How to connect WiFi to a specific AP?

[Bo Berglund]

On Fri, 19 Jul 2024 13:04:40 -0400 (EDT), Robert Heller <heller at deepsoft.com>
wrote:

>Presumably, all of the same named AP are on the same network and are using a 
>shared DHCP server (or shared DHCP client DB), so why should it matter which 
>AP you connect to?  The presumption with this sort of set up is load sharing 
>and expanding signal coverage over a larger area with WiFi clients connecting 
>to a "local" AP (eg the one with the best signal strength).  Why would you 
>want to do something different?


The whole reason for having the AP is that my home is so long (20+ meters) and
the main router is at the fiber intake in the far end of the house.
So main WiFi is very weak at the entrance in the other end, which caused me to
set up the AP in the first place.

The problem is that the device connecting to WiFi can see *both* the extension
Access Point in the near end of my home (which I want it to connect to) AND the
main router sitting way back in the other end.

The AP field strength is about -70 dBm whereas the main router's field strength
is only about -96 dBm at the connecting device's location.

Still for some reason the device connects to the *weak* network rather than the
strong one...
And it barely works then and it drops the connection, then reconnects again to
the same netwotk...

Both the AP and the main router (ASUS units) use the same SSID/passphrase for
connection.

The main router is a new powerhorse whreas the one used as AP is a cheaper
router set up as an Access Point on the main LAN. The main router is the DHCP
server on my LAN and is used also through the AP.

I have realized that maybe there is some internal cashing of the WiFi network
last connected to on the device and since it was for configuration in my study
where the main router is it might have cached that network and is now re-using
it when connecting to WiFi without checking the signal strength...


-- 
Bo Berglund
Developer in Sweden