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Split WiFi Networks
Hello, I just purchased the Nighthawk MR60 Mesh WiFi 6 system. I have a couple of indoor cameras that only work on 2.4 GHz, but they are able to connect to a 5 GHz network, so merged networks don...
Hello unimatrixjohnny,
Welcome to the community! The MR60 Mesh System currently does not support this feature. However, this would be a great suggestion to be added in our Idea Exchange Board for new ideas to possibly be implemented in the future.
https://community.netgear.com/t5/Idea-Exchange-For-Home/idb-p/idea-exchange-for-home
Christian
That is 100% false. There are many devices that include dual band adapters but only function over a single band. Please don't provide poor advice like this to people.
Splitting the bands is absolutely necessary in many network applications.
Splitting the bands is absolutely necessary in many network applications.
unimatrixjohnny wrote:
There are many devices that include dual band adapters but only function over a single band.
This is a bad device then, typical IoT crap. Why should a WiFi client connect to the 5 GHz network - but not work ?!?
Provide examples please - "many" is simply useless.
- I'm not here to educate you lol. There are many multi thousand dollar pieces of agricultural equipment that is this same way, many wireless home backup power supplies and home security systems that all function this way. It's cheaper to buy dual band wireless adapters than single band. The programming of the software/firmware is what determines the bands that it can function over, and there are many applications where connecting to a 5GHz band would be detrimental to the functionality of the equipment. Thanks for not helping at all by not knowing networking/programming at all.
Yea, you got it exactly right - poor to awful programming would be exactly that: Complain to the IoT vendor, talk to your lawyer (product not fit for purpose!), or put the crap into the trash bin if they are unwilling to fix it. Not a problem to be resolved by forcing a crappy set-up.
If I don't want a dual-band WiFi client to connect to the 5 GHz network - the client developer has to disable the 5 GHz interface. That much about programming.
Note: There are not many dual-band WiFi devices have such a control e.g. to disable the 5 GHz (or for the same alternate the 2.4 GHz) as it's simply not required in reality.
Some community members started to collect a list of non-WiFi-compliant devices and/or et-up procedures ("connect oyur mobile to the 2.4 GHz nonsense...") in the Orbi community section ... I know it's not very long yet.
It's a good behavior to name these products in the public - not a question of educating me...
All industry standard WiFi client chipsets have - for the client mode - only one configuration for the SSID, security mode and key. The decision which BSSID (wireless radio /radio MAC on the access points) the association is going to is done on the wireless module, with it's own processor, with it's own radio firmware - an area the typical software developer does never access or change, as they work on L3...L7 for the applications. The application software on a wireless device/IoT does not care or touch the connectivity - the application does not have to know if the connection goes over 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz, 60 GHz, LTE, copper Ethernet, fiber Ethernet, ... if the wireless environment does change, e.g. because of the wireless client moving, because of wireless AP radios coming up or going offline, the wireless module will seamless roam to another BSSID, regardless if it's a simple PSK environment, or some more complex business/corporate with external authentication - everything is part of the WiFi standards since about 2009.
I'm happy to explain why some IoT developers (resp. the makers of some low-cost embedded IoT chips) still have the idea that either only 2.4 GHz or the mobile with the App and thr IoT device is "required" to be on the same band can be used for the discovery. Discovery on a network does happen using some Broadcast or Multicast protocols. Some earlier crappy consumer routers (Netgear models included, most Broadcom devices btw.) had massive limitations (read: bugware) when it came to passing Broadcast or Multicast - not from the radio to the wired LAN, no .... between the radio modules (2.4 Ghz <-> 5 GHz). To work around this ... read this paragraph again.
The fun of a Mesh system - face it that most proprietary consumer WiFi mesh systems are marketing Mesh system as per the definition (they just implement 802.11k!), this has changed with the WiFi EasyMesh system - what we have on the MR60/MS60 here.
Leaving the programming heroes or security "specialists" which are binding the client to a specific BSSID (the radio MAC for the base or additional MAC for multi-SSID/VLAN implementation) killing the basic design specs of WiFi.
Here again, if your AG stuff, your wireless home backup power supplies, and home security systems can't be discovered by some crApps so you think it does not "work" - talk to the respective vendors: It's their job to clean-up their s**t. And don't request the Mesh vendors to allow non-experienced users to cripple thier networks.
If you need the all-singing-all-dancing solution, implement SOHO/SMB equipment - there you are free to bring up additional ESSIDs limited to one or the other band, to selected APs for legacy devices (sigh!) - this won't kill the ability for refining and unlocking the potential of your network, now, and in the future.
Indeed you are right in one point: I have no idea of networking and programming - I'm an engineer and I know that I know nothing at all. But I'm happy to learn every day. Have some long year experience in design, implementation and troubleshooting network modules, radio, Radar, infrared, visible light and laser sensors (ad-hoc cooled down to extremely low temperatures and flying up to Mach 3.6) and similar typicaly coloured RAL6014, sand, or Navy grey coloured - probably much longer than most of the community members here are on earth - and this includes low-level (on-module) device firmware on WiFi, radio link, and Radar modules.