Hi,
I deployed a few hAP AC Lite to replace our airCube.
So far it’s going well but there is still a few issues.
One of them is that it’s not possible to chose proper 5G channel.
I’m in Canada and I this is the only channel that are available.
I know that this device doesn’t support DFS but I should be able to have at least the basic channel.
Am I missing something?
Regards,
iLevac
Anybody have a clue?
Yes, choosing different channel extension pattern.
… and a smaller bandwidth. max 40 MHz should be ample.
I did try with 40MHz, there is more channel available, but not all of them.
I’m still trying to figure out what is going on.
Your channel width is “Ceee”, experiment with that. Try eeeC or such.
@Normis: wouldn’t channel width set to “XXXX” allow greatest selection of possible frequency channels?
The wider the bandwidth, the less of channels to choose from. I think this explains it:
And, please never choose XXXX, just select the correct channel and the correct extension channels manually.
Nice chart. But doesn't explain the part of your closing sentence I highlited. What is proper selection for e.g. channel between 5170MHz and 5250 MHz? Is it Ceee@5180 or is it eCee@5200 or eeCe@5220 or eeeC@5240?
I know many wifi admins say one should not use auto-matic channels and this might be sound suggestion for 2.4GHz, but why on 5GHz (specially for SOHO indoor installations where one mostly doesn't have to care about neighbouring APs)? And if one allows auto channel selection, what's wrong with auto extension selection (setting of XXXX is essentially this)?
5GHz channels are 20MHz wide. Therefor channel 36 start at 5170 and ends with 5190. Channel to select is 5180 (this is for.
36: 5180 (5170 + 10)
52: 5260
100: 5500
132: 5660
149: 5745
Why not autochannel? Except for DFS radar interference, you don’t want your accesspoints to worry about best channels.
And to answer your question:
Ceee@5180 or is it eCee@5200 or eeCe@5220 or eeeC@5240?
All are correct!
If it's good to stick to manual channel configuration, then there are reasons for using only single extension channel layout ... with trivial channel occupation checks only control channels show as loaded/occupied and if different APs use different channel layouts (e.g. one Ceee and the other one eeeC), at first sight they would seem not to interfere with each other. If both used same channel layout (e.g. Ceee), it would be pretty clear they are interfering each other.
Don’t use installation “indoor”. Use installation “any” if it is indoors. This will include the outdoor allowed frequencies
Mikrotik misunderstood the rules. There are no “outdoor only” frequencies, there are “indoor only” and “also allowed outdoor” frequencies. You are free to use the frequencies labeled “outdoor” in the Mikrotik list if operating indoors. There is no risk of breaking the rules.
[admin@Mkt] /interface wireless info> country-info
country: canada
ranges: 2402-2472/b,g,gn20,gn40(30dBm)
2417-2457/g-turbo(20dBm)
5170-5250/a,an20,an40,ac20,ac40,ac80,ac160,ac80+80(23dBm)/passive,indoor
5250-5330/a,an20,an40,ac20,ac40,ac80,ac160,ac80+80(27dBm)/dfs,passive
5490-5590/a,an20,an40,ac20,ac40,ac80,ac160,ac80+80(27dBm)/dfs,passive
5650-5730/a,an20,an40,ac20,ac40,ac80,ac160,ac80+80(27dBm)/dfs,passive
5735-5835/a,an20,an40,ac20,ac40,ac80,ac160,ac80+80(30dBm)/outdoor
By the way , if you choose XXXX you have lost control. 5240XXXX could be any of the Ce combinations, could be the intended 5240/eeeC, but 5240/Ceee as well (channel 48-60).
Don’t be afraid of DFS, just allow it one full minute to start. Just stay away from the weather channels unless you have a lot of patience (10 minutes wait time).
With DFS you do set the channel manually, don’t set it on auto. The DFS channel mandatory switch by radar detect will still work. If you want to avoid the weather channels, fill in the Channels List with the channels you allow, in your preferred sequence. Operating indoor, the chances of receiving a radar detect are minimal.
Why not auto? Because the auto selection happens at startup, and Mikrotik and other brands make very very bad choices if set on auto. They introduce adjacent channel interference, which could be avoided, or even transformed to the better co-channel interference (coexistence). They prefer to corrupt the wifi spectrum with adjacent-channel interference, and mostly have it wrong because for a split second, while they test, there was no signal on that frequency. Channel selection must be based on a longer period of evaluation.
Not entirely correct. “indoor only” mode is for outdoor type devices.
Basically you should only change this option if you have an outdoor type waterproof device. For home AP devices, always leave “any”.
Indeed not fully correct: “indoor” in some cases cannot be set on typical outdoor devices (SXTsq ac, Omnitik ac …) to my frustration for the Omnitik ac (makes not much sense for the SXTsq in regular use). I’m glad you still allow it for the wAP ac !! And “indoor” setting here also makes no sense, leave it on “any”.
Leave on “any”, yes fully agree, but so many users are confused and set it on “indoor” if used indoors.
There was a time that frequencies had their specific area of usage, but that time is gone … Out of the Cisco design manual, I read …
There are differing limitations on these three UNII bands. Restrictions vary between them for transmit
power, antenna gain, antenna styles, and usage. The UNII-1 band is designated for indoor operations,
and initially had a restriction of permanently attached antennas. The UNII-2 band was designated for
indoor or outdoor operations, and permitted external antennas. The UNII-3 band was intended for
outdoor bridge products and permitted external antennas, but the UNII-3 band can now be used for
indoor or outdoor 802.11a WLANs as well.
February 8, 2014
https://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/td/docs/solutions/Enterprise/Mobility/emob41dg/emob41dg-wrapper/ch3_WLAN.html
Omnitik AC cannot use “indoor” or “any” installation type. So cannot use indoor frequencies.
And this is correct. Omnitik can’t be used indoors, and can’t use indoor frequencies outdoors.
Which particular property of Omnitik makes it impossible to be used indoor?
Omnitik is too powerful and so it can’t be certified for indoor use, as the power can’t be sufficiently reduced to pass regulatory tests.
This is an excellent time to reiterate the obvious for Normis.
Hire bpwl and let him rewrite the Wiki for MT products AFTER, he works with your coders to get MT wifi and its selections,
presented on ROS as they should be, to remove any confusion and to allow for granular control as required.
MT may not have the latest mu-mimo or acx or whatever technology but within the existing technology setting up and optimizing MT wifi should not be such a mystery.
My .02 cents worth.
As for the OP, I am in Canada, and am currently using 20/40 Ce, for my 5ghz setting. I use installation “ANY”. Antenna gain is set to 2.
I put in a manual scan list for the following settings (main freq selected is 5180) probably to de-conflict with another 5ghz AP in the house.
5175-5185
5195-5205
5215-5225
I just noted I have WMM selected, but heck I have no reason to tell you why??
Too powerful ??? Not powerful at all. It will stick to the legal EIRP requirements of the regulator. With its 8 dBi antenna this means the radio power is lower, and the overall transmitted power is lower than a near isotropic antenna. Practical experience is that the Omnitik ac does not pass wall’s and ceilings very well, even taking into account it’s radiation pattern. In practice a wAP ac passes those obstacles much better, when using the same frequency and the same EIRP, it’s overall TXpower of the wAP ac is 6dB higher.
“can’t be certified for indoor use, as the power can’t be sufficiently reduced to pass regulatory tests.” … challenge your Certification officer! What is going on here? I have no knowledge of regulations that set a lower limit on indoor usage than outdoor usage (https://wlan1nde.wordpress.com/2014/11/26/wlan-maximum-transmission-power-etsi/). It are all the same values. And the radio power can be reduced to 2dBm like any other radio. With 8 dBi antenna gain this is 10dBm EIRP. Even my laptop delivers more. Why did you fail the test? There must be some other reason. It could be a reasonable marketing decision, Would be a legitimate decision anyway.
“Cannot be used indoor” ??? Never seen that instruction. So we use it indoor with also outdoor allowed frequencies at 27dBm EIRP. And still, people trying to set up some self-made backhaul network at home to their hAP ac2’s are disappointed. And using the Omnitik ac will not be an improvement.
… Disabled the WLAN interface … and using it as a RouterOS testbox
Sorry, wording was not correct.
Omnitik is “not certified” to be used in those frequencies. However, it is certified to be used indoors with the setting “outdoor” .
Also please clarify which omnitik, there are several and their behavior/certification is not the same
OmniTik isn’t meant to be used and isn’t certified for frequencies 5150 - 5250 MHz; 5250 - 5350 MHz which are indoor use only, but you can freely use 5470 - 5725 MHz frequencies indoors with the setting “outdoor”. This will be ok with regulatory requirements.