IOS device bouncing between 2 routers (WIFI)

Installing and Using OpenWrt
1

I need help understanding why my wife's phone (iPhone) keeps bouncing between my 2 routers all day long..

Router 1 (Main): MT6000, running SNAPSHOT r28663-83f150fb3f
Router 2 (AP): R7800, running 10:24 Release
(same SSID, same password, Same LAN, 2 different channels, etc.. Set up to enable roaming between the 2)

The 2 routers are at the opposite end of the house and she sits roughly in the middle of the 2, receiving good enough signal from both routers.. (so there is an overlap in signal).

When I (Android) sit in the same location my phone will stay connection to 1 of the routers, no roaming involved.

[**MT6000**] Tue Mar  4 09:10:30 2025 daemon.info hostapd: Traadloes-5Ghz: STA fa:aa:xx:xx:xx:a8 RADIUS: starting accounting session E0803EA18A2169B1
[**MT6000**] Tue Mar  4 09:10:30 2025 daemon.info hostapd: Traadloes-5Ghz: STA fa:aa:xx:xx:xx:a8 WPA: pairwise key handshake completed (RSN)
[**MT6000**] Tue Mar  4 09:10:30 2025 daemon.notice hostapd: Traadloes-5Ghz: AP-STA-CONNECTED fa:aa:xx:xx:xx:a8 auth_alg=open
[**MT6000**] Tue Mar  4 09:10:30 2025 daemon.notice hostapd: Traadloes-5Ghz: EAPOL-4WAY-HS-COMPLETED fa:aa:xx:xx:xx:a8
[R7800]  Tue Mar  4 09:11:20 2025 daemon.notice hostapd: Traadloes-5Ghz: AP-STA-DISCONNECTED fa:aa:xx:xx:xx:a8
[R7800]  Tue Mar  4 09:11:20 2025 daemon.info hostapd: Traadloes-5Ghz: STA fa:aa:xx:xx:xx:a8 IEEE 802.11: authenticated
[R7800]  Tue Mar  4 09:11:20 2025 daemon.info hostapd: Traadloes-5Ghz: STA fa:aa:xx:xx:xx:a8 IEEE 802.11: associated (aid 7)
[R7800]  Tue Mar  4 09:11:20 2025 daemon.notice hostapd: Traadloes-5Ghz: AP-STA-CONNECTED fa:aa:xx:xx:xx:a8 auth_alg=open
[R7800]  Tue Mar  4 09:11:20 2025 daemon.info hostapd: Traadloes-5Ghz: STA fa:aa:xx:xx:xx:a8 WPA: pairwise key handshake completed (RSN)
[R7800]  Tue Mar  4 09:11:20 2025 daemon.notice hostapd: Traadloes-5Ghz: EAPOL-4WAY-HS-COMPLETED fa:aa:xx:xx:xx:a8
[**MT6000**] Tue Mar  4 09:11:45 2025 daemon.notice hostapd: Traadloes-5Ghz: AP-STA-DISCONNECTED fa:aa:xx:xx:xx:a8
[**MT6000**] Tue Mar  4 09:11:45 2025 daemon.info hostapd: Traadloes-5Ghz: STA fa:aa:xx:xx:xx:a8 IEEE 802.11: authenticated
[**MT6000**] Tue Mar  4 09:11:45 2025 daemon.info hostapd: Traadloes-5Ghz: STA fa:aa:xx:xx:xx:a8 IEEE 802.11: associated (aid 2)
[**MT6000**] Tue Mar  4 09:11:45 2025 daemon.notice hostapd: Traadloes-5Ghz: AP-STA-CONNECTED fa:aa:xx:xx:xx:a8 auth_alg=open
[**MT6000**] Tue Mar  4 09:11:45 2025 daemon.info hostapd: Traadloes-5Ghz: STA fa:aa:xx:xx:xx:a8 RADIUS: starting accounting session E0803EA18A2169B1
[**MT6000**] Tue Mar  4 09:11:45 2025 daemon.info hostapd: Traadloes-5Ghz: STA fa:aa:xx:xx:xx:a8 WPA: pairwise key handshake completed (RSN)
[**MT6000**] Tue Mar  4 09:11:45 2025 daemon.notice hostapd: Traadloes-5Ghz: EAPOL-4WAY-HS-COMPLETED fa:aa:xx:xx:xx:a8
[R7800]  Tue Mar  4 09:12:10 2025 daemon.notice hostapd: Traadloes-5Ghz: AP-STA-DISCONNECTED fa:aa:xx:xx:xx:a8
[R7800]  Tue Mar  4 09:12:10 2025 daemon.info hostapd: Traadloes-5Ghz: STA fa:aa:xx:xx:xx:a8 IEEE 802.11: authenticated
[R7800]  Tue Mar  4 09:12:10 2025 daemon.info hostapd: Traadloes-5Ghz: STA fa:aa:xx:xx:xx:a8 IEEE 802.11: associated (aid 7)
[R7800]  Tue Mar  4 09:12:10 2025 daemon.notice hostapd: Traadloes-5Ghz: AP-STA-CONNECTED fa:aa:xx:xx:xx:a8 auth_alg=open
[R7800]  Tue Mar  4 09:12:10 2025 daemon.info hostapd: Traadloes-5Ghz: STA fa:aa:xx:xx:xx:a8 WPA: pairwise key handshake completed (RSN)
[R7800]  Tue Mar  4 09:12:10 2025 daemon.notice hostapd: Traadloes-5Ghz: EAPOL-4WAY-HS-COMPLETED fa:aa:xx:xx:xx:a8
[**MT6000**] Tue Mar  4 09:13:43 2025 daemon.notice hostapd: Traadloes-5Ghz: AP-STA-DISCONNECTED fa:aa:xx:xx:xx:a8
[**MT6000**] Tue Mar  4 09:13:43 2025 daemon.info hostapd: Traadloes-5Ghz: STA fa:aa:xx:xx:xx:a8 IEEE 802.11: authenticated
[**MT6000**] Tue Mar  4 09:13:43 2025 daemon.info hostapd: Traadloes-5Ghz: STA fa:aa:xx:xx:xx:a8 IEEE 802.11: associated (aid 2)
[**MT6000**] Tue Mar  4 09:13:43 2025 daemon.notice hostapd: Traadloes-5Ghz: AP-STA-CONNECTED fa:aa:xx:xx:xx:a8 auth_alg=open
[**MT6000**] Tue Mar  4 09:13:43 2025 daemon.info hostapd: Traadloes-5Ghz: STA fa:aa:xx:xx:xx:a8 RADIUS: starting accounting session E0803EA18A2169B1
[**MT6000**] Tue Mar  4 09:13:43 2025 daemon.info hostapd: Traadloes-5Ghz: STA fa:aa:xx:xx:xx:a8 WPA: pairwise key handshake completed (RSN)
[**MT6000**] Tue Mar  4 09:13:43 2025 daemon.notice hostapd: Traadloes-5Ghz: EAPOL-4WAY-HS-COMPLETED fa:aa:xx:xx:xx:a8

I have highlighted every entry from the MT6000, to make it clear that she is switching between the 2.. The above log is just a subset, its constant.

Apparently this has not impact her use of the phone, but clearly this isnt right, the entire log is full of her phone switching between the 2 routers.

Why is it not sticking to one of the routers?

2

Can you detail on that?

3

At the moment it is purely based on these being the same:

  • SSID
  • Encryption
  • Passphrase
  • Underlying network

So devices will switch between the 2 routers (fairly) seamlessly on their own as you walk around the house.

I did have Fast Transition enabled, but have turned this off to try to investigate the issue.. (The issue was the same with FT enabled - just as a note)

1 Like
4

Which means client behaves erratically, not your APs?

5

Yes, I am not saying the routers are at fault.. (or OpenWRT for that matter).

To me it seems her phone (which happens to be running IOS) is behaving differently to my phone (running Android) (OS MIGHT not be the reason).. I was just wondering if anybody else had experienced the same, and if there is a way to improve the behaviour of the offending device.

1 Like
6

You can install kvr support so that APs steer roaming
substitute wpad-basic-mbedtls with wpad-mbedtls
install usteer (and probably luci-app of that)
.... see if it gets better.

1 Like
7

I do not recommend this approach, at least not initially.

The next thing to do is to tune the power levels to reduce the size of the overlap region. Hopefully this will make one of the APs a bit more attractive than the other. This does depend on the physical floor plan of your home (including building materials and the like), of course... and there may be some spots in the house that are just going to be right in that overlap region and thus not as performant as desired... but moving just a bit to one side or the other may be all that it takes.

Here's a video that goes through the process... it does discuss Unifi, but the same concepts apply.

2 Likes
8

Or summon exorcist specialising in i-devices :slight_smile:

ubiquiti has a nice signal mapper for androids https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.ubnt.usurvey&hl=en_US