@Federosario 
 

Hi,

This actually looks like a classic client steering limitation rather than a pure EasyMesh issue. In many cases, the router doesn’t fully control roaming decisions—client devices (like your notebook or Roku) decide when to switch, and some tend to “stick” to the first AP they connect to, even if a stronger signal is available.

You can try a few things to improve this:

• Enable Fast Roaming / 802.11k/v/r (if available in BE550 settings)
• Reduce transmit power on the satellite so devices are less likely to stick
• Use separate SSIDs temporarily to test behavior
• Check if band steering is enabled properly

Also, powerline-based nodes like TL-WPA8631P sometimes introduce extra latency or inconsistent backhaul quality, which can affect roaming decisions. I’ve seen similar behavior even during normal browsing tests when switching between nodes (for example, while checking different pages like 7 brew menu with prices on ), where the device doesn’t immediately jump to the stronger signal.

Unfortunately, TP-Link doesn’t currently expose advanced options like minimum RSSI kick or aggressive client steering in many EasyMesh setups, so fine control is limited.

Would be interesting to know if TP-Link plans to improve steering behavior in future firmware updates.

Hi  @petail 

Thank you for the detailed explanation.

I understand that roaming decisions are often client-driven, and I agree that some devices can be “sticky.” However, in my case, I observed behavior that seems to go beyond normal client steering limitations.

For example:

• I powered on a notebook directly near the BE550 (without moving it from another location).

• The BE550 signal was around -59 dBm on 5 GHz.

• The TL-WPA8631P signal in the same position was around -75 dBm.

• Even after manually disconnecting and reconnecting WiFi multiple times, the client still associated with the satellite instead of the main router.

The only thing that consistently caused the device to reconnect to the BE550 was restarting the satellite node itself.

I also tested with a Roku device located only a few meters away from the BE550 (direct line of sight), and sometimes it still associates with the farther satellite node behind several walls.

Additionally, with my previous setup using an Archer AX20 as the main router (with the same EasyMesh environment and same client devices), I did not experience this behavior. Roaming worked noticeably better and devices switched nodes more appropriately.

Regarding your suggestions:

• I currently do not see any option to configure transmit power individually for the satellite while using EasyMesh, since wireless settings appear to be synchronized across nodes.

• I also could not find clear documentation about Fast Roaming / 802.11k/v/r support or configuration on this setup.

Would it be possible for TP-Link to consider adding more advanced roaming controls in future firmware versions, such as:

• minimum RSSI thresholds,

• aggressive client steering,

• per-node transmit power control,

• or stronger roaming assistance mechanisms?

At the moment, EasyMesh seems somewhat limited in terms of fine roaming control compared to what more advanced systems provide.

Thank you again for the assistance.

  @Federosario 

I've been using it for a while and happy with it, it's a long thread you can read through and decide if to try or not.

I do have Smart Connect off, so 2.4 ang 5g have different ssid's, as I had a phone and a TV which tended to get stuck on 2.4g sometimes.