CableLabs and the Telecom Infra Project (TIP) have announced the successful validation of new interoperable hardware and software, version 2.9, for managed Wi-Fi networks.
“As the cable industry seeks to accelerate Wi-Fi innovation and improved connectivity, this critical initiative supports the need for better networks and the growing adoption of Wi-Fi 6 devices across various applications,” wrote Josh Redmore, principal architect, Wireless Access Technologies, at CableLabs, in a blog post.
The new version of OpenWiFi is built on the uCentral communication layer and supports Multi Pre-Shared Key allowing devices to log in based on MAC addresses. It also supports a captive portal to require user interaction before they’re granted Wi-Fi access.
For advanced connectivity, OpenWiFi supports OpenRoaming, a roaming federation service enabling an automatic and secure Wi-Fi experience globally, from the Wireless Broadband Alliance (WBA).
“By having OpenWiFi work seamlessly with OpenRoaming out of the box, it creates strategic business opportunities in verticals including retail, hospitality, education and multi dwelling units,” said WBA CEO Tiago Rodriques in a statement. “It’s a smart move by the community developing and building the OpenWiFi solution to include OpenRoaming capabilities.”
In addition, the OpenWiFi Community Lab has been “recommissioned,” Redmore told Fierce. The lab was built at CableLabs’ Louisville, Colorado, headquarters, a couple years ago. Since then, OpenWiFi has undergone a lot of adjustments, and with the lab, “this is a renewed effort,” he said.
Adjustments to OpenWiFi
OpenWiFi has been around for about three years, but about a year and a half ago or so, the team decided to move its architecture from an OpenSync platform to uCentral, said Jack Raynor, co-chair of the OpenWiFi program group at TIP.
“What it did was allow us to deploy more seamlessly on more devices and with a smaller footprint,” which helps reduce costs, he said, adding that the current version of OpenWiFi is about a year and a half old.
Open WiFi is an alternative to the proprietary Wi-Fi products out there from the likes of HPE Aruba, Cisco, Ruckus and others. The idea is for anyone who joins the TIP open source community to take the base software and make a product based on it. About 10 or so hardware manufacturers are using it now to make their own access points, he said.
In addition to cost savings, they’re averting supply problems because there are so many hardware suppliers in different geographies, he noted.
The TIP Wi-Fi community supports versions of Wi-Fi starting with Wi-Fi 5 and probably will be releasing a version for Wi-Fi 7 in Q4 or Q1 2024 depending on how fast the development goes, according to Raynor.