Practical guide to Starlink deployment

Through working with NHS organisations who have deployed Starlink as a live service we have captured some key considerations for deployment, implementation and running of the service based on their experiences.

Bath and North East Somerset, Swindon and Wiltshire ICB wireless trial: Creating an office in a box with Starlink.

Implementation

The set up of the dish was easy to complete, with the trust providing the following steps:

1. Find most secure area with visibility of the sky.
2. Place dish on a balanced surface and connect to the switch (in the surgeries case, the existing site local area network (LAN) used an MS120-48 switch).
3. When powered up the dish will calibrate to a satellite but may require a change of location before it will provide service. This can be done from the Starlink Mobile Phone App, via an internet connected device, once the dish is online.
4. Ensure users are connected to any relevant virtual private networks (VPNs) for connecting to HSCN.

Considerations

Testing from the trust currently indicates all that is needed is a clear view of the sky and to be within 25m of the building for cable runs due to the model of the dish used.

Pre deployment testing found ~160Mbps download, ~25Mbps upload, ~30ms latency, and 100% uptime for the tested timeframe, which met their GP site demands.

Any surface the dish is placed on must be stable and allow the legs of the dish to be well balanced when pointing up.

When determining where to place the satellite dish, consider the dish’s physical security. As an exposed piece of equipment that is not secured to the deployed sites, BSW had to think about how to best avoid vandalism and theft, whether by people or local wildlife.

1. The first step in reducing this risk is to place the dish in a secure area, such as a flat, remote roof or secured garden. In addition, the power cable to the dish is plugged in and cannot be removed easily.
2. Finally, the trust attached an anti-theft alarm normally used for bikes, that will activate on movement, emitting a loud alarm to alert staff members of any disturbances to the dish, as well as deter any potential tampering.

Consider Secure Boundary and your ability to run VPNs. Starlink is on the internet, so they chose to access their main MX250 devices on an internet only connection.

Temper expectations for the users as to what devices will and will not work and make clear that the device requires power so will need an alternate power source in the event of power outages.

Consider Starlink more as a tactical solution rather than strategic.

Supporting users

BSW created a step-by-step guide to setup, configure and take down the equipment after use. This was designed to support staff, particularly non-technical staff at GP sites, in use of the equipment and mobile application. Considering user needs when implementing new types of connectivity can increase uptake and maximise usage.

If you would like more information on this or a copy of the step-by-step guide, contact us at [email protected].

Preparation

Before you start, create detailed and clear user cases based on thorough business analysis to understand workflows and identify all stakeholders.

Conduct a technical assessment early to understand all prerequisites as sites are considered to enhance feasibility and suitability. This includes evaluating existing infrastructure, assessing compatibility with proposed solutions, and identifying any potential obstacles.

Recognise that multiple visits may be required to address operational elements such as cabling, health and safety, security, and access.

Consider the impact on support and service teams, ensure they are equipped to respond to issues/incidents and a potential spike in support required after implementation.

Consider how Starlink will work with other elements of your network. This is a fairly novel technology for the NHS so may be the first time it is used with some elements of your network.

Implementation

Manchester experienced several challenges and delays due to issues with remote firewalls and required workarounds. Outbound connectivity and configuration can be problematic: the trust settled on using manually configured tunnels back to the data centre instead of SD-WAN, which worked well.

Make sure to account for non-technical factors, including:

• physical security
• installation approvals
• health and safety regulations
• equipment securing procedures
• stakeholder engagement
• automated tasks
• configuration

Physical site visits and requirements assessment need to be completed. These will allow for identification of requirements such as equipment security, mounting on different surfaces or cable planning. Failure to do this early enough meant that additional time was required to address those requirements, thus delaying overall project timeline.

Purchase longer specialist Starlink cabling. This again will come out of surveys for specific requirements for Starlink installation and operation. Procurement of high-quality, extended-length cabling ensures optimal connectivity and performance.

Maintain an inventory of spare cables for emergency replacements.

Work may need to be done to allow devices to connect to your network. At Manchester, user devices needed to be resynched to active directory before they were able to get connectivity, which meant that an administrator had to log on to re-add the device to active directory.