*This solution was collected from a variety of sources spanning actual incidents, best practices research online and personal troubleshooting from PRMT techs and staff.
*In general, wifi performance is dependent on the correct tuning for bands and power of radios, bitrate of streams, density of AP's with correct distance and power between any given 2 and overall site interference. For high density environments, it is best to have more AP's at lower power to have the best performance.
-Check to make sure all firmware is up to date on all devices after adding to Organization. Update any firmware that needs updating
-Make appropriate VLANs to separate wifi networks and wired networks. There should be separate Vlans for Zoom, security cams/ac, IoT devices, etc. These should all be separated from the main corporate network.
-Do a Wifi Site Survey, either with Survey mode, or after AP's are in place with one band at a time. As mentioned below, do the site survey primarily in the 5Ghz or 6Ghz (wifi6) band. Leave the 2.4Ghz survey for specific AP's if needed after a stable network has been set for the other bands and main network.
To understand how Wifi RF signals work - this will inform decisions for each site: https://documentation.meraki.com/MR/Wi-Fi_Basics_and_Best_Practices/Understanding_Wireless_Performance_and_Coverage
More info on how to do a site survey with Meraki: https://documentation.meraki.com/MR/Wi-Fi_Basics_and_Best_Practices/Conducting_Site_Surveys_with_MR_Access_Points
-If possible, use a dedicated wifi survey app like Netspot to achieve best results. If this is not available, use speed tests, RSSI values from Macs/PC's while roaming to identify good values throughout site. RSSI values should be between -40dB and -67dB for good signal (below -40dB is excellent).
-Make a unique wireless profile for each site - do not just use the "Outdoor" or "Indoor" boilerplate one.
-Shut down 2.4Ghz on all AP's unless specificatlly needed for production devices. If 2.4Ghz is needed, only have it broadcast at low dB, only on the Access point closest to device needing it. Also, make a specific profile and tag that corresponds to the chosen AP with the 2.4Ghz being its own SSID labeled "Client Wifi name Legacy" or similar. Turn on band steering with any AP's broadcasting on 2.4Ghz band.
-NO MORE THAN 3 SSID'S PER AP! Each SSID takes away overhead and hits performance. If at all possible, limit SSID's to main and guest.
-Tune each AP individually first, then turn on all AP's and adjust tuning as needed to dial in. There will be a "sweet spot" between dB power and bitrate with the dB power being adjusted dependent on AP proximity to adjacent AP and external interference.
-Keep Auto Channel and Auto dB on, but the settings must be tuned. Use different devices, speed tests and different locations while adjusting the min/max dB for each AP. This will ensure the best coverage without too much or too little Radio Power (too little means dropped signals, too much means interference and performance degradation).
-Adjust Bitrate to max amount before seeing speed tests drop. Hopefully 5Ghz can be 24bits for example.
-Once tuned, do several tests while roaming with the following:
Zoom Calls
Wifi phone calls
Watching Youtube or video
Speed tests