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Forum Discussion
iPhone won't hop to satellite?
I'm running a RBK30 setup (RBR40 router + RBW30 satellite). Our home is narrow, but long—around 100' from one end to the other. I have the router in the middle of that 100' length. The satellite is about 40' from the router in the hopes of extending the range into the backyard. So, it looks something like this...
backyard >> back exterior wall [~50' from Orbi router] >> Orbi satellite [~40' from Orbi router] >> Orbi router >> front exterior wall [~50' from Orbi router]
Setup is great. Satellite is connected to the router with a blue light/good connection. I'm getting full coverage throughout the home, just using the Orbi router. I'm using the satellite to extend coverage onto the back deck. Again, no issues, theoretically. It's extending the coverage where I need it.
The problem is, the iPhone [iPhone 8 Plus] never hops to the satellite and always "hangs on" to the connection to the router. I've walked to the edge of the router's coverage (my garage), and even then, the iPhone hangs onto the connection to the router [which, at that distance, is unusable]. Just won't automatically hop onto the satellite, even when the satellite is pushing out a substantially stronger signal. The only way I can get the iPhone to hop to the satellite it to manually disable WIFI and then enable it. Then it'll connect to the satellite and we're all good. But, obviously that defeates the purpose and I might as will have stuck with my multiple-AP setup I was running before purchasing the Orbi.
So, wondering what my options are in terms of getting devices to hop from router to satellite? I ran out of testing-time last night, so I haven't been able to test with other devices (other iPhone models and iPads), but just wondering if anyone else has run into this issue?
Any advice would be appreciated.
Thanks,
Kristin.
9 Replies
Try disabling Daisy Chain, MIMO and Fast Roaming.
Mostly this is how some client devices handshake and roam thus may keep on to same signle, even when it's low, until it's wireless radio is shut off and back on.
Well, those are all disabled already.
So, I guess the next step would be to...enable them? :smileywink:
If iOS devices are going to need the manual disable/enable to hop to the satellite, no point in the mesh I guess? Bummer. Was hoping to replace the manual hop between SSIDs I was having to do previously, but luckily, I'm still in the return window.
k.
Let us know if enableding Fast Roaming helps any. You don't need Daisy Chain. Check with MIMO enabled to see.
My iPad Air and iPhone 7+ roam properly with no issues. This doesn't always happen instantly. It can take 30 seconds or more. I have a router, one inside sat, and one outside sat.
The client devices makes the ultimate decision whether to roam or hold onto the current AP. All Orbi can do is assist with the decision. I don't own an iPhone 8, so I can't say if the 8 has an issue.
You might try the following things:
1. On the iphone, forget the Orbi WiFI network. Then re-join.
2. Try enabling fast roaming on the Orbi. (It's off on mine.)
3. Look at the RSSI levels at the spot you are having issues. Use the airport utility on the iPhone and do a WiFi scan for 20-30 seconds. Look at the list. By looking at the RSSI and channels, and testing in different spots, you should be able to determine the mac address of your router and sat's 2.4 and 5 GHz radios. Write those down and do a scan in the troublesome spot. If both the satellite and the router signal are strong enough at that spot, the phone might not roam.
Yeah, going to try and mess with all the settings tonight and see if I can get it to work. Was just hoping someone else might have come across this issue already.
I don't have any issues on other mesh networks with my iPhone 8 Plus (or any other iOS devices I support), but this is my first time working with Orbi. I've also built an SNR heatmap of the location that I updated right before installing the Orbi setup (so I knew optimal placement for the satellite to reach my dead-zone), but I'll re-scan now that the Orbi is in place and the old APs are offline and see if that helps?
I'll spend the weekend tweaking things, and hopefully I won't need to return it.
- How do you enable fast roaming?
