Advanced Wi-Fi 7 Module

Overview

The NTA3000 hardware platform is QA Cafe’s most advanced network test appliance, providing significant upgrades over previous systems. QA Cafe now offers the Advanced Wi-Fi 7 Module (AW7M), a hardware upgrade that adds [three independent] Wi-Fi 7 (802.11be) radios to the NTA3000 for [expanded / higher-throughput] Wi-Fi testing.

[Photo: AW7M card, front]
[Photo: AW7M card, back]
[Photo: NTA3000 chassis with AW7M installed]

The AW7M can be added to an NTA3000 at the time of initial purchase, in which case QA Cafe installs it prior to shipping, or purchased separately and installed in the field by the end user. Field installation instructions are provided below.

[Embed: unboxing and installation video — https://player.vimeo.com/video/XXXXXXXXXX]

For full radio specifications, see the NTA3000 data sheet.

For pricing and other information, please contact sales@qacafe.com.

Note: If your AW7M was included with your NTA3000 at the time of purchase, it has already been installed by QA Cafe and you can skip this procedure. The following steps are only needed if you purchased the AW7M separately for field installation into an existing NTA3000.

Installation Instructions

Installing your new AW7M is straightforward.

In the Box

[Lay things out neatly on the table and take a picture, like with the RAK]

AW7M
Tri-band antennas and magnetic antenna mounts
USB stick with 9.6.1 golden image
SMA finger wrench

Tools Required

Before you begin the installation, make sure you have the following tools on hand:

Screwdriver: A standard Phillips #2 screwdriver.
Anti-Static Protection: An ESD wrist strap (recommended).

Prerequisites & Safety

CAUTION: Electrostatic Discharge (ESD) Hazard The AW7M is a sensitive electronic component that can be permanently damaged by static electricity. Please observe the following safety precautions before opening the chassis:

Power Off: Ensure the NTA3000 is completely powered down and the power cable is disconnected.
Ground Yourself: Wear an ESD wrist strap connected to a grounded metal surface. If a wrist strap is not available, touch a bare metal portion of the NTA3000 chassis to discharge any static buildup before touching internal components.
Handle with Care: Keep the AW7M module in its anti-static protective bag until the moment of installation. Always hold the card by its edges; do not touch the exposed circuitry or gold pin connectors.

Steps

The AW7M requires the 9.6.1 (or newer) Golden Image installed on the NTA3000. This should be done before physically installing the module. From a terminal window on the NTA3000 you can run this command to determine the current Golden Image:
```
cdrouter-cli -info
```
Look for the NTA Image: information at the bottom of the output. If you need to upgrade, refer to this article for instructions on upgrading the Golden Image: Update/Rebuild NTA3000 System Drive. For convenience, a USB drive with the 9.6.1 Golden Image was included in the box with the AW7M. This lets you begin at Step3: Boot the NTA3000 from the USB drive. If your NTA3000 is already running Golden Image 9.6.1 or newer, you can skip to the next step.
Once the NTA3000 is running Golden Image 9.6.1 (or newer), it’s time to install the AW7M. Power down the NTA3000 by opening a terminal window as the root user and typing the following command:
```
poweroff
```
Once the system has powered down, disconnect the power cable. Remove the chassis cover by removing 6 screws (two on each side and two on the front), then lift the front of the cover and slide out. Note the two screws on the front are smaller than those on the sides. [picture of screw locations]
The AW7M will be installed into slot G. This is the right-most slot as you face the front of the NTA3000. [picture of chassis with arrow pointing to slot G] Remove any antennas or magnetic bases connected to the RP-SMA connectors on the card in slot G. Remove the screw securing the card currently installed in that slot. Gently remove the card and set aside. Carefully align and fully seat the AW7M module into the empty slot, securing it with the screw. It’s a good idea to place the old Wi-Fi 7 card into the same static bag the new AW7M arrived in and store it in a safe place.
Reinstall the chassis cover by inserting the back first, then lowering the front and securing with the six screws. Connect the power cord to the NTA3000 and power it on.
Open a terminal window as the root user and run the following command to configure the new network interfaces:
```
/usr/share/nta/bin/configure_network_interfaces.py
```
You will be prompted to reboot for the changes to take effect. Go ahead and reboot now. When the system boots back up, you should see all three Wi-Fi 7 interfaces when you run this command:
```
cdrouter-cli -info
```
Look for the three Wi-Fi 7 interfaces:
```
Wireless: wifi7-be 2.4/5/6GHz max-clients=1 (iwlwifi:94.62990553.0 gl-c0-fm-c0-94.uc)
Wireless: wifi8-be 2.4/5/6GHz max-clients=1 (iwlwifi:94.62990553.0 gl-c0-fm-c0-94.uc)
Wireless: wifi9-be 2.4/5/6GHz max-clients=1 (iwlwifi:94.62990553.0 gl-c0-fm-c0-94.uc)
```

Setup

Some things to keep in mind with your new hardware configuration.

Interface Names

The AW7M replaces the previously installed Wi-Fi 7 interface (wifi7-be) with a new identical Wi-Fi-7 interface (also called wifi7-be) and adds two new Wi-Fi 7 interfaces to the NTA3000 (wifi8-be and wifi9-be).

Independent Interfaces

All three AW7M interfaces are fully independent — each radio can be configured, associated, and driven separately, with no shared state or contention between them. This allows [simultaneous/parallel testing across bands, or three independent DUT associations at once — confirm intended use case].

Antenna Connections

Each AW7M interface has its own set of RP-SMA antenna connectors on the front of the chassis. Since the RP-SMA connectors are quite close together, the included tri-band antennas will not physically fit next to each other. Use magnetic bases for these, and connect the antennas to the magnetic bases.

If you are using the AW7M for Range vs. Rate (RvR) testing, see the new antenna connection guidance in the RvR user guide: [link to new RvR user guide section]. [Note any caveats here — e.g. required plug terminators, unused connector handling, attenuator channel mapping.]

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