Dental office WiFi setup starts on the floor plan: access points placed for the rooms as built, wired back to the closet, with patient WiFi kept off the clinical network. ClearMax technicians set it up on site for Seattle offices, usually as part of a buildout, and test it room by room before handing it over.
Last updated: November 2026
How do you set up a network for a small office?
For a dental office, in this order:
- The internet line, ordered by the practice from its provider and brought into the IT closet.
- A firewall between that line and everything else.
- A switch, with a labeled cable running to every fixed device, and powering the access points over those same cables.
- Separate networks for clinical computers, for guests, and where it makes sense for devices such as cameras.
- Access points, placed from the plan and named so that anyone can tell which is which.
- A test in each room, with the walls and equipment in place, and a written record of the results.
The order matters because each step depends on the one before. Buying access points first and hoping they suit the building is how offices end up with a strong signal in the hallway and a weak one in the operatory at the far end.
What should run on WiFi, and what should be wired?
| Device | Connection | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Server | Wired | Every other computer depends on it |
| Operatory and imaging computers | Wired | Radiographs are large, and the vendor's sheet lists 1000 Mbps as its typical workstation minimum |
| Front desk computers and printers | Wired | They do not move, and the day depends on them |
| Cameras and door hardware | Wired | They should keep working when the WiFi is busy |
| Tablets and laptops | Staff WiFi | They move between rooms |
| Patient phones | Patient WiFi | They should reach the internet and nothing else |
The rule of thumb is simple: if it stays in one place and the practice depends on it, it gets a cable. That is why WiFi planning and the structured cabling plan belong in the same document.
Why keep patient WiFi off the clinical network?
Because of what sits on the clinical side. Under RCW 19.255.005, a name combined with information about someone's medical history or condition, or a professional's diagnosis or treatment, counts as personal information. A guest's phone has no reason to share a network with the machines holding those records, and a password on a sign at the front desk is shared with everyone who reads it.
The software vendor makes a related point about its database. It says the database is only as vulnerable as the local network's security allows, and that its port should never be opened on routers. Separating the networks means a guest device cannot even see the server. In practice that takes:
- a separate network name for patients, on its own segment;
- a firewall rule that lets it reach the internet and nowhere inside;
- isolation between guest devices, so that phones cannot see each other;
- a separate staff network, with its own credentials, changed when someone leaves.
The final test is practical. A technician joins the patient network with a phone and tries to reach the server and the printers. It should fail, and that result goes in the handover record.
Why is a dental office harder to cover?
A dental office is not an open-plan floor. It has small rooms, a lot of metal, and often shielded walls around imaging, and each of those works against a radio signal.
- Shielded walls. The shielding that contains X-rays also blocks WiFi. A room behind it may need its own coverage, or a plan for working without any.
- Equipment. Chairs, cabinets, sterilizers and imaging units all absorb or reflect signal.
- Doors. Coverage measured with doors open can look quite different with them closed during a procedure.
- Neighbors. In a multi-tenant medical building, other offices' networks compete on the same channels.
That is why access-point locations start on the plan but are confirmed with the walls and equipment in place. A location planned during rough-in still needs a cable above the ceiling, so it pays to overlap coverage a little and include one or two spare runs. The same closet and switch also serve the cameras and door readers. Ceiling mounting is usually better than a shelf or the top of a cabinet, because the signal gets a clear path over the equipment and nobody moves the unit by accident.
How many access points does an office need?
It depends on the walls more than the square footage, which is why any number quoted without a floor plan is a guess. Send the plan with the room layout and shielded walls marked, and the placement comes from that. Capacity counts too: a morning with several patients on their phones and staff on tablets loads the network more than coverage maps suggest. Newer access points on the 5 and 6 GHz bands offer more room, though those bands do not pass through walls as well as 2.4 GHz does. A sensible design uses all three and places units close enough together to allow for that.
What happens to WiFi when the power goes out?
Access points powered from the switch stay up as long as the switch does, which ties them to the battery in the closet. Seattle's emergency managers say about half of City Light's unplanned outages are caused by falling trees or branches, so short interruptions are a normal part of running an office here. A battery on the switch and firewall keeps the network alive through a brief one and lets the server shut down cleanly in a longer one. It will not run an office through a storm. It only makes sure things come back up in good order, with nothing damaged.
Which internet line should it connect to?
That depends on the address, and the practice orders it directly from its provider. The city's technology office lists Quantum Fiber, Xfinity and Astound as fiber and cable providers in Seattle, and points people to the provider sites or the FCC's map to check the service at a specific address. Check before signing a lease if the office depends on online services, and ask how the line reaches the building, because the handoff point decides where the closet needs to be. Some multi-tenant buildings have their own arrangements, and the landlord will know.
What gets tested at handover?
- Signal strength in every room, with the doors closed.
- A device moving from one end of the office to the other without dropping.
- Patient WiFi reaching the internet and failing to reach anything inside.
- Staff WiFi reaching only what staff devices need.
- A restart of the switch, to confirm everything returns by itself.
The results go in the practice's handover record, along with the list of access points, their locations and the network names. Passwords are handed over to the person the practice names, not left on a sticky note in the closet.
Can you improve WiFi in an office that is already open?
Often, yes, and it usually starts with the details you can send: a floor plan or sketch, the current equipment, and the rooms where it fails. New access points may need new cable runs through the ceiling, done outside patient hours. If more work is needed once that starts, it is brought to the practice's attention and the bid is updated.
WiFi questions from Seattle offices
Do we have to offer patients WiFi at all?
No. Many offices do because waiting rooms expect it. If you offer it, keep it separate. If you do not, leave the option in the plan for later, since the design barely changes.
Will WiFi slow down our imaging?
Not when the imaging computers are wired, which is the plan here. WiFi problems tend to show up when clinical computers rely on it.
Can the provider's router do all this?
It can get a small office online. It is usually not built for separate networks, several access points or a written record of what changed, so a buildout uses dedicated equipment.
Does this work with our dental software?
Yes. Open Dental and similar programs do not care how the access points are set up, as long as the clinical computers have a reliable connection to the server.