UCLA: 70,000 Users, One Network
HPE Aruba
Situation
UCLA needed to modernize their campus-wide wireless network to support 70,000+ students, faculty, and staff. The existing infrastructure was a patchwork of different vendors and generations, creating dead zones and poor roaming performance. Research departments needed guaranteed bandwidth for data-intensive applications.
Task
Manage the transition to a unified Aruba wireless infrastructure across the entire campus while maintaining service continuity for ongoing research projects and daily operations.
Action
Coordinated a phased migration strategy that avoided any service interruptions. Implemented eduroam federation for seamless roaming across academic institutions. Designed per-department VLAN structures that provided research groups with dedicated bandwidth while maintaining campus-wide roaming for students.
Result
Successfully migrated the entire campus to a unified wireless platform serving 70,000+ daily users. Research departments reported significant improvements in wireless reliability. The phased approach completed ahead of schedule with zero unplanned outages.