I want to buy a hAP ac2 (RBD52G-5HacD2HnD-TC) but I want to be sure I can configure the router to be an access point on 2.4 and 5GHz and at the same time be a station connected to another wireless network.
How many type of connection can I create?
Is it possible to use the router this way?
Thanks
Yes it can be done…
The problem is that you have to have at least some basic knowledge on Mikrotiks…
Yes, sure.
But you did not tell what you wanted to make. Distributed wifi (bridged network) or just a dedicated subnetwork (hAP ac2 as gateway) connected via wifi to the uplink other network.
Lets say that you use the 5 GHz to be a station connected to another (up stream) network. And you want to distribute that network as an extra AP on 2.4 and 5 GHz;
The other wireless network is delivered by Mikrotik (then we can use “station bridge” otherwise “station pseudobridge” must be used)
Then make or set following wireless interfaces
WLAN1 (2.4 GHz) : AP bridge
WLAN2 (5 GHz) : station bridge
WLAN3 (+ virtual interface on master WLAN2) : AP bridge
Make or use a bridge
Add WLAN1,WLAN2,WLAN3 and ethernet interfaces to that bridge
Give static IP address to bridge or/and add DHCP client to bridge. Client devices will get IP addresses from that other network.
If the default firewall is in use: add the bridge to the LAN “interface list” , other interfaces are just slaves of the bridge so they follow the bridge
If you want to make the hAP ac2 as a network extender or gateway connected to that other network:. Do the same but:
don’t add WLAN2 to the bridge
With the default firewall rules in place add WLAN2 to the WAN “interface list” (firewall will protect and set the needed NAT).
Add DHCP client to WLAN2 instead of the bridge
Give IP local address to bridge in a new subnet range
Add DHCP server to bridge for that new subnet (bridge is now leasing IP adresses for the new sub network)
Remark
Some of this can be done with the “Setup repeater” button for WLAN2.
Bridged network could be replaced with WDS links (if both are Mikrotik)
WLAN3 radio channel will be the channel from the WLAN2 interface. (WLAN3 becomes only active if WLAN2 is up and running.)
But, maybe, you have something totally different in mind.
Maybe Audience is the better choice for what you want
Seems that the hAP ac2 can do want I need.
The mikrotik must interconnect a LTE router (ZyXEL) via wifi to an existing network gigabit wired and 2.4/5GHz wireless.
so inline this is the schema
(LTE)-Zyxel-(Wifi-Private-5GHz) ------- (Wifi-Private-5GHz)-Mikrotik----(Wifi-Network-5GHz, Wifi-Network-2.4GHz, Wired-Network)
Based on your answers this configuration can be done with virtual Wireless.
Thanks
Yes it can be done, but as was written above Audience is a better device for that because it has 2 radios on 5 GHz so you can configure them completely independently.
When you make this configuration with hAP AC2 it can only work all on the same channel (so MikroTik AP will be on the same 5 GHz channel as ZyXEL AP and thus they share the same bandwidth).
FANTASTIC!
Hi , fully agree on the Audience as better choice. (Only wanted to detail the answer to the initial question: can it be done?)
Be aware that the 2 separate 5 GHz radio’s in the Audience are split up in frequency range. One is typical “indoor” (Channel 36 till 64) the other uses the (DFS) typical outdoor frequencies.(Channel 100 and up)
“Audience’s 5 GHz coverage is limited to 5180 – 5320 MHz, as it uses 5500 – 5825 MHz spectrum to communicate with other Audience devices”
But this 2 frequencies setup of the Audience is better than the “repeater” style setup indeed.
Personally I use the combination of SXTsq 5 ac and hAP ac2 , but that connection is an outdoor connection between houses on a holiday resort.
The SXTsq ac is also limited to DFS frequencies in the European regulation countries. Separate placement (outside) and antenna gain are the reason for this resorts network concept.
Details are lacking to be able to make a choice here.
Bernard
But this 2 frequencies setup of the Audience is better than the “repeater” style setup indeed.
It can be done using a hap ac2 without repeating…
The 5GHz radio is configured as a Station and then you can create a virtual interface as AP…
This is not repeating…
Pffff names are confusing. Therefore “repeater style”
Some say: repeater is same SSID, extender is different SSID .
Others say (Engenius) Hotspot extender is NAT-ted subnet. The SSID name does not matter.
Still others tell me : don’t use repeater mode, it’s killing the spectrum, use WDS instead.
The way I did setup the repeater/extender earlier (there was nothing said about SSID and password), and the outcome of a “setup repeater” button press is actually exactly the same, as I checked here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VezbiCyDiUs
Using WDS does something very very similar : it makes a WDS virtual AP. in the “AP (WDS)” - “Bridge (WDS) - AP” chain.
You have the station/bridge/pseudo bridge/wds slave … whatever … picking up the wifi distribution, and an AP/AP bridge/ AP wds … sending it out again.
Even this list of possible links is not complete (anymore): https://wiki.mikrotik.com/wiki/Bridge_Network_With_Wireless_Modes
Point is if receiver and sender interface share the same radio, that means there will be one frequency and bandwidth and time-sharing of the radio access.
This is halving the throughput in ALL the cases. (WDS is as bad as a repeater in that case)
Unless you use a different radio for sending and receiving.
Commercial repeaters like the TP-Link RE450 call this “speed mode” when they cross 2.4GHz and 5 GHz radio’s, but they still call it a repeater.
With Mikrotik RouterOS you build whatever you like, and so I run out of distiguishing names for all the possible combinations.
What’s in a name ?
I think the point is that if you use the same radio as both the AP and a feed station (like a repeater does), you cut the maximum bandwidth in half, whereas if you have two radios you can operate both at full speed.
Indeed, that is the reason. And in practice it can be much worse than “cut in half”.
When the user(s) of your repeating device cannot hear the original source where the repeater obtains its data (which is the reason why you install the repeater in the first place), they have the tendency to transmit over the transmissions from that source, and when they are locally stronger at the repeater than that source, this will cause even more loss.
This is a weak point in any repeater setup and also in many mesh networks. Dedicated frequencies for backhaul and local users is a much better solution.
(and of course do not forget the easy solution: run a cable from the main router to the second access point and operate it at a different frequency from the main one)