MikroTik

robmaltsystems

>It's a quite steep learning curve Ain't that the truth!! The power and complexity of RouterOS is both a blessing and a curse. For the experienced, it's incredible. For the newbie, it's downright scary and off-putting. Which is part of the reason for the discussion going on about WinBox, controller,...

robmaltsystems

Thanks for that. After I posted, Network Berg covered the hAP ax3 and said it didn't really have hardware switching at all. I noticed that some block diagrams says "Switch chip" outside the SOC and some just say "Switch" inside the core. Infer the later isn't hardware. Specifical...

robmaltsystems

Just watching a couple of "The Network Berg"'s videos on YT. Very good. He's just made me aware of the block diagrams for each device on the hardware page online. This is the hAP ax2. Do I read this right that the wireless interfaces don't benefit from hardware switching? Not that I think ...

robmaltsystems

The hAP ax2 has a Gigabit QCA8075 switch chip. This chip isn't listed here: https://help.mikrotik.com/docs/display/ROS/Switch+Chip+Features Does this mean it's "Other" and what does "no" mean for each entry? For example, VLAN table under "Other" is "no". Does ...

robmaltsystems

I would have expected some kind of API as that's more efficient (no need to parse command line) and less prone to breaking changes.

robmaltsystems

Well I do because it preludes my laptop falling back to 2.4GHz with a perfectly strong signal

robmaltsystems

There are quite a few posts on SA Query Timeout. Getting same myself with my Lenovo laptop with Realtek NIC and hAP ax2.

robmaltsystems

>That basically is what winbox is doing as well.

Does WinBox effectively issue CLI commands to get/set changes?

robmaltsystems

I sometimes wonder, considering the philosophy of Mikrotik esp. around licensing, whether an open source approach to developing web based management tools would work? I'm semi-retiring now and I'm interested in a project although that might be something completely different like a model railway. Mik...

robmaltsystems

Just a "me too" having problems with disconnects on hAP ax2. Just my home network with the usual stuff. Laptop struggles to maintain a connection and my mobile often can't see the 5GHz network at all. There are several topics on the same/similar subject.

robmaltsystems

Happened to be catching up on YouTube and came across this video by a staunch Mikrotik supporter with 222 videos mainly about Mikrotik - so you can hardly call him a hater but he felt compelled to release this video entitled "Things I don't like about MikroTik..." https://www.youtube.com/w...

robmaltsystems

>It would really help if you stated what are your wishes/requirements from the new web app.

Unifi controller for RouterOS basically.

robmaltsystems

>So you can simply forget the idea of seeing web app connect via MAC to your ROS device.

Much the same was said about accessing cameras from web applications... never say never.

robmaltsystems

>There's already WebFig ... functionality-wise it's on par with WinBox, so no need to re-invent the wheel. There is yes but you can't access it remotely unless you set-up port forwarding or VPN. Complexity again... also, it's a per device interface, not a controller for the entire network. I'm not t...

robmaltsystems

As I said, it is 10 years since I did any web app development and I still read CodeProject with envy as to how powerful the modern frameworks look these days. I want Mikrotik to thrive. I love the power of RouterOS but I do lose some customers to Unifi for simplicity of their cloud controller. I'm a...

robmaltsystems

I see native WinBox on Linux in my dream when i sleep ))) Which is why IMO effort should be directed at web applications, not native apps. Having written both, I completely appreciate that writing web apps is harder although considering the last one I wrote was 10+ years ago, I would imagine the fr...

robmaltsystems

I left the laptop on the coffee table, connected to 5GHz using the Wi-Fi 6 USB network adapter and came back about an hour later and it too had got SA Query timeout errors and had fallen back to 2.4GHz: https://i.imgur.com/kTl5ga8.png Something isn't right here. This is sat 1.5m from the router with...

robmaltsystems

I'm going to do some more reading up on this before I start making any changes. For the record, the device I'm having trouble with is an Lenovo V15 G2-ALC laptop, Windows 10, Realtek 882CE 802.11ac wireless chip. Using WPA2/3 authentication with defaults for everything else. Not tried the FT switche...

robmaltsystems

Maybe it is better if we do not hijack @dalami's thread.

Agreed. Will switch to other thread.

robmaltsystems

Thanks, will do but another time - it's late in UK and I've spent more hours than I really wanted to on this.

robmaltsystems

solution for me:

/interface/wifiwave2/configuration> set [find] security.connect-priority=0/1

How do you query this setting? /interface/wifi/configuration/print doesn't show anything. It doesn't appear in /export either.

robmaltsystems

After much testing, the only solution I found was to disable WPA3. I've just done the exact same thing on my home hAP AX2. My not-that-old Lenovo laptop really struggles with a 5GHz connection with many SA Query timeout errors in the log. Switch back to WPA-PSK/WPA2-PSK combo, disabling WPA3-PSK an...

robmaltsystems

Each device reports strength of signal received from the link peer . inSSIDer is reporting signal strength of AP, received by laptop. And hAP ax3 reports signal strength of laptop. As AP reports much lower signal strength than laptop, this means either hAP ax3 has shitty receiver (not very likely) ...

robmaltsystems

I've just come across this thread about SA timeouts: https://forum.mikrotik.com/viewtopic.php?t=198736 This appears to be the problem on my laptop so not the signal issue as such. If I change from WPA2-PSK/WP3-PSK to WPA-PSK/WPA2-PSK, the SA timeout errors stop and my laptop can connect fine. I'm no...

robmaltsystems

Good tip - it probably was running but not after the restart.

robmaltsystems

I've just put a new Wi-Fi 6 USB adapter in my laptop and it's connected fine with a signal strength of -59. Is there some quirk with ac devices? Signal strength is similar: https://i.imgur.com/6aHP1mH.png Windows reports a pretty good connection: https://i.imgur.com/hqROMYP.png But speed test is hor...

robmaltsystems

I'm a hAP ax2 user at home and I too struggle with 5GHz signal strength downstairs in mainly open space, i.e. same room. My home set-up is hAP ax which is sat in an open fronted cupboard under the TV. My laptop is usually on a desk about 4m away. There is a partial 20cm stone wall and me (!) blockin...

robmaltsystems

Haven't had chance to do the research yet. Real life keeps getting in way... I have the lab setup though.

robmaltsystems

Thanks everyone. I've got several clients with cAP ac's so I'm just looking at one in the lab. I think the only hurdle I need to overcome is some problem with CAPsMAN and guest VLANs. The solution about doing the tagging in a different way is covered a forum post somewhere

robmaltsystems

From the documentation, the advantages/new features of the new wireless package are WPA3 and Fast Roaming. Any other stability improvements?

robmaltsystems

Did you have a correct capsman controller ready on the network ? Because then it will be provisioned and ready to go. If not, it will move on to next default config. Yes but it's possible I powered it up before I plugged into network. Running of it's own PoE adapter. But the CAPsMAN of the controll...

robmaltsystems

It comes pre-configured in caps-mode from factory. I've just taken delivery of a cAP ac and I'm afraid it not configured in CAPs mode. It's definitely in router mode: https://i.imgur.com/NrJpAtT.png Sure, it's not difficult to connect to it's default Wi-Fi which means it then appears in WinBox from...

robmaltsystems

My new-ish hAP ax2 only has one quick set as well - Home AP Dual

robmaltsystems

I might suggest to reset to default config, test how it works and then gradually modify and add your things again leaving out what's not needed. Test after each step again. Where it "breaks" again, you know you did something wrong. This sounds a sensible suggestion esp. as you can backup ...

robmaltsystems

When you do a manual upgrade via packages, I assume the APK goes into memory? My client's cAP ac only have about 1MB free storage so I assume this must be the case. Also, I assume the entire RouterOS system is stored on the 16MB storage hence the reason it's getting tight?

robmaltsystems

AX Lite - ARM32, 2.4GHz only but make no mistake, AX-2.4 can go up to 400Mbps. 4 ether ports. You'd be surprised what this little thing can do. I wouldn't have believed it if I hadn't seen it with my own eyes. Added a Wi-Fi 6 USB adapter to my laptop and on 2.4GHz through my hAP ax2 I can get 180MB...

robmaltsystems

Check this tutorial, the "de facto" guide around here for everything vlan:
viewtopic.php?t=143620

Part labeled: Access Point

Thanks for that - hadn't come across it before. Experimenting and learning more about VLANS and that looks very useful.

robmaltsystems

However: create a support ticket!

I will now that somebody else has confirmed it... that's all I was waiting for.

robmaltsystems

What does a silly rant about your inability to configure a capac have to with entering a support ticket for winbox ???

It was in reference to the comment about Linux client.

robmaltsystems

Exactly like this.

Not exactly at all. You either have to set-up CAPsMAN (not easy) or configured wireless entries (also not trivial).

robmaltsystems

Re this - see my "rant" on https://forum.mikrotik.com/viewtopic.php?p=1064802#p1064802 ;-) Not that I'm particularly asking for a Linux client. Only even tend to use Linux server with no desktop. But I personally think the interface effort should be more down the controller route - cloud h...

robmaltsystems

Wandering off topic... Hmm even with a device destined for use 99% of the time as an access point, the cAP ac comes preconfigured as a router doesn't it? Plug it into the existing network and open WinBox and AFAIK it won't appear as neighbourhood defaults to LAN. So you have to either connect to the...

robmaltsystems

>And what's wrong with VPN, an overlay network and then Winbox in from wherever you are ? Because at this site, the laptop also runs a legacy Unfi Controller so it was there already. >I still don't understand why Winbox needs to be kept open... apart from the added security risk it poses. It doesn't...

robmaltsystems

After reading this thread the hAP ax3 doesn't seem so attractive anymore. This is a minefield! I wanted USB, but seemingly it causes some sort of interference. I wanted better Wi-Fi performance, but now the cheaper ax2 appears to perform better. What should I buy? Maybe the hEX S with TP-Link AP's ...

robmaltsystems

I've got several sites where I've got an old laptop onsite for maintenance. Often leave it logged in running WinBox. That said, one has to question why I need to monitor the network so closely when I don't tend to do that with Unifi sites (ducks).

robmaltsystems

As I said, still waiting for somebody else to confirm the problem. Plus we discuss lots of bugs on here first before deciding it really is a bug. Not going to fire off a support email for every single problem I encounter esp. as they're often not a bug but a misunderstanding of something.

robmaltsystems

24 hours later and WinBox is up from 43MB to 280MB working memory. At that rate, it would get to 1GB in about a week. So sounds like either a memory leak or a design problem whereby something grows without check.

robmaltsystems

I'm not sure if ROS actually does measurements accross all 20MHz channels, members of inteded wide-channel, to select least occupied channel as Control channel. My (limited) experience doesn't support his kind of theory. Same here. The only reason I could see for specifying a range is if did find t...

robmaltsystems

Aside: what does this do?

This is the frequency range of the first 80Mhz wide band. I know if you specify 5180, you get Ceee, 5200 eCee etc. Does RouterOS sort of do some check to see which extension band works best?

robmaltsystems

Also:
Are you sure your wifi is not using a channel which your client devices can not see ?
AX tend to favor the higher frequencies but quite a lot of devices are unable to use them.

Indeed - some older kit struggles with channel 149 and above.

robmaltsystems

winbox64.exe consuming more RAM than java.exe. Congratulations MikroTik! That's an achievement

LOL - the Java app is the UniFi controller also running on the same box.

robmaltsystems

Winbox would be v3.40 or whatever version of Winbox you are using. Maybe add connecting to a v7.14 router. Sorry my bad, was looking at the version of the box connected to. Yes, it's v3.40 and already up to 74MB after a couple of hours. I've saved the session - does that save the open windows? But ...

robmaltsystems

I had a similar problem which I posted a while back. 5GHz Wi-Fi disappeared although 2.4GHz Wi-Fi was fine. My problem was that I'd specified a single frequency for 5Ghz (5500) and a radar event was occurring. This ended up disabling the interface. IMO in situations like this, RouterOS should switch...

robmaltsystems

(with a cautionary note for the limited storage those devices mostly have, not much else but AP functions should be run on those devices then). With the additional caveat that a common way of setting up a guest VLAN via tagging on the interface itself via CAPsMAN v2 doesn't seem to work. Several po...

robmaltsystems

That sounds like a bug as it should at least end up on 5180 which is non-DFS - and therefore no affected by that switch?

robmaltsystems

I'm not going to bother support until somebody else mentions it as right now it could equally be a problem with the host computer. The host needed updates so I've installed and rebooted. Will leave Winbox running for several days again. On start-up, it's using 43MB.

robmaltsystems

Just had an alert from a managed server that memory was getting low. Winbox is using an awful lot of RAM even though it's only got 5 windows open. It has been left running for over a week.

Open windows:

robmaltsystems

I dont know if this the correct way to do it, but it is working - at least for me.

I had to do something similar. Would netinstall also be a way to update? Not as easy but I assume it doesn't have to have in effect two copies of the OS on there for a time.

robmaltsystems

I'm tempted to concur. The hap lite (smips) really does struggle with ROS 7. I suspect it's a little too underpowered and certainly doesn't have enough storage.

robmaltsystems

Very useful database. Will check the UK entry later.

robmaltsystems

I am still having trouble with the /tool/SMS/Allowed-Number that disappears every time you do a /tool/sms/set receive-enable=yes Related problem on 7.14.1 on (underpowered) hAP lite. /tool/sms/export always throws an error. I've never used sms... I've reported the fault to Mikrotik. Worked okay on ...

robmaltsystems

I'm going to report /tool/sms/export as a bug. I've downgraded to 7.12.1 and it works fine. No error.

robmaltsystems

LOL - our messages crossed in the night

robmaltsystems

Supplemental question about resetting RouterOS. If you do /system/reset-configuration no-defaults=yes, is everything reset or are there some variables/configuration in flash somewhere? Does netinstall do a lower level reset?

robmaltsystems

It might be wiser to stay on 7.12.x for that device until they fix that space issue for 16Mb devices.
Otherwise you'd be constantly looking at the edge.

Probably a good idea... it's just my lab test device. Real shame this low end devices didn't have a little bit more storage.

robmaltsystems

Okay managed to get it updated to 7.14.1. Export is still very sluggish but it can get there. However, it always fails with /tool/sms/export:

Getting the feeling that this little device is EOL - it's done sterling service in the lab but ROS 7 is a step too far

robmaltsystems

Can't upgrade to 7.14.1 either - not enough space

Later... removed wireless package, managed to update. Hope can put wireless package back!

robmaltsystems

I think you might be right. The hAP ac lite (mipsbe) CPU goes to 100% but it doesn't timeout.

robmaltsystems

Yes, export to file still uses 100% CPU but it does appear to finish. Ran it with /tool/profile - snapshot: https://i.imgur.com/hDEKHNb.png I've got a hAP ac lite as well - going to try that. Yes, same 100% CPU. Maybe they've always done this and I've just never noticed before. When ROS 7 came out, ...

robmaltsystems

It sort of does - generates timeouts. But after running, CPU is staying at 100%... can't even run /tool/profile - no responding.

Not well at all

robmaltsystems

Changing post entirely, thought it was a problem with reset without default configuration. It's not - problem occurs with default configuration. The problem is 100% CPU use running the /export command and timeout errors:

robmaltsystems

Updated my table for hAP ax2 in UK and USA out of interest. The interesting one is channel 36, the most common non-DFS channel. USA is significantly higher power than UK.

robmaltsystems

Doing some comparisons of power between UK and USA. I note that USA has less severe DFS/CAC checks. 55800 in UK is 10 minute CAC but only 1 minute in USA.

robmaltsystems

That's a shame... I'm having to add MAC addresses to access list to track/diagnose some devices. Fixable or driver limitation?

robmaltsystems

Legacy wireless, the hostname of devices was shown:

Doesn't appear to be an option with wifi-qcom? Missing by design or accident?

robmaltsystems

What a mess.

It does seem rather confused. Along with vague notions of how frequency/channel selection works with DFS/radar collision. I've asked for a whitepaper type article on this entire topic which I feel would remove a lot of the guesswork.

robmaltsystems

With spaces, "" are needed
Or just enter county value on the next line .. without ""

Another quirk

[admin@ROUTER001] > /interface/wifi/radio/reg-info
country: "United Kingdom"
Script Error: action cancelled

robmaltsystems

I would never use "auto" in 5GHz with hAP ax2 and hAP ax3 since ROS 7.13 in Europe Agreed but not using auto isn't black & white either. I've got 5500, 5180 specified for frequency. Using 5500 alone is problematic as radar events appear to disable the interface entirely, i.e. no devic...

robmaltsystems

If spelling of country name is unkbnown ... type "a" then <TAB> key ....

With the caveat that this doesn't work with countries with space in the name.

robmaltsystems

https://www.ofcom.org.uk/__data/assets/ ... r-2030.pdf
Page 42 SRD devices

Ahh, was the table I found outside powers? Are they higher or lower typically? Also, 112 pages! Typical

robmaltsystems

Aside but interesting comments about attenuation through walls, I can certainly attest to the ability of Kingspan to kill Wi-Fi signals. Scatter One of the classic problems with any WiFi radio is ‘it don’t go through walls!’. It will, to some extent, penetrate thin wood or plasterboard (assuming the...

robmaltsystems

I was on channel 36 before trying 149 and TX Power was 18. This makes sense from what I understand: 18 + 4.5 = 22.5. Yes, that's my understanding too. tx power + antenna gain <= regulatory limit. With some rounding down going on I assume. So you can drop tx power but you can't increase it so total ...

robmaltsystems

I've got a hAP ax2 as well and yes, almost same in UK - Tx power on channel 149 is 9. Sad as I am, I documented the powers on various devices in the lab. The cAP ac and hAP ac lite have much higher power on that channel. Must be a mistake in the internal configuration table for country vs frequency ...

robmaltsystems

I tend to change the identifier so always hit the password change option on first logon. But yes, would be good to impose a password change across an entire estate.

robmaltsystems

Brain is too frazzled for this weekend. Will come back more VLAN stuff after a night off!

robmaltsystems

*sigh* on step forward, one step back. Experimenting with upgrading to CAPsMANv2 with legacy cAP ac devices. Tempted to go back to legacy wireless driver! Earlier posts here suggest this will be fixed in later versions but a year later and I've hit the same problem. Is there a definitive article on ...

robmaltsystems

Okay I left it two hours and it didn't try and provision again. IMO that's not very friendly. Worse, I first tried removing the entry Remote CAP. It immediately re-added the 5GHz but still not the 2.4GHz. I rebooted the access point - no difference: https://i.imgur.com/EnGsNPX.png Only until I manua...

robmaltsystems

The 5GHz interface has provisioned, just not the 2.4GHz interface. I'm currently leaving it to see if it ever corrects itself.

robmaltsystems

Somebody mentioned a 3rd party attempt at a cloud controller? How does that work? Sends commands to the local router via some method?

robmaltsystems

But for non-technical people it is a very handy solution. Exactly... which is why as I'm starting to retire, I'm not going to do anymore Mikrotik installs as it's far too tied to me personally re updates. If there was a cloud based solution, then I might carry on. I was thinking about this - most h...

robmaltsystems

It depends. If the interfaces are configured being under capsman control only, they will drop dead. If they are configured as capsman-or-local, they will continue using local settings if capsman is inaccessible. Ohh that wasn't what I expected at all! Of course, if the CAPsMAN controller goes down,...

robmaltsystems

How often do clients refresh from CAPsMAN? I'm currently experimenting with CAPsMAN v2 in a legacy cAP ac environment? I've got it working but am experimenting with various settings to see what they do. I've managed to "break" the 2GHz interface of the test cAP ac by setting the supported ...

robmaltsystems

Dear MikroTik support team, Only just come to this post and it made me smile but also grimace because this, in a nutshell, is why Mikrotik will always struggle in the SOHO market. Maybe they don't want to be part of this market. We've chatted about the relative easy of use of the Unifi cloud contro...

robmaltsystems

Ignore me... a bit more Googling found this handy introduction which lead me to find this option:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=37aff6d14Xk

robmaltsystems

Looking at the new CAPsMAN interface in wifi-qcom-ac package. Honestly, I did try a search here first but there are a lot of hits on "CAPs interface". Quick question. Old interface: https://i.imgur.com/3ed8joP.png Note how you define which interfaces are controlled by CAPs. How do you do t...

robmaltsystems

Qualcomm

Always thought they were pretty decent chips?

robmaltsystems

Ahh good point ;-) Why have I just lost access to the plug?? Darn!!!

robmaltsystems

Indeed it might. Hadn't through about that! Easy implementation...

robmaltsystems

I'm using this mostly to connect home with my home computer off (energy saving). I tackle this another way - I've got a couple of cheap IoT plug sockets. PC is configured in BIOS to power-up if the power fails. So I go in the app on my mobile, turn the socket off, wait a minute and turn it back on....

robmaltsystems

If all you want to do is reboot ... unplug the POE cable and put it back in. Done. True but once again, for ease of use this doesn't compare to the business owner (who isn't on-site) logging onto a website from anywhere and rebooting. I find myself falling into the trap of what is easy for IT suppo...

robmaltsystems

PS. I'm hoping that the ROS 7 upgrade will help along with the wifi-qcom package which I've yet to switch to. Won't get around accessibility. They know they can remote into a laptop there to access Winbox but I completely agree with them that this isn't anyway as easy as logging onto a web site, sel...

robmaltsystems

I know we think the controller idea is dead but some further evidence that client's wants something different. Readers may recall the on-going problems at a very Wi-Fi congested site at a bar and Wi-Fi simply not working or the speed dropping dramatically. Not exactly a complex set-up: router and fo...

robmaltsystems

I don't think MikroTik uses any MediaTek wifi chips?

A question - what chips do they use?

robmaltsystems

Winbox - better way of configuring the columns in all the dialogs. Certainly be able to right-click on a column and remove it.

robmaltsystems

In either case, Wifi 6 is more than adequate for my needs.

For many on FTTC internet, Wi-Fi 4 is adequate!

robmaltsystems

Aside but Xiaomi really are challenging the lower end of the market. Sadly cheaper Mikrotik kit is no longer price competitive in the UK. £30 for a mAP lite when TP-Link TL-WA801N is £22 - compare form factors, mAP lite should be cheaper to make. I'm tempted to get a Xiaomi access point to see what ...

robmaltsystems

Hmm well that's interesting because 5180 is by far the most congested frequency at this site as other neighbour access points tend to use that frequency. I've removed 5180 at the moment so they connect to the required frequency. However, the scan is taken from a laptop I have remote access to which ...

robmaltsystems

Install wave2 drivers. Huge difference. I'm still very confused by the Wi-Fi packages. I've just upgraded a RB2100UiAS router running CAPsMAN with four cAP ac access points. On upgrading to ROS v7.14, I've got "routeros" and "wireless" packages on all devices. Is this the legacy...

robmaltsystems

RB2011UiAS running ROS v7.14 with four cAP ac’s also running same version. Controlled via CAPsMAN. I’ve got the channel configured as shown below. I would expect this to do radar check on 5500 (1 min CAG) and if it detects a radar, fall back to 5180. However, it says, “Selecting channel” and then im...

robmaltsystems

Yes, I think you've missed it - settings show/hide passwords? Unless I'm missing something

robmaltsystems

I always wondered what managed tab was all about! Yes, double-click does work there. Same in Neighbors tab then

Okay, added a few entries to "Managed" tab. Version, board and uptime are missing columns. Prefer Neighbours.

robmaltsystems

On the "managed" tab it works. I do not know about the "neighbors" tab, rarely use that.

I always wondered what managed tab was all about! Yes, double-click does work there. Same in Neighbors tab then

robmaltsystems

Later... yes, it's channel.band=2ghz-ax that's the "problem". Change to channel.band=2ghz-g and this old card can see Wi-Fi. So the next question is a) is there a problem with the 2G AX implementation in ROS 7 or b) are some old Wi-Fi network chips just not compatible with 2.4GHz AX? My te...

robmaltsystems

I occasionally get old computers to rebuild. One today surprised me - it was unable to see my Wi-Fi running through a hAP ax2. Just not shown at all. Fortunately, I've got a hAP ac lite on the bench and it could see that. Appreciate it's only going to see the 2.4GHz interface. Specific bit of the co...

robmaltsystems

Never has here. Double click on that line and all it does is populate the top box.

robmaltsystems

Double click on an entry in Winbox to connect.

robmaltsystems

Hmm... maybe. Support often aren't party to the inner workings/algorithms. But they should be able to ask.

robmaltsystems

Later... changed the frequencies to 5500, 5660, 5580, 5260, 5180 and we've now got a spread: 1=5660, 2=5180, 3=5660, 4=5660, 5=5580 so maybe it doesn't like 5500 at this site - although if I specify just 5500, it's used. Does anyone know the logic about frequency selection? I've made lots of guesses...

robmaltsystems

ROS v7.14 upgrade of RB2011UiAS with five cAP ac access points, also on ROS v7.14. CAPsMAN configured as show below, i.e. frequency set to 5500, 5180. Most of the time, all five access points end up on 5180. My understanding is that 5500 (highest tx power) should be used unless CAC radar check fails...

robmaltsystems

DoH stops working after upgrading to v7.12 because after the upgrade, the clock gets reset to 1970 which means the SSL certificate fails because the date is wrong. The clock doesn't update because DNS isn't working which also blocks update to 7.14. Workaround is to manually set the date and time onc...

robmaltsystems

The decision to buy Cisco is normally not motivated by cost or easy of use. You may be able to take market share from Ubiquiti, you will never be able to take considerable market share from Cisco. Agreed - sad but true. I wonder how much money is "wasted" with over priced kit that's reall...

robmaltsystems

I guess I'm a bit tainted with one particular site that's had lots of Wi-Fi issues but it's a busy bar in a highly congested area. It exposed some of the weaknesses in ROS 6 Wi-Fi. I'm planning an upgrade to ROS 7 soon but difficult part is getting time. Bar is open 10am until midnight! And I don't ...

robmaltsystems

Yeah, "super easy". Just need a computer that runs the unifi network software which needs a ton of resources. Without this software or a cloud key you can't even configure your APs. For smaller operations, the cloud controller is a quicker and therefore cheaper option that works fine. All...

robmaltsystems

wasted time to write to this topic...MDC is dead.

The project may be dead @ Mikrotik but the topic isn't.

robmaltsystems

If they are configured as capsman-or-local, they will continue using local settings if capsman is inaccessible.

Thanks I'll check that out.

robmaltsystems

Self-hosted cloud controller sounds very interesting. Having just set-up a legacy UniFi PC based controller for a friend's start-up (using 3 old UniFi APs I had spare), I'd forgotten just how easy it was there. Sure, I love the power, and therefore complexity, of RouterOS, but a simplified CAPsMAN a...

robmaltsystems

Yes, please file an official report. I've documented what is effectively the same problem here: https://forum.mikrotik.com/viewtopic.php?t=203251 I really do believe the logic is flawed here. As you've observed, if you specify a single frequency against an interface (e.g. 5500) and a radar event occ...

robmaltsystems

Background: i love Mikrotik devices but they have a flaw: their wireless software part. It works but ... it's not. Idea: let me install openwrt on them (i already did that) Are you suggesting that openwrt works better on Mikrotik devices. If so, then the faults in RouterOS Wi-Fi must be software re...

robmaltsystems

Suspected as much. Would be a nice to have as mesh set-up is sometimes a requirement.

robmaltsystems

Thanks - that makes sense. I'm sure it'll all slot in to place soon!

robmaltsystems

Can't see this reason (SA Query Timeout) in the list on the FAQ:

02:1D:CF:58:E5:BD@guest-2g disconnected, SA Query timeout, signal strength -77

Should I raise tickets for things like this or just mention here?

robmaltsystems

I've upgraded my lab hAP lite ac and hAP lite to ROS v7. Why do I see two menu options on my hAP ac lite (Wifi & wireless) but only one on the hAP lite (Wireless)? https://i.imgur.com/6zluDQa.png https://i.imgur.com/qcztfzq.png I'm assuming that there are separate CAPSMAN and Wireless menu optio...

robmaltsystems

Just like to ask here before I blunder in with a bug report. I've upgraded my lab hAP ac lite (router/CAPSMAN) and hAP lite (access point) to ROS 7.13.4 and I'm experimenting with CAPsMAN. In v6, this is how I often have 2.4GHz configured, i.e. extension channel disabled to select 20MHz wide channel...

robmaltsystems

The term "mesh" can be a bit misleading and a more traditional term is Wi-Fi repeater or wireless bridge even? The Mikrotik devices can certainly do this. Looking at your diagram, are you planning to use 2.4GHz for the wireless mesh/uplinks? If so, then you'll never get full speed on the 5...

robmaltsystems

My client's got a plain RB2011UiAS (no Wi-Fi) and we've had performance problems in the past but what was caused when we wanted to implement throttling on the (separate) guest VLAN. One has to disable fasttrack when using queues otherwise the throttling doesn't work. Whilst we'd only added a queue t...

robmaltsystems

I've provisioned a handful of CAPsMAN setups but they've always had the cAP ac connected with PoE wired connections. I know when you put a device into CAPS mode, it basically configures it as a switch with the Wi-Fi interfaces getting their configuration from CAPsMAN. However, can you uses CAPsMAN w...

robmaltsystems

(Cheeky question) I posted last autumn about trying to set-up a friend's B&B in Croatia with Mikrotik router/access points but using a Netgear M4100 Prosafe layer-2 switch. Worked fine except couldn't get the guest VLAN working through the switch. This was partly because of a middling understand...

robmaltsystems

Disable running check or so.

This was mentioned on the post I made about what I thought were frequent downs. Need to try it.

robmaltsystems

Think about it, what is wifi ? Wireless connection to client device instead of the wired one, so if there is no connected devices there is no link and its reported as down and inactive. Down and inactive are two different things so you're sort of agreeing with me :D Down clearly is confusing even i...

robmaltsystems

Disconnected ethernet cable is different. That port then is down. No devices connected to WiFi isn't really down is it? Idle is IMO a better term.

robmaltsystems

I suspect my misunderstanding here is possibly a terminology/language issue. In the UK, when something is down, it's typically broken. The server has gone down, the WiFi is down, my banking website is down etc. I would suggest simply changing Winbox to say idle instead of down would be less confusin...

robmaltsystems

SOLVED! Happened to mention on another post. The link goes down when no devices are connected. This is just a home network so it's entirely feasible that all 5G devices could disconnect, esp. overnight. Just proved it - only my mobile connected. Disable Wi-Fi there and link down went up by one. Expl...

robmaltsystems

Ahh, that makes sense, I had no idea the link would go down if nothing is connected! The only things connected to the private 5G are my mobile and laptop. Laptop is off most of the time and I'm guessing the mobile can disconnect for a period of time, esp. overnight. So link downs not that worrying t...

robmaltsystems

I'm not sure if this is related to this issue, but I see what I think is an unusually high number of "Link down" counts. I've got private 2G and 5G interfaces plus two guest interfaces on a virtual VLAN. I rebooted my router yesterday and already I see the following link downs: private-2g:...

robmaltsystems

this is probably the most logical way to work with VLANS!!!

Not sure that's not an oxymoron

robmaltsystems

anyhow devices in the same room as the AX2 its pushing more than 200 MB on 2 GHZ and more than 700 MB on the 5 GHZ I've just got 160Mbps (ducks in case I've got the suffix wrong) on 2.4GHz sat right in front of my hAP ax2. Pretty impressive as the 2.4GHz channel is pretty congested here. I need to ...

robmaltsystems

Bit more supplemental information here. Another radar event occurred tonight at 20:27 on 5500 when I happened to be looking. Frequency currently set to 5500, 5580, 5660 and 5180. Caught it doing a 10 min CAC on 5580 so it does work through the frequencies during a radar event. It then stayed on 5580...

robmaltsystems

2.4 GHz sucks (because it is slow and - in densely populated areas - polluted by countless conflicting radios). This depends upon your definition of slow. Many UK consumers are still on fibre-to-the-cabinet where the maximum you'll ever get is 80Mbps. My hAP ax2 with Wi-Fi 6 devices can get ~120Mbp...

robmaltsystems

When it works, it works, when it doesn't it doesn't. Isn't that always the case :D I had a very weird problem with a CSS106-1G-4P-1S (SwOS) recently. It was supplying PoE to a UISP Nanostation Loco 5AC, part of a short P2P bridge. It had worked flawlessly for several years until about two weeks ago...

robmaltsystems

active 802.3af or at or passive

This isn't limited to Mikrotik - Ubquiti was in the same boat with older Unifi devices. Passive PoE was introduced to reduce complexity and therefore cost. That cost saving might not stack up these days.

robmaltsystems

If you run /system/script/print brief, you get a list of scripts but not the script contents. Remove the brief and it lists the script as well. However /system/scheduler/print brief still shows the script. In fact, the brief parameter doesn't seem to make any difference.

Small bug?

robmaltsystems

Thanks - bit of a fudge but that might work.

Later... indeed it does:

:local interface [/interface/wifiwave2/monitor private-5g as-value once]; :put ($interface->"channel");

robmaltsystems

Comparing Apples with pears....as we say in the Netherlands. It's around 10 times more expensive than i.e. a cAP ax (which indeed doesn't have 6E).

I'd have to sedate some of my clients to pay over £800 for an access point! I assume it makes the tea too.

robmaltsystems

Anyone know how to display/get the frequency from the terminal/script? /interface/wifi/monitor [interface] does display this but can't be used in a script.

robmaltsystems

According to data from the WiFi analyzer on a smartphone, the signal levels CAP XL ac are slightly lower compared to CAP ac This final comment seems to suggest the XL is actually worse signal strength wise. What's the situation 2 years later? There was some suggestion that RouterOS was getting the ...

robmaltsystems

I bought an ax3 recently and wifi was great 800mbps next to the Router and ~400mbps two rooms away. I upgraded to 7.13.3 about a week ago and it went down to 300mbps and -70 Next to the Router and -85 and 10mbps at best two rooms away and lagging and loosing connection. Long story short after readi...

robmaltsystems

Am I correct in assuming that the /cmd subcmd1 subcmd2 syntax is ROS 6 and /cmd/subcmd1/subcmd2 is ROS 7? /export appears to still output in the old format - I assume this is by design at the moment to maintain backwards compatibility as ROS 7 seems to be able to handle old and new syntax.

robmaltsystems

2024 and I'd still like this feature. Just done /file/print and wanted it sorted please. After all the GUI interface is sorted - sort of. It's case-sensitive sort.

robmaltsystems

Well in the UK, you have a long standing tradition with "BBC vans", they may be re-vamped to detect people running outdoor WiFi on forbidden frequencies or exceeding total transmitting power indoors .... That made me smile. The BBC and TV detector van is probably unique to this island 😁 M...

robmaltsystems

only point to mention when you get about 5/10 meters from the device the signal strength already drops. Interesting you should mention this because I've been doing a LOT of experimentation and research in this area. I must be bored. It was triggered by me demoting my Virgin Media Superhub to a mode...

robmaltsystems

You cannot "really" copy configuration between devices, not even the same exact make/model. This can work if you go through the script very carefully and double-check. The key things I've found to watch out for are static IP address assignments and MAC addresses. But I only trust a script...

robmaltsystems

Whilst I did say this was low-priority, there is a slightly serious point here. If a client site is on a budget or hasn't had the best advise in the past setting up their network, they could have anything upstream. They might ask you to install a new access point for as little money as possible and ...

robmaltsystems

Yup you got it - I'm not going to post the models as I'll be embarrassed :D Okay, new one is a LS1005G... interestingly I've just tried this: VM modem - hAP ax <-> new TP-Link unmanaged 1Gbps switch <-> old TP-Link unmanaged 1Gbps switch <-> laptop Laptop is only getting a 100Mbps connected... will ...

robmaltsystems

For the record this scenario is the problem: Virgin Media modem > hAP ax2 <-> unmanaged TP-Link 1GBps switch <-> hAP lite <-> laptop With that (cheap) unmanaged TP-Link switch in the way, the hAP lite ethernet is throttled to ~60Mbps. Remove it and all is well (93Mbps): Virgin Media modem > hAP ax2 ...

robmaltsystems

You have something wrong with your network, maybe the laptop too: Think it's the Lenovo laptop with Realtek network chipset. Plug laptop directly into upstream 1GBps switch - no problem. Replace the hAP lite with an old TP-Link 100Mbps unmanaged switch I've got lying around - same maximum of 60Mbps...

robmaltsystems

Having worked on both sides of the fence as 8-bit assembler through to business apps developer on one side, IT software manager and IT manager of a support helpdesk on the other, I can appreciate why this often the route you have to go but it isolates the developer from useful discussion like this. ...

robmaltsystems

At the risk of teaching granny to suck eggs, but in situations like this, I switch to my developer hat and consider the basic framework of how I'd tackle it. Totally appreciate this is very simplistic and there are a LOT of edge cases to consider. BEGIN frequency selection FOR EACH frequency in list...

robmaltsystems

I avoid DFS ranges. No problems. I can relate to that but in the UK that effectively means you have one 80MHz range 5170-5250. This means that congestion and Tx power become considerations. In the UK, this range has power of 18db on my test hAP ax2. This is significantly less than 5490-5570 which i...

robmaltsystems

Before I go barging in with a support ticket, I'd like to discuss hypothetically some more as to how "we" expect this to work. This morning I've come to a radar event in the log, "failed to select channel" and no 5GHz interface: https://i.imgur.com/yRHELKi.png The interface is co...

robmaltsystems

Do you have fast track enabled? I do yes in router mode. Interesting question here, when you have it configured as a switch without a firewall, is fast track even a thing? I had hap ac lite and it works with 100mbps uplink with full wire speed. Thanks, that confirms that the hAP lite can get near 1...

robmaltsystems

Ahh... that's not good is it. Certainly has the small potential for getting you into hot water? Once again, a quick reply from a developer here would help the speculation. I can see several scenarios here: ROS 7 doesn't have code to handle indoor/outdoor in the scope of outdoor DFS/radar channels sk...

robmaltsystems

I tested wired and wireless. The Wi-Fi 5 speed was limited to about the same speed (60Mbps). From memory, the lites only have only chain on Wi-Fi 5 so that's got a theoretical speed of ~450Mbps (?) but even that should translate on to nearly 100Mbps. The fact the wireless speed and Wi-Fi 5 speeds ha...

robmaltsystems

ROS 6. I do recall upgrading one of these to ROS 7 last year - they are experimental devices for me after all. I spotted that it ran visibly slower, e.g. doing a /export. I rolled them back to ROS 6 as this is what most of my clients are still running with a note to re-visit again.

robmaltsystems

But as I said: defaults now avoid using 10 minute CAC frequencies, making most users happier. I would say that most consumer customers don't even know about this 10 minute wait so they'll be quite happy to accept it in order to use a less congested part of the spectrum. Virgin Media has 16 million ...

robmaltsystems

This is the switch config - doesn't get much simpler than this: /interface bridge add name=bridge /interface wireless set [ find default-name=wlan1 ] ssid=MikroTik set [ find default-name=wlan2 ] ssid=MikroTik /interface wireless security-profiles set [ find default=yes ] supplicant-identity=MikroTi...

robmaltsystems

Very low priority question but I use a hAP ac lite in the lab for experiments and learning. Happened to do a speed test from a laptop hard wired into the router and was surprised at the speed: struggling to get above 60Mbps. The router is connected upstream to a gigabit unmanaged switch. Both the ro...

robmaltsystems

What is your question? The only not-supported devices are SMIPS CPU based, which are very old. Documentation is not changing, because software is not changing. I'm sure I read somewhere that some devices (not SMIPS) couldn't or shouldn't be upgraded because they didn't have enough resources - can't...

robmaltsystems

accept the fact they have to wait for 10 minutes before wifi appears Considering my neighbour's Virgin Media Superhub is sat on the 10 minute CAC frequency, I would say that most people have no idea about the 10 minute wait for 5GHz to appear on power-up. For most people, their router is up 24/7 fo...

robmaltsystems

You can try using a.
viewtopic.php?t=202798#p1052107

Dot didn't work: /interface/wifi/radio/reg-info country=. number=0

But o does because that shows all the countries with "o" in the title: /interface/wifi/radio/reg-info country=o[tab]

robmaltsystems

Tab completion seems to be broken. Should report to support

Will do...

robmaltsystems

Different settings, different features, different everything.

So therefore any changes to defaults are important? Otherwise you'll blindly carry on thinking some default is in place when it's not.

robmaltsystems

Small bug here maybe? If you type /interface/wifi/radio/reg-info country=[tab] , it doesn't show United Kingdom. Why not as it's in there: [admin@ROUTER001] > /interface/wifi/radio/reg-info country="United Kingdom" number=0 ranges: 2402-2482/20 5170-5250/23/indoor 5250-5330/23/indoor/dfs 5...

robmaltsystems

So can ROS v7 now run on all older devices? I know you've recently split the wireless packages down, I assume to fit on low-memory devices?

robmaltsystems

Changes to the defaults settings of any device are important esp. if you've got any documentation or training involved. The accidental or unknown enabling of features is often the reason for vulnerabilities. So on a ROS v7 device out the box, it will never use the DFS channels with 10 minute CAC so ...

robmaltsystems

Okay, I can accept no new features are been added but they're still fixing bugs so that's not EOL IMO. Bugs appear in documentation as much as software so are they still updating the documentation if it's wrong? They must fix major security bugs for at least another 5 years? I'm guessing there are m...

robmaltsystems

Ahh right, thought it might be that. This comment might explain it:

Maybe , but as the wifi(wave2) driver has no more parameter for "Installation"/"outdoor/indoor/any" ... that setting is built in in the device

So non-weatherproof devices are assumed to be indoor?

robmaltsystems

You are indeed correct. This is another difference between ROS v6 default and ROS v7. In ROS v6, skip DFS channels is disabled by default: https://i.imgur.com/cdSjZ9r.png But in ROS v7, it's set to skip DFS channels with 10 minute CAC. DFS/CAC is slowly clicking into place! 5580 in UK has 1 minute C...

robmaltsystems

Don't seem to be able to find this drop down?

robmaltsystems

I can find the documentation for Router OS v7 here: https://help.mikrotik.com/docs/display/ROS/RouterOS

Is this still the documentation for v6? https://wiki.mikrotik.com/wiki/Manual:TOC - is it still updated as v6 isn't EOL?

robmaltsystems

It does indeed - thanks!

robmaltsystems

The on-going learning curve with 5GHz continues on my hAP ax2. Why can't I select 5580/Ceee in the UK? It doesn't even do radar check - it instantly says "no supported channels": https://i.imgur.com/DM42Z8l.png If I switch to 20MHz wide, it works. Try 5600, 5620, 5640 with 20MHz and same &...

robmaltsystems

What's the ROS7/wifi version of this command?

/interface wireless info country-info country="united kingdom"

/interface/wifi doesn't have a info sub-command.

robmaltsystems

I guess there could be radar around my house but I'd be surprised if there was. I live in an old mill town cottage with really thick walls. Mobile signal is pretty dire - so bad that my mobile usually uses Wi-Fi calling. I'm also convinced my new Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 isn't helping either - I've curr...

robmaltsystems

Does it work this way on ROS v6 as well? Yes it does. Somebody else mentioned this above but isn't this a bug in ROS then? As far as I can tell, this is the specification: The DFS requirements say that the APs mustn't switch back in 30 minutes after detection (known as NOP or Non-Occupancy Period)....

robmaltsystems

I'm going to resurrect this thread due to something that's come to light whilst implementing a hAP ac2 at home discussed in detail in another thread. to recap - this particularly congested Wi-Fi channel wise client reported slow internet. We've been all around the houses with this but put it to bed ...

robmaltsystems

Read it as: "5500 and nothing else" Does it work this way on ROS v6 as well? Might explain why one very busy (congestion wise) client I have regularly reported slow Wi-Fi. CAPsMAN is configured there to assign the access points to specific channels. If the same problem is occurring, it mi...

robmaltsystems

Read it as: "5500 and nothing else" Well I would say this is a bad design. I regularly specify the channel on UBNT AirMax devices (point-to-point). In fact, recent Nanostation firmware doesn't even have an auto option - you have to pick a channel: https://i.imgur.com/bFH9Fkl.png I have ne...

robmaltsystems

Update on this issue... recall that my router is now configured with 5500, 5180 in the frequency box. At 10:20 this morning, radar was detected on 5500. Let's put aside why a radar event was detected over 24 hours since 5500 was chosen. The router has switched to 5180. Does anyone else think that it...

robmaltsystems

Most people simply disable that function. Not surprised as it's clearly confusing me at home ;-) I'm guessing that it's been off in default configuration like forever but somehow got enabled recently. As this ax2 is my experimentation device, I'm regularly backing up the configuration. The followin...

robmaltsystems

It was off on that older client router and when I reset on my hAP ax2 to default, it was also off. I'm very anal about recording individual changes to main router configurations and considering I had no idea where the configuration was, I doubt I'd turned it on. Therefore I assume that Mikrotik have...

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