CAPsMAN - Persistent cached config for offline CAP fallback

RouterOS General
1

Hello MikroTik Team,

I would like to request a critical feature for CAPsMAN: persistent caching of the last received configuration on CAP devices for true offline operation.

The Problem: In remote branches with unstable WAN links to the head office, CAPs lose Wi-Fi functionality almost immediately when the connection to the CAPsMAN server drops. Within about a minute of losing the manager, the CAP stops broadcasting Wi-Fi. Current workarounds and local fallback configurations do not prevent the Wi-Fi interfaces from dropping. This forces us to configure remote APs manually, completely defeating the purpose of centralized management.

The Request: Please add a function where CAPs automatically cache the last successfully received configuration from CAPsMAN in non-volatile storage. This cached configuration should:

  • Persist across device reboots and power cycles.
  • Allow the CAP to continue operating and broadcasting Wi-Fi indefinitely when CAPsMAN is unreachable.
  • Automatically sync and apply updates once the link to CAPsMAN is restored.

Currently, if CAPsMAN is unreachable, the remote AP becomes useless. An automatic, persistent offline cache would solve the critical issue of Wi-Fi outages during WAN failures and make CAPsMAN viable for remote branch deployments.

Thank you for considering this feature.

Best regards, Andy

2

Use scripting and local config when capsman becomes unavailable ?

I have several capsman installations which could be served from one central location but I decided not to do so for this exact reason.
Interesting request anyhow, so following ...

3

This request has come up multiple times, but the chief issue is that for capsman controlled aps the entire authentication and roaming flow is offloaded to the controller, so caching the received configuration alone doesn't solve anything, because you will get effectively non-functioning aps either way.

Something could be done, but only for very simple configurations. It can be tolerated if roaming becomes unavailable temporarily, but as soon as you have access lists, radius, eap the effectively non-functional part returns.