215 WiFi access points. 65 distribution switches. 4 redundant core switches. More than 7,000 devices connected simultaneously. 8 terabytes of download per day.
Those are the service numbers for Internet for events which was deployed at KubeCon + CloudNativeCon Europe 2022, held at the Valencia Fair. The largest European cloud computing congress, with over 26,000 registered attendees, 9,000 companies, and 200 exhibitors from around the world.
This success story demonstrates how an internet service is designed, set up, and operated for large-scale events. From high-density WiFi connectivity to wired networks for exhibitors, to streaming, live technical support, and the redundancy that an international congress needs to function flawlessly for five days.
KubeCon Europe 2022: The Congress That Chose Valencia
KubeCon + CloudNativeCon is the flagship conference for the Cloud Native Computing Foundation, part of the Linux Foundation. It brings together the global community of developers, software architects, IT operators, and product managers working with cloud-native technologies each year. In 2022, the European edition landed at the Feria de Valencia. It was also the first in-person KubeCon since the start of the pandemic.
The Feria de Valencia exhibition center was the only venue in the city capable of hosting an event of this magnitude. For five days, more than 26,000 attendees gathered in its pavilions. Among them were professionals from companies such as Google, AWS, Red Hat, IBM, and Intel, alongside hundreds of startups and open-source projects. Also in attendance were 200 exhibitors, the vast majority from other European countries and North America.
To provide internet service for a congress like this, enbex worked for 10 days on pre-assembly. The following is the technical detail of how it was done.
WiFi for events high-density: 215 access points for 7,000 devices
The most striking detail of the deployment is the number of simultaneously connected WiFi clients: over 7,000. Not throughout the day, but at the same time. As a result, a wireless network design far above the conventional was needed.
To achieve this without compromising the user experience, 215 WiFi access points were installed throughout the venue. Specifically, each AP was placed in a position calculated after a prior coverage and capacity study. In turn, the power and channel were individually adjusted to avoid interference.
At a technology conference, the Wi-Fi user profile is particularly demanding. In fact, attendees don't just browse or check email. They also download software containers, access cloud repositories, do live demos, and test applications that consume significant bandwidth. For this reason, the network was designed to offer performance, not just coverage.
Daily usage: 8 TB download and 1.5 TB upload
The traffic figures speak for themselves. Each day of the conference, the network processed 8 terabytes of download traffic and 1.5 terabytes of upload traffic. To put that into perspective, 8 TB is equivalent to more than 2,000 high-definition movies. And that was just one day’s traffic.
Managing that volume of data requires a network backbone with ample capacity. First, the 215 access points were connected to 65 distribution switches, which in turn fed into 4 core switches. In this way, all traffic from the facility passed through that core before exiting to the internet.
Redundant core and 5 Gbps connection: the backbone
The network core operated in a redundant configuration. In other words, if one of the main switches failed, traffic was rerouted via the alternate path without any visible interruption. At a five-day event with 26,000 attendees, a failure in the core without redundancy would have left the entire venue without network access. That simply could not happen.
The internet connection was sized for 5 Gbps capacity. It's a considerable bandwidth, but necessary when over 7,000 devices generate traffic simultaneously. Furthermore, those 5 Gbps were not a single link. They were distributed among connections from different providers with load balancing, so if one carrier had issues, the others would absorb the traffic without the user noticing.
Wired network: 300 connections for exhibitors, the press, and media
In addition to the 7,000 WiFi clients, the event also had 300 wired connections. These ports served exhibitors who needed dedicated connectivity, accredited press and media teams, and the internal systems of the congress organization.
Of the 200 exhibitors, 30 had a private connectivity service with specific requirements. For example, some companies needed guaranteed bandwidth for live demos. Others, however, required isolated networks for security. In all cases, each connection was provisioned individually with its VLAN, bandwidth, and access policies.
For the press and media, a wired connection was essential. Journalists sending large video and photo files couldn’t rely on Wi-Fi shared among 7,000 devices. That’s why their connections ran over a separate network segment with priority and reserved bandwidth.
Streaming and technical support: 15 simultaneous connections
The conference featured dozens of concurrent sessions: presentations, panel discussions, workshops, and product demonstrations. In addition, many of these sessions were streamed live for remote attendees, whose numbers exceeded those of in-person attendees at this year’s event.
To cover all that activity, 15 technical controls were set up working simultaneously. Each control managed the connectivity and streaming service for its area of the venue. In this way, an incident in one room did not affect the service of the others.
Technical support was available throughout the five-day conference. Any exhibitor, organizer, or production team experiencing a network issue had a direct point of contact to resolve it within minutes. At an event with 26,000 attendees, the speed of response to incidents makes the difference between a professional service and one that merely works sometimes.
The Internet for Technology Events: Why the Audience Matters
Providing internet access for a fashion or tourism conference is a technical challenge. However, providing internet access for a global cloud technology conference is a whole different level of challenge. KubeCon attendees are engineers who work with Kubernetes, Docker, software-defined networking, and microservices architectures. If latency goes up, they notice it. When DHCP is slow, they diagnose it. And when a routing issue arises, they identify it before the support team does.
For that reason, the network design had to be impeccable. Not only in performance, but also in configuration. In particular, DHCP response times were adjusted to handle bursts of thousands of simultaneous requests. Likewise, the ARP tables of the switches were sized to support over 7,000 active entries. And the IP address pools were calculated with a buffer to absorb peaks without exhausting the range.
Ultimately, providing internet service for events where the audience is technically savvy requires a level of attention to detail that would go unnoticed in other contexts.
Result: five days without interruptions
In summary, KubeCon + CloudNativeCon Europe 2022 concluded with figures that surpassed pre-pandemic records. More than 26,000 attendees. 9,000 companies. 200 exhibitors. And a network infrastructure that, over the course of five days, supported more than 7,000 simultaneous Wi-Fi devices and 300 wired connections without a single outage.
For enbex, this project confirms something we've been demonstrating for years: internet service for events isn't just about plugging in routers and handing out WiFi passwords. It's network engineering. It's also capacity planning. It requires redundancy and continuous technical support. Above all, it's the experience of knowing that every event has its own rules.
Why is Enbex an internet reference for events in Spain
KubeCon is not an isolated case. On the contrary, it is just one example in a track record spanning more than a decade of connectivity and audiovisual production projects for large-scale events in Spain and abroad.
enbex has provided internet connectivity for events as diverse as the 2022 UEFA Champions League Final at the Stade de France in Paris, the Coca-Cola Music Experience in Madrid, the Mad Cool Festival, the New Year’s Eve countdown at Puerta del Sol, the MXGP of the Motocross World Championship, the FITUR trade show at IFEMA, and INCIBE’s cybersecurity events (ENISE, CyberCamp, and Safer Internet Day) for eight consecutive years.
The company operates under ISO 9001 (quality), ISO/IEC 27001 (information security), and ISO 14001 (environmental management) certifications. Its team combines expertise in telecommunications engineering with experience in broadcast audiovisual production, enabling it to take on projects where both disciplines intersect: from a conference’s Wi-Fi network to the SRT encoding of a television signal for 35 million viewers.
Based in Spain, enbex provides services for conferences, music festivals, sporting events, trade shows, television broadcasts, corporate events, and product launches. Its approach is built on three pillars: custom technical design tailored to each event, redundancy at all critical points in the infrastructure, and continuous technical support throughout the duration of the event.
Frequently Asked Questions about Internet for Events
How many Wi-Fi access points does an event with 5,000 attendees need?
It depends on the type of event and the attendee profile. For reference, KubeCon Europe 2022 deployed 215 access points for 7,000 simultaneous devices. The general rule is not to exceed 25-30 active clients per radio to maintain good performance. An event with 5,000 people and high data demand might require between 100 and 150 APs.
What is a redundant internet system for events?
This infrastructure features multiple internet access links from different providers. If one link fails, the others automatically take over the traffic. It also includes redundant network equipment (core switches, routers) to ensure that no single failure disrupts service for the event. enbex implements redundancy in all its deployments for critical events.
What is the difference between event WiFi and home WiFi?
The main difference is the density of devices. A home router manages 10-20 devices. At an event like KubeCon, over 7,000 devices compete for radio spectrum simultaneously. This demands enterprise-grade access points, RF channel planning, network segmentation via VLANs, and real-time monitoring.
Is it possible to install internet service in a building without fiber-optic cables?
Yes. enbex has deployed connectivity via Starlink satellite links in locations without fiber or mobile coverage. At the 2024 MXGP of Spain, 20 Starlink terminals were deployed to provide broadcast services for the Grand Prix television broadcast. As long as there’s a clear sky, there’s connectivity.
How long does the assembly of the event network Big?
It varies by scale. For KubeCon Europe 2022, setup took 10 days. A large music festival may need 5 to 7 days. A trade show at IFEMA takes between 3 and 5. The time depends on the number of access points, cable length, and network segmentation complexity.
What company assembles Internet for events In Spain?
enbex is one of the leading companies in Spain for internet and connectivity services for events. With over 10 years of experience, it has provided services for events such as the Champions League Final, FITUR, Coca-Cola Music Experience, INCIBE events, New Year's Eve at Puerta del Sol, and KubeCon Europe, among many others. It operates with ISO 9001, 27001, and 14001 certifications.
Technical specifications
Event: KubeCon + CloudNativeCon Europe 2022. Valencia Fair. May 2022.
Assistants: Over 26,000 registered. 9,000 companies. 200 exhibitors.
WiFi 215 access points. More than 7,000 clients connected simultaneously.
Wired cable 300 dedicated connections for exhibitors, press, media, and organization. 30 exhibitors with private connectivity and specific requirements.
Backbone 65 distribution switches. 4 redundant core switches. 5 Gbps internet connection with load balancing.
Daily consumption: 8 TB download. 1.5 TB upload.
Support: 15 simultaneous technical checks. 10 days of assembly. Active support during the 5 days of the congress.
Result: Five days of conference without network interruptions. Figures that surpassed pre-pandemic records.
Does your conference or trade show need a professional internet service that won't fail? Contact enbex. We know what it takes to network 7,000 devices at once.