4 ms·

I tried OnHub, but unfortunately it didn't have the option to force 5Ghz over 2.4Ghz for devices without going through some hacks. Where I live, 2.4Ghz wireless

I tried OnHub, but unfortunately it didn't have the option to force 5Ghz over 2.4Ghz for devices without going through some hacks. Where I live, 2.4Ghz wireless has 10% packet loss on average, no matter which router I use. I'm happy that routers are finally getting the UX treatment they deserve, and their target market isn't for people who know the difference between the two, but OnHub should keep the nitty-gritty details accessible to power users if they so wish. I eventually had to return the router and go back to forcing 5Ghz on my old one.

jethro_tell 10y ago
Do you have a router that does this or do you normally just turn of the 2.4Ghz band?
- ploxiln 10y ago
  On other wifi APs you can give different SSIDs to the 2.4GHz and 5GHz radios (and, on a ubiquity or other business-class AP, you can also add another SSID that spans both radios). Then you can have the client connect to the SSID which is available only on 5GHz (even as another client uses the SSID which is available on either).
- some-guy 10y ago
  The OnHub router has one SSID, but two BSSIDs that account for each frequency band. Unfortunately, some devices (such as iPhones) cannot choose one over the other, so I have been turning off 2.4Ghz in this case.
  - jethro_tell 10y ago
    You can't connect to the bssid with an iPhone?
  - deleted 10y ago
    [deleted]
stsp 10y ago
An AP cannot prioritize 5 GHz over 2 GHz. It's up to the client to decide what to connect to.
- some-guy 10y ago
  True, in my case I just wanted to turn off 2.4Ghz entirely but the software wouldn't let me. My iPhone can't prioritize 5Ghz unfortunately. There was some BSSID trickery I could do, but having guests over was a pain since the broadcasted SSID would always result in a horrible connection. By turning off 2.4Ghz entirely on my old router there's no such problem (though the range is reduced quite a bit).
- simoncion 10y ago
  > An AP cannot prioritize 5 GHz over 2 GHz. It's up to the client to decide what to connect to. While this is strictly true, an AP can encourage clients to prefer 5Ghz over 2.4Ghz. How do I know? The enterprise APs from the big players do this and do it well. Recent versions of the software that drives UBNT's UniFi APs also do a good job of this. (Every client I've connected to my UniFi APs at home has always been steered to the 5Ghz band. [0]) Like IPv6 support (which the OnHub reportedly still lacks!), sometimes it's best to try and accept the occasional suboptimal result. :) [0] And yes, without band steering these clients would always connect at 2.4Ghz because of its stronger signal. So, I know that band steering is working. :)
- jrockway 10y ago
  Not true at all. The AP can reply to 2.4GHz requests with a delay so that the device gets connected to the 5GHz network first. If the AP is really sure, it can also send a force disconnect. That's how most roaming is implemented these days. We have a version of hostapd that will do this for you: https://gfiber.googlesource.com/vendor/opensource/hostap/ https://gfiber.googlesource.com/vendor/opensource/hostap/ We call it "bandsteering".
kruipen 10y ago
https://on.google.com/hub/blog/2016-03-17/speedy-wi-fi-with-the-latest-onhub-features/ https://on.google.com/hub/blog/2016-03-17/speedy-wi-fi-with-...

jethro_tell 10y ago

Do you have a router that does this or do you normally just turn of the 2.4Ghz band?

ploxiln 10y ago
On other wifi APs you can give different SSIDs to the 2.4GHz and 5GHz radios (and, on a ubiquity or other business-class AP, you can also add another SSID that spans both radios). Then you can have the client connect to the SSID which is available only on 5GHz (even as another client uses the SSID which is available on either).
some-guy 10y ago
The OnHub router has one SSID, but two BSSIDs that account for each frequency band. Unfortunately, some devices (such as iPhones) cannot choose one over the other, so I have been turning off 2.4Ghz in this case.
- jethro_tell 10y ago
  You can't connect to the bssid with an iPhone?
- deleted 10y ago
  [deleted]

stsp 10y ago

An AP cannot prioritize 5 GHz over 2 GHz. It's up to the client to decide what to connect to.

some-guy 10y ago
True, in my case I just wanted to turn off 2.4Ghz entirely but the software wouldn't let me. My iPhone can't prioritize 5Ghz unfortunately. There was some BSSID trickery I could do, but having guests over was a pain since the broadcasted SSID would always result in a horrible connection. By turning off 2.4Ghz entirely on my old router there's no such problem (though the range is reduced quite a bit).
simoncion 10y ago
> An AP cannot prioritize 5 GHz over 2 GHz. It's up to the client to decide what to connect to. While this is strictly true, an AP can encourage clients to prefer 5Ghz over 2.4Ghz. How do I know? The enterprise APs from the big players do this and do it well. Recent versions of the software that drives UBNT's UniFi APs also do a good job of this. (Every client I've connected to my UniFi APs at home has always been steered to the 5Ghz band. [0]) Like IPv6 support (which the OnHub reportedly still lacks!), sometimes it's best to try and accept the occasional suboptimal result. :) [0] And yes, without band steering these clients would always connect at 2.4Ghz because of its stronger signal. So, I know that band steering is working. :)
jrockway 10y ago
Not true at all. The AP can reply to 2.4GHz requests with a delay so that the device gets connected to the 5GHz network first. If the AP is really sure, it can also send a force disconnect. That's how most roaming is implemented these days. We have a version of hostapd that will do this for you: https://gfiber.googlesource.com/vendor/opensource/hostap/ https://gfiber.googlesource.com/vendor/opensource/hostap/ We call it "bandsteering".

kruipen 10y ago

https://on.google.com/hub/blog/2016-03-17/speedy-wi-fi-with-the-latest-onhub-features/ https://on.google.com/hub/blog/2016-03-17/speedy-wi-fi-with-...