Stony Brook University’s Data Network Services team has installed Aruba Network’s 802.11ac Wi-Fi solution — a new, faster wireless technology — in the Javits Lecture Center. The team also plans to outfit the new Stony Brook Arena and the campus residence halls in the near future to accommodate the dramatic increase in mobile and wireless devices that the University community is using on campus.
In the Javits Lecture Center, 10 lecture halls are used by approximately 17,000 students weekly, with an average lecture hall holding 200 students and the largest accommodating more than 500. As students are increasingly bringing multiple mobile devices to class and relying on the wireless network, Data Network Services recognized the need to upgrade the Center’s wireless infrastructure to meet the rigorous performance and density demands. The team deployed 44 Aruba AP-225 802.11ac access points to cover the Lecture Center’s 10 halls.
“We’ve seen a remarkable increase in mobile and wireless devices on campus and this has resulted in extraordinary demand on our wireless network,” said James Hart, Director of Network Services at Stony Brook University. “With nearly 1,000 mobile devices accessing the network from Javits Lecture Center alone, and this number expecting to increase, it was clear that we needed to make the move to 802.11ac in high-density areas to support our students’ and faculty’s use of the network.”
According to Hart, both students and staff have been enthused about the speed and reliability of the 802.11ac network. Stony Brook University’s Division of Information Technology has also been encouraged to see that client devices are achieving speeds of up to 450Mbps, and that support calls have been minimal since the Lecture Center was upgraded. Stony Brook’s professors are increasingly using the wireless network in the classroom, connecting their iPads to project content onto classroom screens and using the iPads to interact and answer student questions during lectures.
Mike Ospitale, Campus Network Manager for Stony Brook, commented, “Having a high-performing 802.11ac infrastructure now allows us to expand our capabilities in the classrooms. We plan to increase our use of Apple TVs, for example, as well as use Aruba’s AirGroup to make plug-and-play network services like Apple AirPlay and AirPrint available to students’ and teachers’ mobile devices. All around, the wireless network supports a much more interactive classroom.”
Aruba Networks is a leading provider of next-generation network access solutions for the mobile enterprise.
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