Silicon Labs RS9116N User Manual
silabs.com | Building a more connected world. 1 | Page
AN1278: Using RS9116N to Measure Wi-Fi
Throughput
Version 0.4
10/21/2020
AN1278: Using RS9116N to Measure Wi-Fi Throughput
Version 0.4
silabs.com | Building a more connected world. 2 | Page
Table of Contents
1 About this Document............................................................................................................................................... 3
2 Introduction .............................................................................................................................................................. 4
3 Prerequisites ................................................................ ................................ ................................ ............................ 5
3.1 Software .............................................................................................................................................................. 5
3.2 Hardware ............................................................................................................................................................. 5
4 Terminology (Acronyms/Abbreviations) ................................................................................................................ 6
5 Throughput ............................................................................................................................................................... 7
5.1 Description .......................................................................................................................................................... 7
5.2 Block Diagram ................................................................................................................................ ..................... 7
5.3 Use Case............................................................................................................................................................. 7
5.4 Benefits ............................................................................................................................................................... 7
6 Execution Steps ....................................................................................................................................................... 8
6.1 Configuration Parameters for Driver Package ..................................................................................................... 8
6.2 Compiling the Driver ............................................................................................................................................ 8
6.3 Installation of Driver ............................................................................................................................................. 9
6.4 Testing WiFi STA Mode....................................................................................................................................... 9
6.5 Access Point Configuration ............................................................................................................................... 14
7 Iperf Test for Throughput ...................................................................................................................................... 15
7.1 TCP Uplink ......................................................................................................................................................... 16
7.2 TCP Downlink .................................................................................................................................................... 17
7.3 UDP Uplink ........................................................................................................................................................ 18
7.4 UDP Downlink .................................................................................................................................................... 19
8 Expected Results ................................................................................................................................................... 20
9 Summary ................................................................................................................................................................ 22
10 References and Related Documentation ............................................................................................................. 23
11 Troubleshooting..................................................................................................................................................... 24
12 Revision History .................................................................................................................................................... 25
AN1278: Using RS9116N to Measure Wi-Fi Throughput
Version 0.4
silabs.com | Building a more connected world. 3 | Page
1 About this Document
This document explains the procedure to measure throughput for RS9116N Module.
AN1278: Using RS9116N to Measure Wi-Fi Throughput
Version 0.4
silabs.com | Building a more connected world. 4 | Page
2 Introduction
RS9116N n-link Open Source Driver implemented for RS9116N family of modules, it uses netlink sockets.
The document will walk you through the steps with which user can bring up the RS9116N device to get the maximum
throughput along with the details about software, Hardware, tools required for this.
AN1278: Using RS9116N to Measure Wi-Fi Throughput
Version 0.4
silabs.com | Building a more connected world. 5 | Page
3 Prerequisites
3.1 Software
• WLAN driver – RS9116N n-link Open Source Driver for Linux
Download the driver package from the below link:
https://www.silabs.com/wireless/wi-fi/rs9116-wi-fi-transceiver-modules
• Measurement Tool – Iperf
3.2 Hardware
1. RS9116-wi-fi-transceiver-modules with USB / SDIO connector
2. Linux PC (kernel versions 2.6.35 and above).
AN1278: Using RS9116N to Measure Wi-Fi Throughput
Version 0.4
silabs.com | Building a more connected world. 6 | Page
4 Terminology (Acronyms/Abbreviations)
• NL 80211 - NL80211 is the new 802.11 netlink interface public header.
• TCP - Transmission Control protocol.
• UDP - User datagram protocol.
• DHCP - Dynamic Host Configuration protocol.
• Uplink - Data transfer from station to access point
• Downlink- Data transfer from access point to station.
AN1278: Using RS9116N to Measure Wi-Fi Throughput
Version 0.4
silabs.com | Building a more connected world. 7 | Page
5 Throughput
5.1 Description
Throughput refers to how much data can be transferred from one device to another in a given amount of time.
It is used to measure the performance wireless networks.
5.2 Block Diagram
Figure 1: Throughput Setup Diagram
5.3 Use Case
Throughput test will give assurance of the application performance like audio/video data using 9116N module
5.4 Benefits
By measuring throughput, user can determine network performance, which will help in designing endproduct.
AN1278: Using RS9116N to Measure Wi-Fi Throughput
Version 0.4
silabs.com | Building a more connected world. 8 | Page
6 Execution Steps
6.1 Configuration Parameters for Driver Package
1. Download the RS9116N driver package.
https://www.silabs.com/wireless/wi-fi/rs9116-wi-fi-transceiver-modules
2. Unzip the driver.
# unzip RS9116.NB0.NL.GNU.LNX.OSD.x.x.x.x.zip
3. Refer the section “Compilation Steps” of RS9116N Open Source Driver Technical Reference Manual
which is available under TECH-DOCS section of
https://www.silabs.com/wireless/wi-fi/rs9116-wi-fi-transceiver-modules.
6.2 Compiling the Driver
Change the working directory to directory of the driver package and following are compilation steps.
1. Configure build flags in driver source.
# cd rsi
2. Open Makefile and configure build flags. Below are the build flags to be set based on the usage of driver.
Selecting the required options shall reduce the binary size which is important for kernel modules particularly on
embedded platforms.
a. KERNELDIR: Provide the kernel source path here. For example, on X-86 below path is used.
KERNELRELEASE=$(Shell uname -r)
KERNELDIR=/lib/modules/$(KERNELRELEASE)/build
b. CONFIG_RSI_COEX_MODE: Enable this flag when Wi-Fi and BT coexistence mode is used.
c. CONFIG_RSI_DEBUGFS: debugfs is used by driver to take dynamic configuration from user. Supported
debugfs based configurations are listed in the corresponding feature sections in RS9116N Open Source
Driver Technical Reference Manual.
d. CONFIG_RSI_BT_ALONE: Enable this flag when only BT EDR/ BT LE only mode is used.
3. Build the driver using make command.
# make
After completion of compilation, the driver generates the following modules in the rsi folder according to the
configuration.
They are outlined below:
• rsi_91x.ko
• rsi_usb.ko
• rsi_sdio.ko
Loading...