With the rapid advancement of Wi-Fi technology, Wi-Fi 7 (802.11be) emerges as the latest version, bringing with it a host of features aimed at significantly improving user experience. From enhanced throughput to better channel utilization and reduced latency, Wi-Fi 7 introduces a leap in performance. In this blog, we’ll delve into one of its standout features: Multi-Link Operation (MLO), and how WiCheck serves as an ideal platform for testing it.

Wi-Fi 7 Innovations: A Quick Overview

Wi-Fi 7 introduces several features that have the potential to revolutionize wireless connectivity:

• 320 MHz Channels: Doubling the width of channels compared to Wi-Fi 6, allowing for higher throughput.
• 4K QAM (Quadrature Amplitude Modulation): This improves the efficiency of data transmission, enabling higher data rates.
• Preamble Puncturing: This feature enhances channel utilization, especially in dense environments where interference or heavy network usage might be an issue.
• Multi-Link Operation (MLO): The most talked-about feature, which reduces latency and boosts throughput by efficiently managing the usage of multiple wireless links.

Understanding Multi-Link Operation (MLO)

MLO is designed to help utilize multiple wireless channels more efficiently, providing a significant performance boost under certain conditions. Let’s break down the different types of MLO configurations:

• Multi-Link Single Radio (MLSR): This involves switching between different wireless links at predetermined times. It’s a sequential approach where a single radio uses multiple links, but not simultaneously.
• Simultaneous Transmit and Receive (STR): In this setup, multiple radios transmit and receive data simultaneously on different links. STR ensures maximum throughput and minimized latency by allowing parallel transmission, making it one of the most efficient MLO implementations.
• Non-Simultaneous Transmit and Receive (NSTR): Here, multiple radios are used, but they transmit and receive data at different times. This is a less efficient but still effective approach to using multiple links.
• Enhanced Multi-Link Single Radio (EMLSR): This is a specialized type of MLO where the MIMO (Multiple-Input, Multiple-Output) configuration of devices is utilized to further improve link efficiency.

WiCheck supports all these configurations, enabling precise testing and validation of MLO features in real-world scenarios.

WiCheck: The Ultimate Wi-Fi 7 Testing Platform

WiCheck plays a critical role in testing and validating the performance of Wi-Fi 7’s new features, particularly MLO.

Let’s explore its capabilities in the context of MLO testing:

• Testing Environment: A typical MLO test setup involves a Wi-Fi 7 Access Point (AP), WiCheck clients supporting MLO, and dedicated sniffers to capture packet data on multiple links. Additionally, an iPerf client is used to generate traffic through the AP.
• Testing Approach: With this setup, peak throughput tests can be conducted with both single-link and multi-link configurations to quantify the performance benefits of MLO. WiCheck’s client can act as a reference point, running application traffic, checking the sanity of connections, and performing comprehensive performance evaluations.
• Packet Sniffing: WiCheck has the added advantage of functioning as a sniffer, capturing packets on different links and providing detailed analysis, which is crucial for diagnosing issues and fine-tuning performance.

Peak Throughput Testing with MLO

One of the key advantages of MLO is its ability to boost throughput by efficiently managing multiple links. By running peak throughput tests using WiCheck, users can compare the performance of a single link versus multiple links. This allows for a clear demonstration of MLO’s ability to improve network performance under various conditions.

As Wi-Fi 7 continues to shape the future of wireless communication, testing platforms like WiCheck are essential for ensuring that its advanced features, such as Multi-Link Operation, deliver on their promises. With its comprehensive support for MLO, 320 MHz bandwidth, 4K QAM, and other cutting-edge technologies, WiCheck offers a reliable, real-world solution for Wi-Fi 7 testing.

For those working with Wi-Fi 7, WiCheck provides the tools needed to validate performance and optimize deployments, making it a trusted partner for thorough and accurate Wi-Fi testing.

To learn more schedule a demo or reach us at info@aletheatech.com