About Me
Hi, I’m Robin Decloedt and I live in Bruges, Belgium.
I started my career in 2018 as a junior network engineer. Back then, my days consisted of setting up small networks, configuring firewalls, and deploying Wi-Fi environments. I quickly learned a thing or two about networking and network security with FortiGate, but Wi-Fi was still somewhat of a mystery to me.
Fortunately, I was being trained under the wings of my manager Nicolas, who made sure I didn’t break too many things. Looking back, he probably deserves a lot of credit for sparking my interest in wireless networking.
At the time, we spent a lot of hours trying to improve legacy Meru and Fortinet Single Channel Architecture deployments. I knew Wi-Fi in hallways was bad. I knew certain designs worked better than others. I knew what settings to configure. What I didn’t know was why. Like many engineers early in their careers, I often followed best practices because someone with more experience told me to.
Things changed when Nicolas introduced Extreme Networks into our wireless deployments. The difference in quality was immediately noticeable, and it opened my eyes to what a well-designed Wi-Fi network could look like.
A few years later, I moved on in search of a bigger challenge. I spent more time working on enterprise networking, security, switching, and datacenter environments. Wi-Fi took a bit of a back seat.
Then came the turning point.
After attending a stadium deployment bootcamp, I got struck by a wireless lightning bolt. Designing Wi-Fi networks suddenly became the most interesting part of networking to me. I wanted to understand RF, roaming, airtime, antenna patterns, protocol analysis, and all the things that happen behind the scenes.
I bought the CWNA study guide, read it cover to cover, and passed the exam after 10 days. I enjoyed it so much that I immediately set myself a new goal: becoming a Certified Wireless Network Expert (CWNE).
One exam turned into two. Two became five. Before I knew it, I was writing CWNE essays, presenting at community events, and documenting everything I learned on this blog.
In October 2025, I achieved CWNE (#611).
RobinWifi started as a way to document that journey. Writing blog posts helped me better understand the material, organize my thoughts, and turn complex topics into something practical and understandable. Discussions with other professionals along the way were equally valuable and helped shape my understanding of Wi-Fi.
Today, you’ll mainly find study notes, certification-related content, and the three essays I submitted as part of my CWNE application. Over time, I plan to expand the blog with project write-ups, troubleshooting stories, and lessons learned from the field.
One thing you’ll quickly notice is that I like understanding why things work. I never enjoyed memorizing vendor specific buttons or blindly following recommendations. I’d rather understand the fundamentals and apply them across different platforms and environments.
These days I work with technologies from vendors such as Extreme Networks, Cisco Meraki, HPE Aruba, Juniper Mist, and Fortinet. The platforms may differ, but good networking principles remain the same.
My goal with this blog is simple: share what I’m learning, help others along the way, and contribute something useful to the wireless community that has helped me so much throughout my own journey.
The CWNE certification was never the finish line. It was one milestone in a career built around curiosity, continuous learning, and solving real-world problems.
If that sounds interesting, grab a coffee and have a look around.
Lastly, if you’re curious to know more about me, I stumbled upon my old blog from my 2018 internship in Uganda while setting up this site – feel free to check it out too!
CWNP Certification progress:
- CWNA – September 2024 ✅
- CWAP – December 2024 ✅
- CWSP – June 2025 ✅
- CWDP – July 2025 ✅
- CWISA – July 2025 ✅
- CWNE – October 2025 ✅