HeatMapper is a Windows program that allows you to map the WiFi signal coverage in your office or home. If you have one or more WiFi AP’s (access points or hot-spots) then you can actually see if they are effectively covering the entire area in your place. Normally, you can do this using any smartphone and going from place to place to see if you are getting a WiFi signal. But HeatMapper puts all the data in a map showing the signal strength in your place using heat based color codes – red being no signal and green being very good signal.
HeatMapper comes with a setup package that includes everything you would need to use it. The setup program even includes Java runtime environment (JRE) files which is why the setup package is nearly 100 MB in size.
For using HeatMapper, all you need is a laptop (since it works with Windows) equipped with a WiFi network adapter. Both the internal or external (dongle) WiFi adapters will work just fine. Then you can launch the HeatMapper program in your PC and walk around your place while marking the locations by left clicking on the map. The WiFi signal strength will then be mapped for various locations in your place.
If you have more than one access points like WiFi routers, then you may have to connect to each of them separately and then repeat the walking around process all over again to see the heatmap of WiFi signal for each of the access points.
I tried the HeatMapper program in Windows 8.1 using a TP-Link WLAN dongle. I walked around even to the street outside, but the signal was simply too strong to show anything but the green color on the map.
Conclusion: HeatMapper can be used to draw a heat based map for the WiFi signal coverage in your area, location, office, apartment or home. If you find a red color on the map which means that signal is weak there, then you may have to re-position the WiFi routers, get routers capable of stronger signals or get more routers to increase the WiFi signal range. Some metallic objects or heavy partitions could also be blocking the signal, so shifting the furniture around may also be helpful.
You can download HeatMapper from http://www.ekahau.com/wifidesign/ekahau-heatmapper.