Wireless Mesh Network Disadvantages

In the world of WIFI, a mesh is a bit of a fuzz word, it is referred to by pros and a dabbler alike. Anyone who looks for how to improve their WIFI will almost certainly come across the word Mesh WIFI. Most people hear from their friends about mesh WIFI and how affordable its solution is. Mesh WIFI is a good answer to poor WIFI coverage. In this blog, we are going to see the benefits and disadvantages of wireless Mesh network. So, that you can understand if it is a good solution for you or not. Before gets start let’s see what Mesh WIFI is,

Wireless Mesh network:

Mesh is not an acronym it is refer to anything that is interconnected. It is called a mesh network because it is connected through a mesh of signals, from one hub to another. Mesh network is a description. Through WIFI routers it is interconnected with devices and nodes. All these components make up the mesh network to increase its speed and better strength. Based on its structure it is called a wireless, multi-hopped, and self-organizing network. In a mesh network, two nodes communicate directly or via other nodes on the route or path.

Wireless mesh network offers unique features such as self-healing, ease of installation, self-configuration, and scalability. In development, these features make them very attractive like (HAN) Home Area Networks, and (NAN) Neighborhood Area Networks. Mesh WIFI is also known as the Whole Home WIFI system.

Wireless Mesh WIFI working:

Mesh WIFI is based on what we offer in mesh nodes. Which differ from WIFI extensions. it works on the same WIFI standards that we expect all of our internet devices to obey such as 802.11 a, b, and g. Signal not only repeating, but also nodes are designed with software that helps them communicate with the overall network and with each other. Wireless mesh chose the fastest and safest routes for your traffic to be delivered from one node to the next, which is called dynamic routing.

This mode of routing is the best choice for those people who want to not lose their bandwidth. It is very helpful for large networks. In a large network, you want a wired Ethernet connection but do not need an extreme cable length to make it happen. Instead of your wireless modem, you would be able to connect your cable to nodes. Even the nodes that are far away still get a stronger signal due to linking them via a “daisy chain” system. Through this chain system, if one node fails, your networks can still stay active and depend on other nodes as means of protection against failure in the system.

Both technically and economically mesh topology is costly. If you want mesh technology in your home the price will increase as well, it is not as cheap as a standard router. On top of its price, the initial setup is time-consuming and confusing at first. It means that there is the possibility of a trial period before things are up and running smoothly. Some disadvantages of a wireless wifi mesh network are discussed in this blog.

As compared to other topologies mesh topology have,

• Installation is extremely difficult.
• Complex process
• Power requirement is higher as all the nodes need to remain active all the time, and share all the load.

Mesh topology and its type:

It is a type of networking where all of your nodes distribute data. In mesh, all the devices are interconnected. Each device or computer not only sends its signal but depends on the other computer data. The nodes are connected through a dedicated link during information travel from one node to another node. There are N(N-1) /2 links in mesh and N refers to nodes. Every node has a point-to-point connection at every end. The connection may be wired or wireless.

To help you to understand which application is best for you we have mentioned some advantages and disadvantages of mesh. If you are moving to know the initial design of your application probably you are trying to figure out what communication system you are using. Keep in mind that what type of network you are using affects the cost per installation, cost per node, and cost of hardware and software implementation.

Types:

There are two types of mesh topologies,

• Partially connected mesh topology
• Fully connected mesh topology

Full mesh topology:

If there are n number of nodes during a network all the nodes are connected with every other node. Each node has n-1 number of nodes in connection. It provides an excellent deal of redundancy, but it is very expensive to implement. Mostly reserved for network backbones.

Partial mesh topology:

It is more practical than full mesh topology. During a network, all the nodes don’t need to be connected. The peripheral network is connected by using partial mesh topology.

Disadvantages of mesh topology:

Both technically and economically wireless mesh network is very costly as compared to other mesh topologies,

As compared to other topologies mesh topology have,

• Installation is extremely difficult.
• Complex process
• Power requirement is higher as all the nodes need to remain active all the time, and share all the load.

Here below describe the serious disadvantages of mesh topology.

• Latency
• Complexity
• Power consumption
• Network planning
• over friendly user
• scaling
• cost
• slow speed

Power consumption:

The disadvantages of power consumption security systems and light cause issues if not properly configured. A security system sensor needs enough power to send data from one room to another room and even floors. Each node in the mesh has to act like a router and an end point to draw more power for work. So, if you have low-power nodes a mesh finds it difficult to operate without proper planning.

Network planning:

You have to upgrade an entire mesh network if latency causes an issue. More memory, bandwidth, and power for each node will increase message transfer speed. However, these upgrades cost more money but planning the network as a whole is a different story. With a mesh network, you can add dedicated nodes that only forward messages.

Latency:

Latency is the time it takes to send messages from one node to another gateway. It will have an impact on your mesh networking planning. by using mesh topology you can increase or improve latency with more power, bandwidth, and memory. Latency is an issue in low power mode and (LPWANs) wide area networks. Because it does not have the processing ability to cope with messages. Thus, if you have a wireless mesh the message is translated more quickly and faster than ZigBee mesh.

Complexity:

If you want to get a better range from your system then nodes will do it. Now, it has to track the messages from 5 to 10 of its “neighbors”. Rapidly it Increases the amount of data to deal with. If you have additional sensors in mesh just to take benefits from it you are making the system more complex. Each node acts as a router and sends messages greatly increasing the complexity of nodes.

Workload increase:

If one node in a system gets fails, other ones in mesh have to run the system. It means that the workload increases another than usual. Each node in the system already has many functions to carry out. Each node must act as a router besides sending the messages hence it makes the system more complex. The data pass from the nodes increases if another become faulty.

Slow speed:

The biggest drawback of the system is that every ‘hop’ the system makes you lose speed. For example, your main station is the basement, and you have two hubs on the upper level and none in the bedroom. So, the speed in the bedroom is very slow. This is because the main station copies the data sent to the hub makes another copy and then reaches the destination. So, it takes extra time to travel from the primary hub.

Scaling:

The price point is the scalability of a mesh network. If you want to cover a large amount of space for this you need more modules. After all, WIFI coverage is only good as the number of hubs increases that you can afford. For each added node the price will boost up.

Cost:

Its price is much higher than the traditional router. Depending on the framework and home size it will determine which mesh system is best. Currently, there are three main home systems in the market to consider when you are shopping for a wireless mesh network,

• Google wife
• Error
• Orbi by Netgear

The average package is between $300-$400.

over Friendly user:

Mesh network is made by keeping in mind the consumers. They are simple while ideal for many customers, but it may mean a lacking feature for advanced WIFI users. For example, a present system lacks the DHCP-IP. Users are not able to add customize domain network systems.

Conclusion:

A wireless mesh network is a new slogan that is mostly told about when it comes to building systems. For example, google homes. Mesh networks have a lot of benefits but some downsides as well. If you want to have a mesh network in homes or offices, before this proper planning, mechanism of power generation, and cost estimation at first.