How to extend my Aimesh

[Herman Slotenmaker]

Dear all,
i could do with some advice about extending/upgrading my current ASUS Aimesh setup.

Current setting:
1 AC-68U Router (main unit)
2 ASUS Lyra mini, ethernet backhaul.
Aimesh enabled. Same SSID for both 2.4 and 5 GhZ networks.
Newest firmware: 3.0.0.4.386_40558 (AC68U) and 3.0.0.4.384_46249 (Lyra mini)

Pretty standard, medium-sized fully detached 1.5 story house \w garden. Stone walls; concrete ceilings. Little wifi-interference by neighbours.

I like the idea of Aimesh. (all settings in 1 place, extandability and ugradeability, ASUS features (aiprotection, parental controls,..).
I also like the aimesh 2.0 interface..

Practice is a whole different thing, however.

I started with the AC-68U and experiended no major (connection) problems. After moving the childrens rooms and my home office and due to working from home and home-schooling, I decided to extend the network with the two Lyra mini's (ethernet backhaul). That works fine (much better) in the rooms concerned, but now I experience 2 new problems: several dead-spots and issues when moving through the house (roaming?).

Maybe my attention-level has risen. But surely the introduction of the two Lyra mini's hasn't been a 100% success throughout the house.

Some questions:
-Could the aimesh nodes cause mutual interference as aimesh forces them on the same channel?
--> in that case adding one more node woult make the perfomance worse..

-Should I create different SSID's for 5 and 2.4 GHz? What does this solve?

-Is there some way to fix the roaming issues in the house (create seamless roaming)?
--> is this the smartconnect-setting? This is missing in the ac68-u and the lyra's. Do I need this?

- Maybe I need more configurability on a node-per-node basis. I read about disabling aimesh and putting the nodes in AP-mode.
--> How can this be done? The AC68 shoudl remain in router-mode and bothe lyra's in AP-mode? But I can only find the settin to put the AC-68 in AP-mode...

Now I have to extend my network a bit further with another aimesh node/access point/.. to fix the signal in the other kids bedroom.

As my current aimesh setup also appears to be a poor men's aimesh. It is not very clear in advertising, but my AC68U misses some aimesh features (smartconnect,..). For both Lyra minis the same: not all features are supported by current firmware... I like the extendibility promise of aimesh, but maybe I am moving nto a dead end?

What would be a wise thing to do for the extra required node?
- Buy another pair of Lyra mini's and spend €85? (i only need one, bit two seems to be cheaper...)
- Buy a zenwifi CD6 (one), for a few euro's less. Why? Probably because it sounds more modern?
- Tweak my current setup and obliterate the need for an extra aimesh node)..
- Throw out....the lot and...

My budget isn't endless..so I would prefer the least costly solution...

Kind regards,
HaMPeL

 

[OzarkEdge]

Dear all,
i could do with some advice about extending/upgrading my current ASUS Aimesh setup.

Current setting:
1 AC-68U Router (main unit)
2 ASUS Lyra mini, ethernet backhaul.
Aimesh enabled. Same SSID for both 2.4 and 5 GhZ networks.
Newest firmware: 3.0.0.4.386_40558 (AC68U) and 3.0.0.4.384_46249 (Lyra mini)

Pretty standard, medium-sized fully detached 1.5 story house \w garden. Stone walls; concrete ceilings. Little wifi-interference by neighbours.

I like the idea of Aimesh. (all settings in 1 place, extandability and ugradeability, ASUS features (aiprotection, parental controls,..).
I also like the aimesh 2.0 interface..

Practice is a whole different thing, however.

I started with the AC-68U and experiended no major (connection) problems. After moving the childrens rooms and my home office and due to working from home and home-schooling, I decided to extend the network with the two Lyra mini's (ethernet backhaul). That works fine (much better) in the rooms concerned, but now I experience 2 new problems: several dead-spots and issues when moving through the house (roaming?).

Maybe my attention-level has risen. But surely the introduction of the two Lyra mini's hasn't been a 100% success throughout the house.

Some questions:
-Could the aimesh nodes cause mutual interference as aimesh forces them on the same channel?
--> in that case adding one more node woult make the perfomance worse..

-Should I create different SSID's for 5 and 2.4 GHz? What does this solve?

-Is there some way to fix the roaming issues in the house (create seamless roaming)?
--> is this the smartconnect-setting? This is missing in the ac68-u and the lyra's. Do I need this?

- Maybe I need more configurability on a node-per-node basis. I read about disabling aimesh and putting the nodes in AP-mode.
--> How can this be done? The AC68 shoudl remain in router-mode and bothe lyra's in AP-mode? But I can only find the settin to put the AC-68 in AP-mode...

Now I have to extend my network a bit further with another aimesh node/access point/.. to fix the signal in the other kids bedroom.

As my current aimesh setup also appears to be a poor men's aimesh. It is not very clear in advertising, but my AC68U misses some aimesh features (smartconnect,..). For both Lyra minis the same: not all features are supported by current firmware... I like the extendibility promise of aimesh, but maybe I am moving nto a dead end?

What would be a wise thing to do for the extra required node?
- Buy another pair of Lyra mini's and spend €85? (i only need one, bit two seems to be cheaper...)
- Buy a zenwifi CD6 (one), for a few euro's less. Why? Probably because it sounds more modern?
- Tweak my current setup and obliterate the need for an extra aimesh node)..
- Throw out....the lot and...

My budget isn't endless..so I would prefer the least costly solution...

Kind regards,
HaMPeL

Keep it simple and don't make it worse.

First try to use what you own. My install notes may help establish a basic configuration. Without Smart Connect node band steering support, you should use different SSIDs per band.

Rather than add to the AC68U, I would have installed a new stronger router and only added the AC68U as a remote node, if necessary. Upgrading to lessor remote nodes is counter-productive... upgrade the network router and relegate the old router to remote node duty.

If what you have leaves you wanting, bite the bullet and fix it sooner than later. Buy a new main router... it may serve your entire home, if located high and central. AC86U and AX86U are worthy candidates.

Avoid the high-end and the cosmetic niche products that don't see as frequent firmware updates.

Edit: https://www.snbforums.com/threads/a...ctions-aimesh-2-0-continued.69274/post-652980

OE

 

[Herman Slotenmaker]

Thank you for your clear answer. Good and clear advice.

First on my current setup: I now created wifago-24 and wifago-50 separate networks and followed the installation notes. (except the 5GHz channel: i left it on auto")

And somewhere in the "professional" settings I got the error message "Your Lyra Mini...and Lyra Mini... do not support this function. Your configurations might not work as expected...please regularly check for formware updates. Are you sure you want to continue..."
--> so the roaming assistant (55) and disabling airtime fairness may not work as expected... (both bands)

Is it wise to set roaming assistant (if it works at all) to 55 for both 5Ghz and 2.4 Ghz bands? Or maybe set the threshold for 5Ghz lower/higher?

Should I teach all my clients both 2.4 and GHz networks?

Here is a printscr. of the access points in my office. No complaining about the wifi there; thanks to the Lyra node :

However: a whatsapp phonecall (voip). 1m away from the access point was not very stable. Any suggestions about the cause or a solution?
Should I change something in Qos Settings?


2.5 meters higher (1st floor) there is a different situation, however:

This is a somewhat more positive view. RSSI maximums range from -66 -- -71 dBm...

This is the point with the most wifi problems (for example whatsapp phonecalls)..
Is this normal? Or should -66 -- p71 dBm be good enough?

Any suggestions for a better (free!) tool to map my wifi signal strenght by aimesh node (heatmaps) are appreceated...i tried several, but with no luck..

===
If tweaking my network doesn't work It now is clear to me that I should look into "normal" routers instead of Lyra/zenwifi.
Thanks for pointing me to the link about the Lyra firmware. Still no update -- i doubt there will be anytime soon..

Is the AC86-U much better than the AC-68U? What would I gain? (AC86U + AC68U vs. 2*AC68U)? No smartconnect, as the ac68u does not support it...

Thanks,
HaMPeL

 

[OzarkEdge]

Is it wise to set roaming assistant (if it works at all) to 55 for both 5Ghz and 2.4 Ghz bands? Or maybe set the threshold for 5Ghz lower/higher?

Only change a default setting to affect a desired change. If roaming is good, don't change anything. And understand why you would change the RSSI threshold... to better differentiate multiple nodes/signals for your clients.

Should I teach all my clients both 2.4 and GHz networks?

Only add a wireless client connection you need.

However: a whatsapp phonecall (voip). 1m away from the access point was not very stable. Any suggestions about the cause or a solution?
Should I change something in Qos Settings?

VoIP does not require much bandwidth, so probably not a QoS issue.

Evaluate the client connection... does it look good... good link rate, no interference? Note that some cordless devices operate on 2.4 GHz. Try a different channel.

Disable WAN\NAT Passthrough\SIP Passthrough.

This is a somewhat more positive view. RSSI maximums range from -66 -- -71 dBm...

This is the point with the most wifi problems (for example whatsapp phonecalls)..
Is this normal? Or should -66 -- p71 dBm be good enough?

Inspect the client connection details. I can conduct a poor VoIP call with a 1-2 Mbps connection on 2.4 GHz at 400' from my router.

Is the AC86-U much better than the AC-68U? What would I gain? (AC86U + AC68U vs. 2*AC68U)? No smartconnect, as the ac68u does not support it...

An AC86U has about 20% more effective WiFi coverage and hardware encryption for strong VPN support. However, the range of an AC68U will rule in any pairing of the two. I would buy no less than an AC86U.

OE