my router provides two wifi networks (2,5 GHz and 5 GHz) with different SSIDs.
although connection to the network at 5 GHz mostly works, is is often either not seen or seen only after a while.
when it is not seen, (and not in the list of availble SSIDs) other devices at the same place are connected with this SSID - so it is present.
Sometimes in this case I can connect manually via
nmcli dev wifi connect <SSID>
but sometimes this command reports that this SSID is not found.
… However, this high carrier frequency also brings a slight disadvantage: The effective overall range of 802.11a is slightly less than that of 802.11b/g; 802.11a signals cannot penetrate as far as those for 802.11b because they are absorbed more readily by walls and other solid objects in their path and because the path loss in signal strength is proportional to the square of the signal frequency.
I had the same thought, but it happens as well when the computer is close to the router.
rather some problem of the router … although I have no idea what that could be …
@suse_paul it could also be interference from other routers in your local. You should be able to log into the router and perform a scan of your locale to see if there are other routers using the same channel. There may be an option to tweak the power output?
If your router has external antennas, look at repositioning and testing from your device to see the signal strength.
Although this may be a solution for many, this is not recommended in most cases. The max TX power is often configured by default, as there’s regulation in every country/region you live in. Setting up the TX power over the legal limits can interfere with other services and in some cases, get you sanctioned.
If you don‘t own a cheap plastic router, most of them allow to adjust the transmitting power. They are set to low transmitting power by default to save energy. But they can be set to higher transmitting power values within the allowed/regulated range. This is allowed per regulation. If you would be able to exceed the range, this box wouldn’t be allowed to be imported/sold/distributed.
Power saving and transmitting power settings in routers are standard since ages…
It’s not about owning a cheap plastic router, it’s more often that not the ISP router, which 90% of users will keep.
Yes, many won’t be distributed if it can’t complain with local regulations. Still, many make it to the home user with a warning about exceeding legal ranges. I don’t know which routers you use, but as an IT technician I can tell many come preconfigured with max TX power for offering a better experience for the end user.
I did a few checks now:
it affects not only 5 GHz. both SSIDs (2.5 and 5 GHz) are partially not “seen”, although other devices see them and are connected at the same time.
it may happen that the computer sees only one of the SSIDs, while the smartphone only sees the other one …
it seems not to be dependent on the distance from the router.