on the same base station before a new SIP registration is made.

*How the period of time after which Location Registration is performed, is defined:

1. Handsets lose contact to the initial base station due to reset/ power off/ heavy DECT traffic

2. After 5 minutes but before 5+2 minutes (+2 minutes occur when service connection traffic is signalled at the same time as location registration should take place; in this case the location registration procedure will be delayed)

If an incoming call arrives while the handset has moved to another base station (Base 2 in our example) but the new Location Registration was not yet performed, the SIP call will arrive at the initial base station (Base 1 in our example), the RTP stream will be set up between Base 2 and the PBX. Alternatively, in the case of an outgoing call, the SIP call will be established from the initial base station, and the RTP stream will be set up between Base 2 and the PBX:

Open

Deployment considerations

The following radio related issues should be considered before deploying a W-AIR DECT Network:

• Building Penetration: when a signal strikes on a building it is diffracted or absorbed; therefore the signal can be reduced. The amount of absorption depends on the building and its environment, the amount of solid structure

• Interference Sources: other signals can create interferences and weaken the signals of the receiving antennas. These interferences can come from the same network or from the outside. For choosing the optimal position of the Base station and Repeaters, these potential interference sources should be considered before installing a Wildix W-AIR system

• Radio/ Cell Range: a suggested distance between two base stations depends on the physical path between them. If the path loss is lessened, e.g. by minimizing the amount of walls/ obstacles on the path, then the signals of the base stations cover more distance. In a typical office building a suggested distance between two base stations is 30-40 m 

Capacity planning

The maximum quantity of calls is indicated in the list below:

• Base stations: up to 8 simultaneous calls

• Repeaters: up to 5 simultaneous calls

Call 76 Feature code (Echo) on your W-AIR Handset to test the voice quality.

Network topology

Bad network topology: (there are more than three switches connected in a cascade)

Open

Good network topology: (no more than three switches connected in a cascade)

Open

• A maximum number of 3 cascaded Ethernet switches are supported between the primary device and secondary devices

• Only switches that correspond to Ethernet synchronization requirements according to IEEE1588, are supported

• All base stations must be connected to a dedicated DECT VLAN. DECT VLAN must be configured to the highest priority in all the switches that are connected to the DECT infrastructure

• The backbone network load should not exceed 50 percent of the total link capacity

• The Ethernet switch must be able to use DSCP as QoS parameter

• The network must support multicast datagrams from IEEE1588

PTP is sensitive to rapid changes in network delays, thus if the above mentioned rules are not respected, you might run into network delay problems due to the following mistakes:

• Rapid fluctuations in the network delay was caused by a backup job in another VLAN

• The DECT VLAN was not configured to high priority

• The sync offset between the base stations reaching critical levels

Placing the primary base station

The primary base station should be placed in the center, connected to the primary switch:

Open

Site Survey

Requirements

• PoE switches or a 48V PoE power injector. Site survey is possible without network connectivity

• A DHCP server. If you are using Wildix PBX as DHCP Server, go to Settings -> System -> DHCP Server and search for the device among the DHCP leases. Detailed information on configuration: WMS Settings Menu Admin Guide

• A W-AIR base. Reset the base station to the default settings

• A W-AIR handset. Before getting started make sure the handset is fully charged. The handset does not need to be pre-registered to a particular base. Connect the base station to the power injector and turn it on

How to check RSSI level

Follow the steps below:

1. Press "Menu" key of the W-AIR handset

2. Type *ip* (*47*)

3. Use the cursor down/ up to select the base MAC address

4. Select the base station to view its RSSI level 

Placing the first base station

Follow the steps below:

• Place the W-AIR base station exactly at the desired position and power on the base

• Check RSSI level on the handset

• Use the building plan drawing and check the base station coverage using the Site survey mode of the phone. Mark up acceptable and unacceptable spots on the plan drawing. Take notes of the RSSI levels of the base. Acceptable spots are the ones where the phone shows RSSI levels better than -75 dBm

Follow the steps again to place more base stations

Typically, when the system is installed in the office buildings, hotels or hospitals, there should be both Base stations and Repeaters on several floors to create uniform and complete radio coverage. Open areas can be covered by wide network of Base stations. 

Check the Delay and the Jitter

When you have placed several base stations, go to the web interface of the base station → select menu LAN Sync and check the columns "Nwk. Jitter" and "Nwk. Delay". Make sure the values are as little as possible. 

Open

Check the Radio Coverage

Handset

• Press "Menu" key of the W-AIR handset (the phone must be registered to the base station)

• Type *service* (*7378423*)

• Select the line Site survey mode

• The phone will show up to 5 bases (RPN) and the coverage value

• Check PP and FP values, they indicate the transmission errors. Empty value or a low number indicates a correct behavior (value 100 = the worst behavior)

Base station 

Repeaters

Go to the web interface of a base station and click on Repeaters to see the status and the coverage values of every connected Repeater, check the column DECT sync source to know the value:

Open

Base station/ Repeater Placement Strategy

The antennas of the base stations are close to omnidirectional, thus it is not important how the base stations are directed and how they face each other. There is no single strategy for deploying base stations, but there are some recommendations:

• In the Corridors: base stations/ Repeater should be deployed vertically, preferably in the corridor intersections so that the propagation follows the corridor patterns/ curves. If there are high objects in the area, the base station/ Repeater should be installed above them

• Multi-storey Buildings: base stations and Repeaters can be installed on the opposite sides of the floors to cover the area floor-to-floor. The coverage design cannot rely entirely on floor-to-floor propagation; each case should be verified due to variations in local attenuation patterns

• Large Halls: base stations and Repeaters can be deployed in large halls that contain a central open space area with windows leading to other areas. This provides a good coverage for the rooms in the inner circle on all floors (e.g. hotels). In large halls, Base stations/ Repeaters should be installed vertically in the middle of the space below the drop ceiling

• Mounting Positions: when Base stations and Repeaters are mounted vertically on a wall, the radio coverage in front of these devices is twice as large as the coverage behind them. The base stations should always be mounted higher than the obstructive objects in the area – e.g. minimally 2m above the floor. Repeaters should be installed in the middle of the corridors and small rooms

• Metallic Structures/ Objects: base stations and Repeaters should not be deployed near large metallic objects

• Reinforced Concrete Structures: these structures create a high attenuation factor inside the building. They reduce the radio coverage range of the Base stations and Repeaters thus a higher number of base stations or Repeaters are required in the building. Lighter types of construction materials require fewer base stations since attenuation figures are considerably lower

Base station and repeaters connection and overview

Packing lists

W-AIR Base Sync Plus:

• Mounting screws x 2 and anchors x 2

• Plastic wall mount x 1

• Base station unit x 1

• Power supply adapter is not included (item can be ordered separately, code: PS-WAIR-Base-Sync-Plus - 5 pcs - 5V 2A EU, US, UK - Power Supply for WAIR-Base-Sync-Plus)

W-AIR Base Sync Plus Outdoor:

• Box Top Housing x 1

• Plastic Screws x 4

• Foam Support x 1

• Base station unit x 1

• Wall Mount Bracket x 1

• Mounting Plate x 1

• Screws x 4

• Box Bottom Housing

Open

W-AIR Repeater:

• Power adapter x 1

• Repeater unit x 1

Base station mounting, connection and reset

Open

Reset a base station: press the Reset button on the back side for more than 2 seconds. 

LEDs of the Base Station 

Mounting instructions

Mount the base unit as high as possible to clear all nearby objects (e.g. office cubicles and cabinets, etc.). Make sure that when you fix the base stations with screws, the screws do not touch the PCB on the unit. Avoid all contacts with any high voltage lines.

W-AIR Base Sync Plus Outdoor

1. Take out the base:

   1. Unscrew 4 plastic screws to open the Box Top

   2. Unscrew 4 screws mounted on the Mounting Plate 

   3. Unscrew the 2 screws from the bottom of the base station

   4. Push the base station upwards to detach it from the Metal Wall Mount Plate

2. Install the base:

   1. Put the LAN cable into the Mounting Plate 

   2. Attach the base station into the mounting plate using two bottom screws

   3. Insert the cable through the cable bushing and put on the bushing foam

   4. Insert the cable bushing into the Bottom Housing

   5. Place the base station into the outdoor Box Housing 

   6. Attach the Box Top Housing, plug in the wall mount nuts

Open

Open

Find Base station IP

On the handset press Menu key followed by the keys: *47* to get the handset into find bases menu. Depending on the amount of powered on bases with active radios and the distance to the base it can take up to minutes to find a base.

• Use the cursor down/up to select the base MAC address for the base

• The base IP address will be shown in the display

The feature is also used for deployment.

Repeaters connection and overview

Repeater connection and reset

Open

Reset a repeater: press and hold the Reset button on the back side for more than 2 seconds (LED turns solid RED and then GREEN with a double pulsation).

LEDs of the Repeaters

W-AIR Network configuration

Step 1. Provision base stations

For detailed instructions, refer to Provisioning of Wildix devices - Admin Guide.

Go to menu Devices of the WMS, click +Add and provision the gateway. Provisioned base stations appear in the table of Devices.

Step 2. Create a W-AIR Network

Important:

• W-AIR Network consists of one or more gateways that belong to the same LAN 

• In order to be able to configure a W-AIR network, a NTP server is necessary. To configure the gateway to use the NTP server of the PBX, select the gateway and click Edit, then enter the PBX IP address into the line “NTP Server” and click Save

• In case you add a base station that previously functioned as a separate base station or belonged to a different W-AIR network, it’s necessary first to delete the base station, reset it and add it again to the WMS

Follow the steps below:

1. Go to the WMS menu Devices -> W-AIR Networks -> click Add

2. Enter the Name for your W-AIR Network

3. Select the gateways from the list on the left and move them to the list on the right. Make sure the Primary base station is the first one on the list (marked with (M))

Open

4. Check off "Sync Plus via Ethernet" option to enable sync over cable 

5. Click Save

6. W-AIR Network is created:

Open

7. Go back to the Devices Menu, select your base/ bases and press Configure/ Sync device button

Step 3. Register a W-AIR Handset

To register the handset:

1. Verify that there is only one active W-AIR Network

2. Go to the handset’s main menu

3. Select Connectivity

4. Select Deregister, enter 0000 as PIN, then press Yes

5. Select Register, enter 0000 as Access code, then press OK

6. The cordless phone is ready for a new login procedure

To unregister the handset:

a) Via the handset:

1. Log out (register to “unknown” account) by calling the Feature Code “Login” (“99” by default)

2. Select Deregister in the Connectivity menu of the handset

3. Enter the Pin Code “0000”, then press Yes

b) Remove W-AIR slot via WMS: 

1. Go to WMS -> Devices -> W-AIR devices

2. Choose the device you want to unregister and click Delete W-AIR slot:

Open

3. The following notification gets displayed:

Open

To apply the changes, go to Devices tab, select the relevant W-AIR base station and click Configure/ Sync device:

Open

Step 4. Assign a W-AIR Handset to a User 

You can assign W-AIR handset to a user via the handset itself or via WMS.

Assigning via the handset

1. Switch on your phone and wait till the system assigns you an “unknown account” and the coverage indicator turns active

2. Dial the Login Feature Code (“99” by default)

3. Enter an extension number and PIN (= the first five symbols of the user WEB password)

How to enter the PIN: 

• The keys are alpha-numeric, they allow you to enter both letters and digits, to enter letters: press only once the key corresponding to the letter you need to enter (there is no difference between lowercase and uppercase letters)

• Press * (the star key) to enter any special characters present in the user password, including the symbol "#"

Example: PIN is 4Ag7$Zl@, you have to dial 4247*

Open

Follow W-AIR DECT Handset - User Guide to get more details.

Assigning via the WMS

1. Go to WMS -> Devices -> W-AIR devices

2. Choose the handset and click Assign to user:

Open

3. Enter user extension and click Save

Open

To assign W-AIR handset to a different user:

1. Choose the handset on the W-AIR devices tab -> click Assign to user

2. Enter a different extension and click Save

To deassign a W-AIR handset:

1. Choose the handset -> click Assign to user

2. Select “unknown” in the Extension field 

Open