Recurring WiFi 7 issues

[ben_flugel]

Having had my 1.6gbps service with EE for 6 months now, I'm largely disappointed with it and wish I'd made more of a fuss at the start when I was experiencing issues. With hindsight, I should have exited the contract but now I'm stuck. 

I have various issues with the Wi-Fi requiring full restarts probably once a week. Devices failing to connect, our two WiFi 6e enabled laptops frequently connecting to 2.4 rather 5 or 6, despite being close to a wired in node.

I've tried compatible wifi settings, adjusting channels, moving nodes to different locations. But I continue to experience issues. 

Our cabled in nodes also regularly drop their speeds. After a reboot they'll connect at 2.5gbps. It can be the same day or a few days later and speeds have dropped to around 300mpbs when testing. Reboot that node again, or just remove and reinsert the cable, and we're back at 2.5gbps.

I'm seriously considering getting a different mesh setup, but the fact I'm paying a premium for the 1.6gbps service stops me doing that!

[Northerner]

Hi @ben_flugel 

Under the adaptor settings on your laptops you should be able to select preferred network band.  

If you're using windows it will always chose the most power efficient connection, which you can change.

Thanks 

[ben_flugel]

@Northerner I've tried that too. Doesn't make a difference.

[JimM11]

@ben_flugel You will probably have to look closely at the properties and Roaming Aggressiveness will more than likely be the best one to adjust, all driver dependent and how well implemented!

[Colesey]

I had the exact same issues with both my hardwired nodes. The speeds would drop so low on them, that in the end I gave up and started using wireless backhaul. 

I think the system as a whole needs a FW update. One thing I find particularly frustrating is my phone won’t automatically connect to the node I’m closest to. E.g if I’m upstairs and move downstairs almost next to the router, it stays connected to the node upstairs rather than the hub which is right next to me!…

[JimM11]

@Colesey You may find that the phone wireless off 5-10 second wait then back on when you change area helps. worth a try!

[ben_flugel]

@Colesey yep, I agree with all that. And yes, I have the same with the lack of roaming between nodes as well.

Whilst @JimM11  solution does work, it really shouldn't be necessary.

I do hope the rumoured firmware update is imminent and fixes a load of these issues. 

[bobpullen]

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@ben_flugel wrote:

Our cabled in nodes also regularly drop their speeds. After a reboot they'll connect at 2.5gbps. It can be the same day or a few days later and speeds have dropped to around 300mpbs when testing. Reboot that node again, or just remove and reinsert the cable, and we're back at 2.5gbps.

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Is the negotiated Ethernet speed actually dropping, or is the slowdown only seen in throughput tests? In the Hub Manager at 192.168.1.254 you can see the negotiated Ethernet speed by navigating to Advanced > Wireless, highlighting the extender in question and checking the info that pops up underneath it. For a 2.5GbE link, I'd expect it to say as much. Very unusual if it's negotiated at 2.5GbE but not unlocking that throughput for devices that are wirelessly connected to the extender.

[ben_flugel]

@bobpullen The negotiated speed shown in the hub manager isn't accurate.

I can do throughput tests from my wifi 7 phone and get 1.3gbps but the hub manager shows the negotiated speed is 1000mbps - which clearly isn't correct. Likewise, it can show 2.5gbps in the hub manager but I get 300-400mbps on my throughput tests.

I've got up this morning and checked both my wired in nodes this morning. Both have throughput tests topping out at about 390mpbs. The hub manager shows one node is connected at 2.5gbps and the other is 1000mbps.

[JimM11]

@ben_flugel Do you know where the device doing the speed test is latched onto, just in case it thinks that the Pro hub is where it want's to be and it is in range of it's wireless wi-fi signal. You are only going to see where the device is by looking at it's connection and to which mac address with a wireless wi-fi analyzer app on that wireless device.

Else you need to have a web manager hook up to see what the Router and the smart wireless devices are all connection wise!

[ben_flugel]

@JimM11  Yep, done that too. Have been able to confirm it is connected to the node I am expecting it to be. I do find that part of the hub manager to be accurate - the devices update on there pretty quickly as I move around. Though to make sure, I always disable and re-enable my WiFi connection on the phone to make sure it reconnects rather than hanging on.

I can also see on my device that it has a Wi-Fi 7 connection on 6ghz with excellent strength. The listed connection speeds on the device are around 2.4gbps during the tests. I also have a Google TV Streamer wired into one of my nodes - speed tests on it using an app on the streamer match what I see on the phone when it's slow - 300-400mbps. When my phone is hitting 1.3gbps or so, the streamer gets around 850mbps (it only has a 1gb port, so that's expected).