ABOUT ME
Hi, I’m Matt Crawford, a Senior Systems Engineer based in Bristol, UK, specialising in wired and wireless networking.
I’ve worked in the IT and networking industry since 2009, with my career taking me from first-line IT support and event networking through ISP infrastructure, network architecture and, today, customer-facing systems engineering.
My journey started during a university placement year working as a first-line IT support technician for a small IT company just outside Bristol. I supported small businesses across the South West, working with technologies including Windows Server, desktop migrations, antivirus deployments and, most importantly for what came next, routers and networking.
After completing my Computer Science studies at the University of the West of England, I moved into the events industry as a Technical Engineer, delivering network services for events across the UK and Europe.
That's where networking became my passion, especially wireless. Over the following four and a half years, I worked on more than 250 events, including T in the Park, the Royal Windsor Horse Show, Geneva Motor Show, London Boat Show and the Goodwood Festival of Speed. I gained extensive hands-on experience designing and deploying temporary wired and wireless networks, including outdoor Wi-Fi and point-to-point wireless links using technologies from vendors including RUCKUS, Cambium and LigoWave.
Looking to develop my knowledge of service provider and wired networking, I then joined a Bristol-based ISP. This gave me practical experience with technologies including MPLS, BGP, OSPF and Cisco ASA firewalls, alongside virtualisation infrastructure based on VMware ESXi.
During this period, I also started working towards professional certifications, achieving CCENT, CCNA Routing & Switching and CCNP Routing & Switching.
In May 2018, I joined ComputerWorld as a Technical Architect, designing wired and wireless networks for small and medium-sized organisations across the UK. This role exposed me to a much broader range of enterprise technologies, including Dell EMC Networking, VMware NSX, Barracuda, Aerohive and RUCKUS.
It was also around this time that I began taking my wireless studies much more seriously, completing the Certified Wireless Network Administrator (CWNA) certification and starting down the CWNP certification path.
From Network Architect to CWNE
In May 2019, I joined Glide as a Network Architect focused on edge networking.
Working as part of the product team, my role involved designing, testing, industrialising and implementing networking technologies across the Glide ecosystem, working with vendors including Cisco, RUCKUS, Aruba, MikroTik and Juniper.
The COVID-19 lockdown in 2020 provided an unexpected opportunity to focus heavily on professional development.
I completed the Ekahau Certified Survey Engineer training before progressing further through the CWNP programme, achieving the Certified Wireless Analysis Professional (CWAP) and Certified Wireless Security Professional (CWSP) certifications. I also had the opportunity to work with Juniper Mist and complete its associated training.
Towards the end of 2020, I was promoted to Chief Network Architect. In March 2021, I achieved one of my major career goals by becoming Certified Wireless Network Expert #425 (CWNE #425).
Where I Am Today
Today, I work as a Senior Systems Engineer at Ruckus Networks in the UK, helping customers and partners design and understand modern wired and wireless networking solutions.
My work spans technologies including Wi-Fi, Switching, and AI networking, alongside wider areas such as network architecture, VLAN design, multicast, switching and wireless design.
Having spent much of my career on the customer and integrator side of the industry, I enjoy combining that practical experience with the vendor perspective I have today.
This blog is where I share that experience. You’ll find articles covering wireless networking, switching, network design, configuration examples, troubleshooting, lab projects and thoughts on the technologies I’m working with. My aim is to keep the content practical and useful, whether you're designing networks professionally, studying for certifications or simply enjoy experimenting with networking technology.
Despite all the different technologies I’ve worked with over the years, wireless networking still fascinates me most.
Disclaimer
The posts, opinions and views expressed on this site are my own and do not represent the views or opinions of my employer.
Unauthorised reproduction or duplication of material from this site without permission from the author is prohibited.
All content is provided for informational and educational purposes only. While I make every effort to ensure the information is accurate, mcwireless accepts no responsibility for any loss, damage or other consequences arising from its use.
