inSSIDer Office User Guide

support.metageek.com/hc/en-us/articles/204158620-inSSIDer-Office-User-Guide

Joel Crane

Updated 4 months ago

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Table of Contents

Overview

inSSIDer Office is a WiFi optimization and troubleshooting tool. It scans for wireless
networks with your WiFi adapter, so you can visualize their signal strengths, and what
channels they are using. It also lists a lot of useful information about each network.

inSSIDer Office also listens for raw radio frequency activity with your Wi-Spy Mini,
which is a special device called a "spectrum analyzer". This helps us see how busy
each channel really is (not just how many networks are on a channel).

The WiFi adapter gives us information about nearby wireless networks, while the Wi-
Spy Mini gives us information about channel activity and interference.

inSSIDer Office is great for:

Picking the best channel for your access point

Performing channel-planning on a multi-AP network
Avoiding interference
Measuring channel use (utilization)
Performing coverage checks
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 Optimizing wireless networks

Cross-Platform

inSSIDer Office is cross-platform, which means that it is very similar on Windows and
OS X. The OS X version is currently in Beta, so it is missing a few features that you
would find in the Windows version.

inSSIDer Office for Windows and inSSIDer Office Beta for OS X are similar, but not
identical. Yet.

Spectrum Analysis with Wi-Spy Mini

Wi-Spy Mini supplements your WiFi adapter with spectrum analysis data, giving you a
lot more details about is happening in your environment. Learn more here.

A Wi-Spy Mini, Wi-Spy 2.4x, or Wi-Spy DBx is strongly recommended to unlock

inSSIDer Office's full potential.

Navigation

Networks Table, Details Pane, and Networks Graph

inSSIDer Office shows information in three different ways:

Networks Shows a list of all of the nearby wireless access points, wireless networks, or
Table channels.

Details Shows details about the selected access point, wireless network, or channel. Click on
Pane a line item in the Networks Table to reveal the associated Details Pane.

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 Networks Shows a graphical representation of nearby wireless networks, what their signal
Graph strengths are, and how they share channels and overlap with each other.

Open and Close the Details Pane

To open the Details Pane in any grouping mode, click on the associated line item. To
close the pane, click the X button.

Physical, Logical, and Channel Grouping

inSSIDer Office also groups access points, networks, and channels in three different
ways:

Physical Groups virtual SSIDs on the same access point

together

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 Logical Groups access points with the same SSID together

Channels Groups channels together

Note: Each group has a dedicated section below.

Network Drilldown

inSSIDer Office links networks, access points,

and channels together with the Network
Drilldown button, and can be found in most tables. Click on the Network
Drilldown button to visit the associated item.

Networks

Networks Graph

inSSIDer Office draws a network shape in the 2.4 and 5 GHz channels graph for every
network it hears with your WiFi adapter. Each network shape is centered over the
channel that it is on, and the height of the shape shows how loud the network is
(represented by amplitude).

802.11b network (max rate of 2 or 11 Mbps) will be drawn with a curved top.
802.11 a/g/n networks will be drawn with a flat top.

Networks Table

inSSIDer Office lists all of the networks that it can hear with your WiFi adapter.

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Filters

Above the Networks Table, you'll find the filter bar. You can filter by SSID, MAC
Address, Channel, Signal Strength, Security, and Phy Type.

Type in the data you wish to filter by, and hit the enter key to apply the filter. Clicking
the X next to your filter will remove it.

Coloring Rules

inSSIDer Office color-codes all networks and network groups. The color scheme is
consistent throughout in swatches next to network names, network shapes, selected
items, and details fields.

Rainbow Mode

Unselected networks with no grouping applied, most networks get their own color.

Selected Network Mode

Shows relationships between networks, depending on which network is selected.

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 Red A network that partially overlaps with your network, causing adjacent-channel
interference (worst)

Yellow A network that shares a channel with your network (better)

Blue Selected Physical (radio) or Logical (ESSID) group

White Selection within a Physical or Logical group

Grey Unselected network that doesn't relate to or overlap with your selected network

Physical and Logical Grouping

inSSIDer Office groups access points Physically (multiple SSID's on one access point)
or Logically (multiple access points with the same SSID, making them all part of one
ESSID).

Physical Grouping

With Physical Grouping, all virtual SSID's on the same radio are grouped together.
Each line item then represents one physical radio on an access point that is the host
of more than one SSID.

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Physical Grouping Mode works best when you are working with a single access point.
A common use case scenario for this mode might be picking the best channel for
a home wireless network.

Radio Details Pane

The Radio Details Pane displays:

Radio Signal Current signal strength in dBm

Channel Current channel of the access point

Recommended The channel that inSSIDer recommends for the best performance

Strongest Overlapping The loudest radio that is on an adjacent (partially overlapping)

Radio channel

Strongest Co-Channel The loudest radio that is sharing the same channel as your
Radio network

Radio Details Table

The Radio Details Table lists each virtual SSID on the selected radio, along with each
respective MAC Address and Security type.

Signal Strength Over Time Graph

Towards the bottom, you can view the signal strength of your radio over time (blue),
as well as the signal strength of the strongest overlapping radio (red), and the
strongest co-channel radio (yellow).

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Logical Grouping

With Logical Grouping, all access points with the same SSID are grouped together.

This mode works best when your network has more than one access point. A
common use case scenario for ESSID Grouping is ensuring that your corporate
network provides adequate or continuous coverage throughout a building.

Logical Group Table

Each access points that belongs to the Logical Group (or ESSID Group) is listed in the
table.

The Logical Group Table displays:

Radio Either the MAC address, AP name (Cisco and Aruba only), or custom AP Alias. Click
the Pencilicon to set your custom AP Alias.

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 Channel Wireless channel that the access point is on.

PHY 802.11 protocols supported by the access point.

Type

Security The security protocol that the access is configured to support.

Min Minimum supported data rate. Slower data rates fly farther, but cause more channel
utilization.

Max Maximum supported data rate.

Signal The amplitude level (loudness or signal strength) of the wireless network as seen by
your computer’s wireless adapter.

Link The higher the link score, the better. The amount of partially overlapping networks,
Score amount of same-channel networks, and RF activity in the channel can all negatively
affect the Link Score.

Signal Strength Over Time Graph

Towards the bottom, you can view the signal strength of all of the access points in
your Logical Group. The colors are matched with the Logical Group Table, but you can
click on a network in the table to highlight it in the graph.

Channels

Channels mode focuses on the health of each WiFi channel.

Note: The Channels mode button will be greyed out if a Wi-Spy Mini, Wi-Spy 2.4x, or Wi-Spy
DBx isn't connected, since the tab relies on spectrum analysis data from a Wi-Spy.

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The Channels table shows:

Channel How often activity is occurring on the channel, or how often the channel is being
Utilization "Utilized". Only one wireless device can use a channel at a time, so you want
channel utilization to be as low as possible.

On-Channel Amount of wireless networks on the same channel. The fewer, the better.
Networks

Max Signal Maximum signal strength of on-channel networks. Analogous to the yellow signal
strength over time graph in other parts of inSSIDer.

Overlapping Amount of wireless networks that are partially overlapping with the channel. The
Networks fewer, the better. Partially overlapping networks cause one of the worst types of
interference.

Max Maximum signal strength of overlapping networks. Analogous to the red signal
Overlapping strength over time graph in other parts of inSSIDer.
Signal

Channel Details Pane

Select a channel to open the Channel Details Pane, where you can learn more about
it.

Utilization Over Time Graph

The Utilization Over Time Graph shows how busy a channel is over time. The higher
the utilization, the less time is left available for WiFi devices to talk.

Channels Graph

The Channels Graph uses spectrum analysis data from the Wi-Spy to show raw radio
frequency activity in the band. This activity can be made by any wireless device, WiFi
or otherwise.

You can see which channel devices are talking on (where), how loud they are talking
(height), and how often they are talking (intensity of the color).
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AP Aliasing

In addition to detecting Cisco and Aruba AP names, inSSIDer Office allows you to give
access points custom names. Click the Pencilicon next to the AP's name or MAC
address to give it a custom name.

Signal Strength Threshold

The Signal Strength Threshold feature displays a dotted lone across the Channels
Table and Signal Strength Over Time graphs.

The threshold can be changed in File > Settings. Find out more about acceptable WiFi
signal strengths here.

Coverage Check in Physical Mode

Once the threshold has been set, select a network in Physical Mode, and walk the
desired coverage are while watching the Signal Strength Over Time Graph. The the
signal strength line falls below the threshold, then you may have a coverage problem
to address.

Coverage Check in Logical Mode

Logical Mode can be used to ensure that every location in the desired coverage area
is covered by one or more access points.

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Copy to Clipboard

Each respective table and graph has a Copy to Clipboard button, usually in the upper
righthand corner. Graphs are copied out as an image, and tables are copied out as
plaintext, ready to be pasted into a word processor or spreadsheet.

Export a Wi-Spy Recording

With inSSIDer Office, you can export a Wi-Spy recording file, which can be opened in
Chanalyzer.

Learn how to use this feature here: Export a Wi-Spy Recording with inSSIDer Office

Network Table Terms

Common acronyms and technical terms that inSSIDer Office uses:

802.11 – The letters displayed in this column inform you of the 802.11 protocols in
use by that Access Point.

Access Point - This is the hardware that WiFi devices wirelessly connect to.
Sometimes these will function as a router, and are often referred to as a wireless
router.

Channel – Each wireless network operates on a specific WiFi channel. Channels 1-14
are in the 2.4 GHz frequency range, while channels 36-165 are in the 5 GHz range. For
best performance in the 2.4 GHz band we recommend channels 1, 6, and 11.

* (Asterisk) - In ESSID grouping, an asterisk/star indicates that the channel is 40 MHz

wide.

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Co-Channel Network - Every access point on the same channel cooperates and
negotiates opportunities to transmit. This can slow down performance for every
connected device.

MAC Address - This is a unique identifier for a wireless network or BSSID.

Overlapping Network - Stations and access points on an overlapping channels talks

over each other on overlapping frequencies. This causes transmission corruption and
slow performance for connected devices. Overlapping networks have a more severe
impact on performance than co-channel networks.

Security – inSSIDer will display networks utilizing the following standard security
settings: Open (Unsecured), WEP, WPA-Personal, WPA-Enterprise, WPA2-Personal,
and WPA2-Enterprise.

Open Lock - Indicates a network that is unsecured. None of the data on the

network is encrypted.

Broken Lock - WEP, which is a very broken and insecure encryption method.

This encryption method can be broken into in a matter of minutes.

Closed Lock - WPA or WPA2 wireless security encryption. These are the best

security options available today. We recommend WPA with WPS disabled, which is the
most secure.

Signal - The amplitude level of the wireless network as seen by your computer’s
wireless adapter, also known as RSSI or “Received Signal Strength Indication”. inSSIDer
provides a line graph representing the signal strength over time.

SSID - Abbreviation of “Service Set Identifier”, which is the name an 802.11 wireless
network uses to identify itself.

Link Icon - Indicates which access point you are currently connected to. This
icon also appears within an ESS, so you can see which specific access point you are
connected to on your network.

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