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AP vs mesh

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AP vs mesh

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AP vs mesh
AP vs mesh
2022-09-12 08:42:16
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Not sure is this is posted in the correct forum as there is some overlap but here goes.

I am considering putting in a mesh WIFi network but now wondering whether using two access points would be a better alternative. My current router is on one side of my house but I do have ethernet ports in the corners of 2 far rooms meaning I could plug in AC1900 extenders setup in AP mode. If setup this way can my router and the the 2 AP's have the same SSID so that when roaming around the house mobile phones would pickup the different AP's seamlessly like a mesh system and not have to log in and out of different networks.

 

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Re:AP vs mesh
2022-09-12 10:48:20 - last edited 2022-10-08 11:36:33

  @Hawklord 

 

If using REs in AP mode with the same SSIDs as on your router, your roaming wouldn't be so seamless as with a real mesh network.

In general your mobiles will roam between the APs, but there will be a slight disruption of traffic which a mesh network will avoid.

You can see the traditional RE behavior here. In general iPhones will roam smoother than Android phones.

You could use a cheaper 2-pack Deco system (M4), which supports ethernet backhaul with mesh, described here.

Here's how your devices will perform roaming with a Deco mesh system.

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Re:AP vs mesh
2022-09-12 11:09:29

  @terziyski 

I wouldn't be using OneMesh as such but would have an AP in 2 different rooms both of which would be ethernet hard wired back to my existing BT fibre hub/router. To my understanding this would work as a Deco mesh but wired rather than wireless or have I got this wrong. The reason for asking is that I already have ethernet cabling back to my ISP router in the 2 rooms that have bad WiFi and adding 2 AP's or extenders in AP mode would be much cheaper than buying the M9 mesh system.

 

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Re:AP vs mesh
2022-09-13 20:45:18

  @Hawklord 

 

Hey

 

In short, sadly it wont work like that.    Roaming requires a network to have some "controller" type device in place, that controller will tell the client to move from AP1 to AP2 etc etc without disconnecting and inform the APs to conduct the handover, this is known as seamless roaming and is part of the Deco Mesh..   The controller is usually the Main Deco..

 

If you just have 2x APs connected via a cable, they are not capable of this as they dont talk to eachother.  As there is no controller in place its up to the device to choose when to roam and generally devices hold onto the current AP until death, at which time it will drop the connection and re-connect to the new AP (or possibly the old one again)..    It will be anything but seamless and isnt a great idea to go down this road if honest performance is going to suffer for you.

 

The problem with ISP routers is they only work on their own, you need something like Deco or OneMesh to replace these as one larger network.    If you do go Deco, buy 2x nodes and disable the WiFi on the ISP Router as it wont work as part of the mesh, use only the deco.

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Re:AP vs mesh
2022-09-13 20:49:32

  @Hawklord 

 

Also thinking out loud here.. if you have cables in place..  then you dont need the M9 Deco, go for something like the S4 or M4, you wont need the power of the M9

 

Basically you can switch the Deco to "access point mode" where it will use the cabling like the AP setup you considered, but still offer you roaming and mesh.    As you are using cable between them, the S4 will be more than enough for capacity

 

Pop one into your ISP Router, one other end of that cable run and good to go..  again i would remove the ISP WiFi as its not going to help you.   That would be a much cheaper option for you

 

Google   Deco Access Point Mode for more info if you wish..

 

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