RF Throughput or Packet Throughput Level Monitor

The RF Throughput or Packet Throughput Level monitor displays the amount of data throughput in kilobytes per second (KBps) experienced in the last hour by the object selected in the View pane. Total network throughput for each radio or for each access point (either one can be selected) is measured in KBps at the configured polling interval and plotted on this line chart. The throughput rates are reflected on the left side of the chart.

If you are viewing data for a time period longer than one hour, each data point on the graph represents data consolidated from more than one polling period. In this case, the graph shows multiple lines, which are labeled in the legend:

• maxThroughput—The largest value sampled during the consolidated polling periods.

• avgThrougput—The average of the values sampled during the consolidated polling periods.

• minThroughput—The smallest value sampled during the consolidated polling periods.

The area between the maxThroughput and minThroughput lines is shaded to indicate the range of values.

You can perform the following actions on this line graph:

• Change the time period over which to display throughput by selecting a time period from the list in the upper right corner.

• Display a numeric value by placing the cursor where a vertical grid line bisects a data line.

• Highlight a line in the graph by mousing over the line’s legend.

• Remove or restore a line by clicking its legend.

• Select which SSID to show in the graph by selecting from the Choose SSID list.

Throughput data is available when you select either a radio or access point in any view of the View pane.

Throughput is decreased by Layer 2 retransmissions, increased numbers of clients, and the overhead associated with 802.11 protocols. You can try to increase throughput by:

• Adding equipment such as controllers and access points to cope with over-subscription.

• Using optimal configuration, such as WPA2 encryption, for 802.11n devices.

• Configuring separate WLAN Service profiles for voice and data—for data, see Creating and Managing a WLAN Service Profile. For directions on creating a voice-specific WLAN Service profile, see Configuring a Voice SSID with Network Director and Creating and Managing a WLAN Service Profile.

• Creating separate Radio profiles for transmissions using long and short guard intervals—see Creating and Managing a Radio Profile.

• Locating and eliminating noise that could be causing interference. For more information, see Monitoring RF Interference Sources on Wireless Devices, Monitoring RF Interference Sources on One Radio, Monitoring RF Interference Sources For Radios on One Access Point, and Monitoring RF Signal-to-Noise Ratio.

• Checking for weak signals. If automatic power tuning is not enabled, try enabling it. For more information, see Understanding Auto Tune Power Policy for Wireless Radios.

• Assigning access points to different channels. When channels are too congested, packet collision and corruption can occur. If automatic channel tuning is not enabled, try enabling it. For more information, see Understanding Wireless Radio Channels and Understanding Adaptive Channel Planner.

• Correcting conditions that trigger alarms - for a list of alarms, see the Current Active Alarms Monitor.