Rocket GPS and Airsync FAQ

1) How does Airsync protocol work ?'

The airsync protocol requires Layer-3 UDP connectivity between the participating APs.

In each sync-cluster: one of the APs is designated as the Master and the others as the slave.

The Master and the slaves exchange information over Layer-3 UDP. The UDP port is configurable by the
operator.

Once synchronized the airmax TDMA transmit and receive slots of all APs are lined up. Hence all APs shall
transmit at the same time and receive at the same time.

2) Can remote towers be synchronized ?

Yes as long as the latency of communication between the towers is less than 30 ms.

One needs to avoid situations where the stations connected to the towers can *hear* more than one
tower or where the towers can *hear* each other's stations.

When using different frequencies, the frequency rejection on the radio will help shave off 10-40 dB
depending upon the MHz difference, relaxing the requirement.

e.g. If one STA hears its own AP at -60 dBm and hears the other synchronized APs at -80 dBm, it would
only have a 20 dB Signal to Interference Ratio. Higher rates (MCS6/14, MCS 7/15) will not be possible in
this case.

If the APs were 20 MHz apart, the adjacent channel rejection factor of 40 dB can be added giving a 60 dB
Signal to Interference Ratio. This would make MCS6/7 or 14/15 possible on the link.

Increasing the separation in MHz will improve the ratio to a certain extent.

So it will all depend on the Signal to Interference Ratios. This requirement itself is not unusual. Other
systems that use modulation schemes that require 10 dB SIR, also have this requirement, but the 10 dB
SIR for modulation, helps significantly in masking out the problem.

The SIR requirements for each MCS is given below:

MCS 15/7: 32 dB
MCS 14/6: 29 dB
MCS 13/5: 25 dB
MCS 12/4: 22 dB
MCS 11/3: 18 dB
MCS 10/2: 14 dB
MCS 9/1: 12 dB
MCS 8/0: 7 dB

Additionally the rejection characteristics of the receiver are given at:

http://books.google.com/books?id=752...tivity&f=false

Please note that the values shown are for 802.11a but are similar for MCS rates as well. The adjacent
channel is assumed to be 20 MHz away. The alternate channel rejection specifies the rejection at the
receiver for transmissions 40+ MHz away.

A typical OFDM transmission mask is shown below. Please note how the transmission power tapers down
away from the center frequency.
40 MHz away the signal power is 60 dB lower. After adding the receiver rejection of 14 dB the signal
would be 74 dB lower.

On the same tower though, the neighboring APs would still see a strong -47 dBm signal (+27 dBm - 74
dB), making synchronization still necessary.

3) Can I deploy just one Rocket GPS, and have my other Rocket APs synchronize with it ?

No, each airsync participant AP needs its own GPS input. The reason here is that a Layer-3 UDP
connection does not provide predictable latency for communicating timing information (at the resolution
that we need).

Rocket Ms as a CPE will still work and do not need to be upgraded.

4) Can I re-use the same frequency for all APs ?

Yes the same frequency can be re-used as long as the situation described in (2) is avoided. Realistically
this would only work for back-to-back deployments.

5) Do the APs share the medium capacity once synchronized ?

No, as long as the situation described in (2) is avoided, each airsync participant gets the *full medium
capacity* and is not affected by traffic patterns of its peers.

The exact throughput in Mbps achieved by each airsync participant will depend on individual link quality.

Hence adding more APs shall increase network capacity.

6) I would like to synchronize APs on a tower, but do not want to bridge them. Can this work ?
Yes, if you setup a route between the APs to allow L3-UDP protocol communication between them.

7) Can I configure the Down/Up timing ratio ?

Yes. The timing ratio can be configured at the 'Master'. The ratio is communicated to all slaves via UDP.

8) If I need to use different frequencies to mitigate the problem described in (2) above, why do
I need GPS sync ?

As discussed in (2), increasing the frequency separation, increases the SIR.

This requirement itself is not unusual. Other systems that use modulation schemes that require 10 dB
SIR, also have this requirement, but the 10 dB SIR for modulation, helps significantly in masking out the
problem.

20 MHz away the signal power is 40 dB lower with no signficant receiver rejection. Hence the co-located
APs would hear each other at +27-40 = -13 dBm!

60 MHz away the signal power is 60 dB lower with about 14 dB receiver rejection.
On the same tower though, the neighboring APs would still see a strong -47 dBm signal (+27 dBm - 74
dB).

If the signal strength to one of the clients was -60 dBm, the SIR in this case is -13 dB (negative). This
would prevent the AP from decoding even a MCS0 signal (as it needs a SIR of about +7 dB) from the
station if any one of the other APs transmit.

Hence the need for synchronization.

9) Do I need GPS on CPEs ?

No, Airsync is AP side functionality. To synchronize an AirMax network, only a hardware upgrade on the AP
side is required (RocketMGPS). No station side hardware upgrade is needed.

For any application/deployment specific questions please feel free to email me at sriram@ubnt.com

Last edited by UBNT-sriram; 12-23-2010 at 10:40 AM.

Quote:

Originally Posted by UBNT-Robert

All --
A couple quick notes in advance --

1. USB GPS Airsync upgrade was the original plan from the start of Rocket release, but we found out later it
would not be possible.

2. Synching remote towers together is possible with Airsync.

3. To synchronize an AirMax network, only a hardware upgrade on the AP side is required (RocketMGPS). No
station side hardware upgrade is needed.
Pulled from http://ubnt.com/forum/showpost.php?p...4&postcount=31

Quote:

Originally Posted by twinkletoes

In firmware 5.3, one Rocket GPS will be a "master" and distribute timing synchronization information to all
other Rockets. If the master stops working, you'll have to manually intervene.

In firmware 5.4, multiple units will be able to "master", a master stand-by feature of some sort for automated
sync management on master fail.

You'll be able to use an RF splitter to connect one GPS antenna to multiple rockets if you like.
Edited. I assume the above statements will hold true (master stand-by) in 5.4?