User's Manual

About the Radio Switch RS4000 1
Chapter 1
About the Radio Switch RS4000
The Meru Networks Radio Switch RS4000 enables high-capacity enterprise-class wireless LAN
connectivity with full support of standard 802.11 security and network management features. Each
RS4000 contains four built-in 802.11a/bg radios for high data and voice throughput – an essential
requirement for high user-density environments with several simultaneous users. Classrooms and
convention halls are typical deployment applications of the Radio Switch. Deploying the Radio
Switch is easy—just like wireless access points, the Radio Switch can be installed wherever wireless
coverage is needed. For large buildings with multiple rooms and floors, more than one Radio Switch
can be installed to cover the desired area. Wireless users can seamlessly roam from one Radio Switch
to another, getting high-capacity WLAN access throughout the wireless enterprise enabled with
multiple Radio Switches. The RS4000 also balances radio traffic across its RF channels and resolves
contention within each RF channel such that users receive a switched wireless experience with
dedicated bandwidth to execute a variety of applications ranging from web browsing and VoIP
mobility to multimedia streaming.
The RS4000 comes with one high-gain omni-directional indoor antenna that aggregates and layers
radio transmissions from each of the built-in radios. The antenna can broadcast every channel
available to blanket the area around the Radio Switch, yet avoid interference and contention issues.
This simplifies deployment efforts by eliminating the need for additional antennas for each radio.
More importantly, RF channel planning efforts are greatly simplified.
Using the RS4000, wireless users experience the benefits of switching technology, now on Wi-Fi—
dedicated bandwidth, traffic separation, and the ability to run multi-service networks.