A Measurement Study of Path Capacity in 802.11b-based Wireless Networks

The rapid deployment of wireless networks in various environments necessitate the development of new end-to-end tools that monitor and measure the properties of wireless paths well. In this paper, we implement AdHoc Probe, a recently proposed path capacity estimation tool specially designed for the multi-hop ad hoc wireless environment. We present an implementation of AdHoc Probe in Linux; discuss challenges in its deployment, and solutions to the various system issues encountered. We also evaluate the behavior/effectiveness of AdHoc Probe in various testbed setups; including an interfered setting that cannot be simulated. Experiment results validate the workings of AdHoc Probe and offer insights into how the capacity of a wireless path changes in real wireless environments. Our efforts provide a basis for realistic results that can be of assistance in activities such as capacity planning, protocol design, performance analysis, and etc.