[WT-support] CQWW CW Multi-Mulit network

[Werner Maier]

Hi,

> Not long to go now!  I will be implementing eight laptops on a
>c wireless network during CQWW at 3XY5D.

> I will follow the advice of the guys and use static IP addresses
> on each machine.

good plan.


> The network will be an 'old'  802.11b  type.

>> It depends more on the network quality (ie wireless signals) than on WT
>> itself.

100% aggreed.
It might be a good idea to set up the network not just in time before
the contest but some hours advanced. Double Check that no accesspoint
does restart becaus of HF interfearence - the cheap power supplies for
those accesspoints might regard some HF chokes.

We used 802.11b at DL0KC in the past years - only 5 Laptops,
and not that much QSOs, but it worked ok.
The network resynchronization is - of course - slower than with
100Mbit Twisted Pair, but normally you don't need that feature.

> Six of the laptops will be set up as RUN stations, one as MULT,
> the other will be spare/packet.

it is a very good idea to have packet on the spare Laptop,
as for a restart/reconfiguration somebody can do it there
and the other Ops can still just log their QSOs.

It's also a good Idea to have the spare laptop in "Backup mode",
to write the log all 10/15minutes... This costs nearly nothing,
but hey, just a backup more of the log is allways a good idea.

> Is there anything specifically that I should look out for?
> Will the 802.11b network handle the traffic OK?

I guess it can. We used a mixed 802.11bg network at DP6A this
year, using 4 Laptops - worked ok.

>> Can I avoid using the advanced network options (i.e. I simply use defaults)?
>
> It is not advisable to change the default settings. The advanced network
> settings are only here for *very special* uses.

we just used the defaults. Just sure to set the correct broadcast
address.

> FYI, the major data network volumes are generated by 1/ the log sync,
> and in a lower magnitude by 2/ the DX cluster data. You can disable them
> by 1/ disabling log sync (Options menu) 2/ Not running wtDxTelnet.

is wtdxtelnet really that much traffic? We used wtdxtelnet with an
UMTS Card this year, and got 5 MB volume in total for about 55 hours.
this is nearly nothing for a 11Mbit wireless lan.

73's de Werner DL4NER
--
Dipl.-Ing. Univ. Werner Maier
http://www.maiers.de/