Is it possible to use EAP245 as root AP in a mesh

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Is it possible to use EAP245 as root AP in a mesh

This thread has been locked for further replies. You can start a new thread to share your ideas or ask questions.
Is it possible to use EAP245 as root AP in a mesh
Is it possible to use EAP245 as root AP in a mesh
2020-01-31 19:19:08

Hi,

 

I was wondering if the EAP245v3 can be used as Root AP in a mesh network?

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Re:Is it possible to use EAP245 as root AP in a mesh
2020-01-31 20:16:14 - last edited 2020-01-31 20:19:05

 

ASCII wrote

I was wondering if the EAP245v3 can be used as Root AP in a mesh network?

 

AFAIK the EAP245 still does not support meshing. But even if will support meshing in a future firmware version (as has been announced), the answer depends on the region you're in:

 

In all EU countries, outdoor APs are limited to outdoor channels in the 5 GHz band by law. You need to set this limit in Omada controller if deploying outdoor APs in EU countries. Unfortunately, Omada controller does not allow to limit channels on a per-AP base anymore, but in latest versions it can be set only site-wide. The controller tries to be »smart« in that it just limits the channels for outdoor devices. Since indoor EAPs can automatically select indoor-only channels if channel selection set to »Auto« (or if DFS requires to change the channel even if set to a specific one), there could be an issue with connecting outdoor EAPs to an indoor EAP.

 

For meshing indoor EAPs together there is no such restriction.

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Re:Is it possible to use EAP245 as root AP in a mesh
2020-01-31 20:50:03 - last edited 2020-01-31 20:50:31

@R1D2 Thanks for the reply.

I do already own a couple of 245v3 and I wanted to connect a 225v3 with the 245v3 wirelessly.

Ideally I would connect the 225v3 via cable, but that is not easily possible in that case.

I was under the impression, the 225v3 (indoor) does support meshing or is that wrong?

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Re:Is it possible to use EAP245 as root AP in a mesh
2020-01-31 20:55:20 - last edited 2020-01-31 20:55:41

On a related note: If all my APs are connected via ethernet cable, is there a good reasoning to keep Mesh support enabled in the controller?

Does Mesh provide any functionality besides connecting APs wirelessly?

 

Reading through https://dongknows.com/tp-link-omada-class-diy-mesh-review/ , it says Mesh support needs to be enabled to allow seamless handoff between APs.

Is that true?

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Re:Is it possible to use EAP245 as root AP in a mesh
2020-01-31 21:44:16 - last edited 2020-01-31 21:59:45

Meshing is currently supported by EAP225 and EAP225-Outdoor only. It has been announced in a future firmware version for EAP245, too.

Note that all EAPs you want to mesh need to support meshing, so you can't mesh EAP225 with EAP245 (yet).

 

ASCII wrote

On a related note: If all my APs are connected via ethernet cable, is there a good reasoning to keep Mesh support enabled in the controller?

Does Mesh provide any functionality besides connecting APs wirelessly?

 

If all your EAPs are connected via cable, there is not only no reason to keep Mesh support enabled, but also no good reason to use a mesh to replace the cables.

 

Meshing will not increase the user capacity of a WLAN, so a mesh network will only support as much users as one EAP alone. Meshing is helpful if you want to increase the WLAN coverage by deploying an additional EAP and a cable connection to this EAP is not possible for whatever reason. But meshing wil also cut the total bandwidth since packets from clients have to be sent twice (or three or even four times depending on the number of mesh hops) over the air.

 

Reading through https://dongknows.com/tp-link-omada-class-diy-mesh-review/ , it says Mesh support needs to be enabled to allow seamless handoff between APs.

Is that true?

 

Definitely not! For seamless roaming the EAPs must be connected to the controller, but need not be meshed. The blog author probably got confused by a note in the mesh FAQ which states that extended features don't work if the controller is not running. Mesh and fast roaming both need the controller, but fast roaming also works on non-mesh networks, too.

 

Note also that meshing still works if the controller shuts down, but re-organizing the mesh on failure of a single EAP will not work until the controller comes back online.

 

Traditional roaming (not so fast) even works without any fast roaming protocol if the SSIDs, security modes and WiFi modes of different EAPs are the same. Fast roaming just avoids another WiFi survey of the client when moving between basic services sets. The EAP will offer the client a list of nearby EAPs, so it could choose one to connect to much faster.

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Re:Is it possible to use EAP245 as root AP in a mesh
2021-04-06 04:54:34 - last edited 2021-04-06 05:15:15

@ASCII 

 

last week setup
2 x EAP245v3 (5.0.1)

Omada Controller v3.2.14

 

Adopt both AP (via wired)

- disconnect one EAP245, sees it auto configuring as MESH linked

- connect webcam on this EAP245 and able to see this webcam from internet

 

today, refresh/factory reset both EAP245 but the MESH failed and chance upon this thread

 

Upgrade Omada Controller to v4.2.11

Adopt both AP (via wired)

- disconnect wired from one EAP245, device status turns HEARBEAT MISSED

- wait a while, status turns ISOLATED, click on AP, side menu bar scrolls out, under Action , click LINK

- wait for a while, STATUS for no-wired EAP245 shows CONNECTED (w Wifi icon)

 

- check MAP

- connect webcam on this (non-wired) EAP245 and able to view from internet

 

Wired EAP245 act as Root AP

MESH enabled

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