CWEng study plan

Convert fluently among mW, dBm, and dB (including the 3 dB / 10 dB rules) across at least 20 practice values without a calculator error

Compute free-space path loss for 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz, and 6 GHz at three distances and compare the results

Identify the physical causes of reflection, refraction, diffraction, scattering, and absorption and match each to a real indoor environment type

Sketch the first Fresnel zone for a point-to-point link and state the clearance rule of thumb

Explain how antenna gain, EIRP, and regulatory limits interact, and calculate EIRP for four transmitter/antenna combinations

Compare antenna types (dipole, patch, Yagi, panel) by gain pattern, beamwidth, and appropriate deployment scenario

Describe MIMO, MU-MIMO, and beamforming in terms of spatial streams and how each changes coverage expectations

Build a full link budget (transmit power, cable loss, antenna gain, path loss, receiver sensitivity, fade margin) for three indoor scenarios

Tabulate the PHY differences (band, channel width, modulation, spatial streams, max data rate) for 802.11a/b/g/n/ac/ax/be

Distinguish management, control, and data frame types and name the purpose of at least six specific frames

Compare 802.11k, 802.11v, and 802.11r and state the roaming problem each solves

Sequence the stages of the 802.11 association and authentication exchange in order

Translate a set of business requirements (capacity, coverage, voice support, guest access) into measurable WLAN design criteria

Distinguish predictive, passive, and active site surveys and select the correct method for three given project constraints

Apply the capacity-versus-coverage planning model to determine AP count for a 40,000 sq ft office with 600 clients

Choose channel and channel-width plans for a dense 5 GHz deployment while accounting for co-channel interference

Interpret a predictive heat map legend and identify at least three design flaws from a described coverage pattern

Validate a post-deployment survey against stated design criteria and document any gap with a remediation step

Explain the impact of AP mounting height, orientation, and nearby obstructions on measured coverage

Differentiate SNR, RSSI, and noise floor requirements for data, voice, and high-density use cases

Compare WEP, WPA, WPA2, and WPA3 across encryption, integrity, and key management, and state why each predecessor failed

Explain 802.1X/EAP authentication flow and contrast PEAP, EAP-TLS, and EAP-TTLS by credential type and server certificate requirement

Describe how PSK, SAE, and 802.1X differ in resistance to offline dictionary and key-reinstallation attacks

Outline the controls in a segmented enterprise WLAN (management VLAN, guest isolation, rogue AP detection, WIPS)

Diagnose common layer-1 and layer-2 faults (low SNR, co-channel interference, retry storms, sticky client) from described symptom sets

Interpret key metrics - retry rate, CRC errors, airtime utilization, and client count per AP - and state a healthy threshold for each

Explain the effect of data rate, A-MPDU, and band steering settings on airtime consumption and client distribution

Select appropriate capture points and filters for three given troubleshooting scenarios

Resolve five mixed-domain case scenarios that combine a security misconfiguration with a performance symptom

Re-derive the three RF calculations missed on any earlier quiz until solved correctly twice in a row

Compare the security tradeoffs of proposed optimizations (band steering, fast roaming, guest onboarding) in three scenarios

Complete a timed 60-question cumulative practice set and categorize each error by domain