For more years i am awaiting for backround wireless scan in client mode general in all Mikrotik devices. This basic function for wireless management is implemented in almost ALL dumb desktop WiFi boxes of all manufacturers, but Mikrotik provide it not! Incredibly fact, that lowers significantly usability of that amazing boxes !
Regular typical situation of ISP in cities is, that client reports slow connection. 99% cases is interference from orher ISP, that starts using channel used by me. I connect to client Mikrotik thru wireless from AP side and need scan channels from his client box to find out better channel to use in his location. Similar I need to scan from other clients connsted to this AP to find the compromise in all client locations and find less interferred channel. But at this time client disconnects totally and is lost till watchdog restarts box. I get no information about interferences. Wery tricky property of all Mikrotiks since whole history !
Am I doing something wrong, or is this is the unpleasant feature of Mikrotik and developers are so unable to implemet this bacic function for years??? Nobody need this basic function for wireless management and I am single in the world who need it ??? I wrote it to developers some 2 years ago, but no response ! Absence of WiFi scan in Mikrotik client mode is reason, why I use mostly Ubiquity M5 Nanostations in most cases of Wireless connections, as it allows scan in client mode and easy solution of frequency conflicts… This is the only reason !
Hallo developers, will it be solved in some of next firmware versions?
Thanks, but wrong answer. Unfortunately, it works only in AP bridge mode, doesn´t work in any station mode. Answer does not cover described problem!
I have of course installed last stable version 6.36 of wireless-rep package. Please try it self…
Only for illustration, typical situations to solve for ISPs in cities in 5GHz band ! Over 80 interferred other visible AP-s !!! There is visible only part of all 80 interferred AP-s ! WIthout this function is WiFi managemnt very difficult! Shooting frequencies like blind man !
BTW: From the picture above can see Mikrotik business staff, how much percentage of other AP-s sold concurrency Ubiquity networks, with OS version 2.9.31 of their OS, that supports background scan both in AP and station. Those Mikrotiks with name wlanx.bm and Mikrotik OS ver. 6.35.2 are mine. UBNT Nanostations are not routers, but ISP prefer it because is not blind when configuring his network… Lost business for more clever Mikrotik OS without background scan. They are unable to provide such basic tool to stations for years !
Station mode can use background scan, but it needs to be connected somewhere. Otherwise, why do you need to scan in background, if wireless interface is not used?
normis: SUCCESS !!! Your answer is ESSENTIAL CORE INFORMATION and this condition of CONNECTED CLIENT is NOT MENTIONED IN MANUAL at http://wiki.mikrotik.com/wiki/Manual:Interface/Wireless#Scan !!! Logically everybody try it first at new Mikrotik device, picked up right from post box, instead of experimenting at more years running Mikrotik´s, at live networks, that runs protocol n-streme, risking disconnection of clients!
You are the FIRST manufacturer IN THE WORLD, that NEED UNCONDITIONALY to be stations connected to AP, to be able to scan band !!! More, I have all my devices switched to N-streme to gain advantages from this protocol. Therefore WAS NOT CHANCE to discover this new functionality. Error message don´t mention it ! And I already had more then 20 brands of almost all world manufacturers in hand! Congratulations to be first in the world in this demand !
Now it works in 802.11 mode, only noise floor and S/N ratio is not displayed… but better then nothing… it is step forward. But: When it will work in n-streme station mode?
And now I am gonna to try similar function: “Freq, usage” this should display interference covering of channels not only by AP´s , but also clients working in band? … But there is not this option to scan in background… Then it is obsolete function on staions).
At the picture you can see in percentage, how much of market your company lost in my town only by NOT MAKING THIS SCAN FUNCTIONS CLEAR AND EASY USABLE… see picture and OS versions ! Those 2.9.31 are yours competitor Ubiquiti products…
Thanks for your effort, but add the core infos to manual or better into Error message, that appears after unsuccessfull attempt to run it ! All the Ubiquiti AP´s bind about >10-times more clients from same manufacturer… and this is outlook only thru angle 8° by one 26 dBi antenna in one polarization ! 96 AP´s!
jarda, TIME = MONEY ! If i need to read all hundred-page manuals with each new version of firmare i can DROP BUSINESS and turn my WiFi networks into HOBBY !!! If there is option in user interface, that doesn´t work, i drop such shitty device and buy from competitor another device that is more expensive, but user friendly and save hours of my time! Do you understand core of my complain ???
It is BASIC function, that worked at single mouse click without hidden conditions 15 years ago in all dumb WiFi boxes from manufactureres like Compex, “Ovislink” . “Edimax” , “Zyxel” etc… So why you wonder, if it is so complicated with 200-pages manual hidden conditions at Mikrotik ? You are new in WiFi world ? I run first 1-Mbit wireless boxes (standard WiFi nor 802.xx was not set yet this time) in year 1999 and they had this function normally at 1 mouseclick in all modes available… and the same all successors from other manufacturers… Keeping written and non-written standards is advantage in business Therefore I try to help boys from Latvia to improve business… Till now i bought americans Ubiquity nonostations, that have user-friendly interface with no hidden conditions in functionality. Have a nice day…
Actually the problem is not that the feature of the background scan doesn’t work, but that it works in some other way different from what do you expect. If some new feature is added it needs to be described in manual and could not be there earlier. Therefore what else you would like to do than reading the manual again when you find a new feature?
jarda: The best way is to follow 15-years old standards in behavior of user interface, if conditions allows it. Not to discover new blind paths, though are “logic” from developers angle of view For every user´s angle of view is LOGIC to experiment at new devices not connected yet, instead of drop stations already set up on productive networks. Especially in situations like this, when experience tells, that you risk “cut tree, on which you are sitting”… Anyway, if reaching basic intuitive functionality available in competitors boxes to one-click without hiden conditions needs here reading >100-pages manuals, something is wrong in user-frienship strategy :-/ Certainly it involves end-user popularity of product significantly…
My opinion is not contradictory with you. I think that there is no problem to perform normal scan while the device is in client mode but not actually connecting anywhere even the background option is marked. Or more than that, the background scan should be working regardless the connection state, because the connection process might be starting during the background scan independently. There is still space for improvements…
For every user´s angle of view is LOGIC to experiment at new devices not connected yet, instead of drop stations already set up on productive networks. Especially in situations like this, when experience tells, that you risk “cut tree, on which you are sitting”…