EAP650 mesh nodes roaming clients no connection (until EAP restarted)

This thread has been locked for further replies. You can start a new thread to share your ideas or ask questions.
12

EAP650 mesh nodes roaming clients no connection (until EAP restarted)

This thread has been locked for further replies. You can start a new thread to share your ideas or ask questions.
EAP650 mesh nodes roaming clients no connection (until EAP restarted)
EAP650 mesh nodes roaming clients no connection (until EAP restarted)
2024-04-22 12:06:56 - last edited 2024-04-23 13:21:20
Model: EAP650  
Hardware Version: V1
Firmware Version: 1.0.13

I have a few omada APs installed and managed by a controller running in docker (latest version) on a ubuntu system:

 

  • 3 x 650 (#1 wired, #1 wireless meshed to #1 ~-68dBm and #3 meshed to #2 ~-55dBm) - all latest FW

  • 1 x 650-Wall (wired) - latest FW

 

 

Since installing #3 i have had a lot of problems with clients not roaming properly, in particular to the two APs that are wirelessly connected to the wired AP. It seems that any client will connect if near a wired AP, but if they then roam to a meshed one they lose connection (and cannot reconnect).

 

I have tried:

  • Set to WPA/WPA2 only

  • Disable 6GHz

  • Disable 5GHz

  • All power outputs set to low

  • Resetting the APs and reprovisioning them to the controller

 

The only way I can get the network to function as expected is by restarting #2 (either physically or via GUI), but even then it falls over after approx 12 hour depending on usage. I currently have a scheduled overnight restart of #2, resulting in everything working until about the evening when it fails.

 

It appears that clients will roam to #3, but there is then no onwards connectivity to #2 and therefore wider network/WAN. Connected to #3 AP when the system has failed allows me to ping other clients on the AP, but not #2 AP or any WAN address.

 

thanks for any help/ideas.

  0      
  0      
#1
Options
14 Reply
Re:EAP650 mesh nodes stop working until restart
2024-04-22 12:32:18

  @Munch1 

 

Can you post a screen grab from the Controller: Map->Topology with Labels ON?

<< Paying it forward, one juicy problem at a time... >>
  0  
  0  
#2
Options
Re:EAP650 mesh nodes stop working until restart
2024-04-22 12:48:33
  0  
  0  
#5
Options
Re:EAP650 mesh nodes stop working until restart
2024-04-22 13:08:21

  @Munch1 

 

How are you powering Drawing Rm and Bureau?  Ideally you would use POE injectors, using a POE switch could cause issues because the etherlink will show as up.

 

Also, pick an optimal 5.8G channel for your root AP and fix that.

 

Are you in a region where your channels must adhere to DFS?  (what country are you in)

<< Paying it forward, one juicy problem at a time... >>
  0  
  0  
#6
Options
Re:EAP650 mesh nodes stop working until restart
2024-04-22 14:06:07

  @d0ugmac1 

Both APs are powered by the supplied directly connected power adapters

 

I'll try another channel for root AP - I am in England

  0  
  0  
#7
Options
Re:EAP650 mesh nodes stop working until restart
2024-04-22 18:58:21

  @Munch1 

 

Re-enable 5ghz (but leave 6ghz disabled).  And pick the mid channel available and set it as fixed on your root AP in the 149-167 range.  Try that for a few days.

<< Paying it forward, one juicy problem at a time... >>
  0  
  0  
#8
Options
Re:EAP650 mesh nodes stop working until restart
2024-04-22 21:25:18

  @d0ugmac1 

 

Thanks for the pointers. I don't have access to any channel above 128 (or 140 if using 20Mhz wide channels). Channel limit and full-sector DFS are disabled.

 

I tried moving to channel 116/80Mhz but having same issues already unfortunately.

  0  
  0  
#9
Options
Re:EAP650 mesh nodes stop working until restart
2024-04-23 11:08:41

Hi @Munch1 

According to your description, it seems that the mesh AP might not get a stable connection from the root A. Note that make sure the Mesh AP locate in the coverage of Root AP or other Mesh AP. and for Mesh AP, the recommended signal of Uplink AP is between -40dBm and -62dBm.

Best Regards! >> Omada EAP Firmware Trial Available Here << >> Get the Latest Omada SDN Controller Releases Here << *Try filtering posts on each forum by Label of [Early Access]*
  0  
  0  
#10
Options
Re:EAP650 mesh nodes stop working until restart
2024-04-23 11:53:51 - last edited 2024-04-23 11:59:28

  @Hank21 

 

Hi,

 

Thanks for your comment. This setup worked perfectly until I added on the second Mesh AP, when the instability started. I'll try and move them around to improve signal.

 

Does the 5GHz Tx Power on the Root and Mesh APs affect the mesh signal strength as well as client signal strength? I have it on medium because i want clients further away to connect to their local APs rather than root.

  0  
  0  
#11
Options
Re:EAP650 mesh nodes roaming clients no connection (until EAP restarted)
2024-04-23 13:44:28

  @Munch1 

 

Absolutely reducing the power does.  There's a hidden SSID on the 5.8G radio that is used for the meshing (there's no secret 5th dimensional radio or anything :) )

 

Before you physically move the APs around, put the power back to max and set the channel width to 20Mhz.  This will give you the strongest radio signal possible (most watts per hertz).  If that stabilizes things then move to 40Mhz and then 80Mhz and see if that breaks things again.

 

The problem with meshing is that sometimes the APs farthest apart cannot hear/see each other and will try to talk over each other as a result, causing mayhem with the poor AP in the middle.

 

Since the system was stable before adding the 2nd hop AP, you can likely fix this by adding yet another AP.  The idea is that in the Bureau you would add a 'slave' AP and cross-connect the two APs there with an ethernet cable, because of the way meshed APs are set up it makes the 'slave' AP appear as if connected to the same switch as the Root AP because the ethernet port of the Master AP is effectively bridged to the ethernet port of the Root.  The trick is now to fix the slave AP's frequency to a different channel than the 'master' AP which then isolates the 2nd Hop AP communications from the Root/Master.  You can disable the 2.4G radio and all user 5.8 SSIDs on the 'slave' AP if you like.

<< Paying it forward, one juicy problem at a time... >>
  1  
  1  
#12
Options
Re:EAP650 mesh nodes roaming clients no connection (until EAP restarted)
2024-04-24 13:54:38

  @d0ugmac1 

 

Thanks for the pointers! I changed channel width to 20Mhz, which worked fine, then 40Mhz and all still seems to be stable, with no restarts required. The meshed APs aren't freezing up any more and I can roam between them seamlessly. I get about 70Mb/s rather than 100Mb/s before, but if stable this is well worth the tradeoff!

 

I have left transmit power as medium for now as it works and I want to avoid drowning out the meshed APs, but would I be better off upping it to high and putting an RSSI threshold of 60 or so to stop far away clients connecting to it?

 

  0  
  0  
#13
Options