AirPort Extreme Auto Channel Selection

I monitor my wifi environment and noticed that when I turn on my AirPort Extreme it chose a channel (11) that was also being used by multiple near by networks. These networks indicated the highest signal value of all the other nearby networks indicated, a value between 45 and 49. I am not experiencing any concerns and my AirPort seems to perform much better than the Verizon WiFi which I turned off. I left the AirPort on for a few hours and noticed that a couple other networks joined the same channel 11. I cycled my router and the new channel it chose was 6 and no other network nearby was on 6. The popular channels nearby seem to be 1, 6, 11. Would I be better off selecting say channel 8 or 9 or some channel other that the three popular ones and setting channel control to manual???  As I said I have no issues and my Apple TV seems to like the AirPort Extreme because I have not experienced the connection to the Apple store problems that I was having where I had to retry several times plus authorization and loading time has gone down. I shut down my AirPort and Verizon devices at night or when they will not be used for a few hours. By doing so at least the Airport picks a new channel. Thanks for any advice.

Would I be better off selecting say channel 8 or 9 or some channel other that the three popular ones and setting channel control to manual
I don't know who first said that wireless was half science and half voodoo, but they pretty much nailed it.
There really are only 3 wireless channels that do not overlap....1, 6 and 11.....so it is not hard to figure out why they are the most popular.  If you choose channel 8 or 9 for example, then it will overlap both 6 and 11, so you actually increase your chances of picking up interference. Same for channel 3 or 4 for example, which will overlap both 1 and 6.
If you have the time to experiment, it won't hurt to try different channels to see if you can find the magic setting. But, since other routers around you are constantly changing as well, what might appear to be a good channel now, might not be a few hours from now.

Similar Messages

  • AirPort Extreme automatic channel select setting question

    Hello, all -
    Just got an AirPort Express that I'm using in bridge mode through a rented Actiontec PK5000 DSL modem/router combo through Qwest. (Broadcast antenna is truned off now on the Actiontec and I'm just using it as a modem.) I have a question about the automatic channel setting on the AirPort. I assumed when you leave it on automatic, the AirPort will scan the area to find the best channel to use (1-11 on 2.4 GHz) and then switch your connection to that on the fly, checking it throughout the day. But it's defaulted to channel 1 on automatic and hasn't changed since I got it. My PK5000 used to switch channels (6 or 11) if there was a better one available. Somehow I get the feeling the AirPort isn't doing that on the fly.
    The cool thing about the Actiontec was that it defaulted to the strongest channel, and even mentioned what channel was 2nd strongest. The AirPort seems content to just stay on channel 1 all the time. Can someone tell me if this is normal on the AirPort Extreme. Thanks!

    The cool thing about the Actiontec was that it defaulted to the strongest channel, and even mentioned what channel was 2nd strongest. The AirPort seems content to just stay on channel 1 all the time. Can someone tell me if this is normal on the AirPort Extreme.
    From my experience, I have yet to verify that the AirPort's "Automatic" option periodically scans the local area, and then, resets the channel when it finds too much interference. Instead, it attempts to find a clear channel when first configured and sticks with it ... as you have already ascertained.

  • Airport Extreme 5GHz Channel not available

    Hi All
    My Airport Extreme 5th Gen is now up and running.
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    Phil

    Update: Solved. I reset the Airport Extreme a number of times in succession and finally it just worked - not sure what the problem was.

  • Airport Extreme does bad selection on BSSID in repeater network (same SSID)

    My iMac sees a weak signal, and the repeated signal for a SSID. The iMac always chooses the weak signal from the base station not the stronger repeated signal.
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    I am having the exact same issue. The GUI doesn't provide any option to select the BSSID or channel, and the command line utility seems to completely ignore the --bssid option.
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  • LWAPP Auto Channel Selection

    I have 5 4404s which have been up in a lab environment for a few months. I just deployed 9 - 1131 APs to my first test site last night. I expected them to automatically set the channel number on the radios however when I checked, 7 of them were at channel 1 and 2 at channel 6. I waited several hours with no change so I then went to each one and manually set the channel I thought it should be set to and then set it back to automatic. After doing some google'ing I found something that said that the DCA runs every 10 min for the first 100 min after a controller reboots but after that will only make channel changes at the pre set anchor-time (12:00pm). Is that right? What is your standard procedure on deploying new APs? Do you “prime” them with the channel you think they should use and then let the WLC adjust them over time once a day? FYI, I have WCS and am running the latest code. Thanks! Doug

    So, first, take a look at the RRM whitepaper which details the "startup time", "anchor time",
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    http://www.cisco.com/warp/public/114/rrm-new.html
    Having said that, to your specific question:
    > but after that will only make channel changes at the pre set anchor-time (12:00pm). Is that right?
    No...anchor time is only used as a reference point. it actually matters on the interval that you have configured (defaults to 10min). let's say your anchor time is 12pm and the interval is 2 hours. That means, DCA would run at 2pm, 4pm, 6pm and so on. Oh, and let's say that you rebooted the controller and it came back up at 6pm. From that point on, the startup time kicks in to make sure the network converges before going back to the configured interval and sensitivity. From 6 to 7:40 pm, DCA runs every ten minutes (10 iterations) at high sensitivity. Next run, then, would be at 8pm, at medium sensitivity...
    On to the second part of why channels might not be changing in your network....The default sensitivity might not apply to all networks. Perhaps you want to change it to "High". Then, you can look at the traps and see which of the three factors (signal, noise, interference) are causing a channels to change (and adjust sensitivity accordingly). Note - load is disabled by default.
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  • Windows 7 with latest AirPort Extreme

    I have just bought the latest AirPort Extreme. Set-up using airport utility on all my apple products worked like a charm. I then installed airport utility and updated it in my old windows 7 laptop.
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    - windows 7 can however see the wifi network when I go to network properties, but it cannot connect to it
    - I tried shifting the AirPort Extreme from WPA 2 to no security, and windows 7 still cannot connect nor is airport utility finding the network
    - I tried changing the channel on the AirPort Extreme to channel 11, still nothing
    My old laptop on windows 7 has a b/g wireless card. I am afraid the AirPort Extreme is not compatible with b/g, or if it is, do I have to set it to it, and if so where?
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    Thanks
    Philippe

    On one of your Macs, run the utility, select your base station and click the edit button. Select the wireless tab,
    Then click the Wireless Options button
    Pick Radio Mode and see what works best for all your systems.
    Hope this helps.

  • Are there any compatibility issues with Sonos and Airport extreme??

    are there any compatibility issues with Sonos and Airport extreme??

    Sonos uses its own priopietory wireless protocol SonosNet to distribute audio data among all its products, thus it should not affect other network devices which use standard WiFi 802.11a/b/g/n protocol at all though they may share the same radio channel for wirless signaling.
    On my dual-band (5 GHz / 2.4 GHz) Airport Extreme staion, I select the option "802.11n Only (5GHz) - 802.11n (2.4GHz)" and turn on "Use wide channels" in Wireless configuration in order to use only 802.11n protocol and more radio channels to achieve maximum wireless bandwidth of 400 Mbps. This bandwidth is necessary for quick Time Machine backup to NAS connected to the Airport Extreme station through Ethernet cable. So my iMac and MacBook Pro always connected to the Airport Extreme through 5 GHz radio channel with 802.11n protocol whereas my iPhone 4S always connected through 2.4 GHz radio channel with the same protocol.
    In my living room Sonos ZP-90 (same as new CONNECT model) zone player is connected to Airport Extreme directly through Ethernet cable (recommended by Sonos) and Sonos S5 (same as new PLAY:5 model) zone player in bedroom is connected wirelessly through SonosNet protocol to the ZP-90 zone player in living room.
    These devices are in operation simutaneouly most of the time. Music is playing through the Sonos ZP90/S5 zone players througout the day, I am streaming viedo through Internet (fibre broadband 25 Mbps) on my MacBook Pro in bedroom or iMac in living room or reading news on my iPhone. So far so good and have no encounter any interference problem for about three years. Further more bandwidth for 802.11n protocol does not seem to be affected at all.
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  • Using two Airport Extremes

    My home network is like game of Jenga. It works for years if I don't touch it. If I make any change, it comes crashing down.
    I bought a new Airport Extreme and am trying to use the old Airport Extreme to extend my wireless network. I can't get it to work.
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    The configuration of the secondary Extreme shows "Connect Using: Wireless Network", but it's grayed out and I can't change it to Ethernet. I want to use ethernet.
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    I'm still using Snow Leopard, Airport Utility 5.6.
    Ah, that's unfortunate, since it is incredbly quick and easy to configure things with the newer 6.x utility.
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    Perform a Factory Default Reset on the Old AirPort Extreme as follows:
    Power off the AirPort
    Wait a minute
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    Release the reset button after the 9-10 hold period
    Allow a full minute for the Extreme to restart to a slow, blinking amber light
    Connect the Ethernet cable to the WAN "O" port on the old Extreme
    Open AirPort Utility, select the old Airport and click Manual Setup
    Click the Base Station tab under the row of icons to assign a name to the device, a device password, and adjust Time Zone settings. Leave the other settings "as is"
    Click the Wireless tab next to the Base Station tab and adjust as folllows:
    Wireless Mode = Create a wireless network
    Wireless Network Name = Exact same name as your "main" AirPort network
    No check mark needed in the box next to Allow this network to be extended unless you plan to add yet another device that will pick up and extend the signal from the old Extreme wirelessly
    Radio Mode = Automatic or same setting as the main AirPort Extreme
    Radio Channel = Automatic
    Wireless Security = Exact same setting as the main AirPort.....should be WPA2 Personal
    Wireless Password = Exact same password as the main AirPort network
    Verify Password
    Click the Internet icon
    Click the Internet Connection tab
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    Connection Sharing = Off (Bridge Mode)
    Click Update at the lower right of the window and allow the old Extreme to restart
    It would be a good idea to power off both Extremes at this point and wait a minute
    Start the "main" Extreme first and wait for a green light
    Start the "old" Extreme next and wait for a green light
    You should be all set now. Please post on your results.

  • Time Capsule Base via ethernet to an Airport Extreme to extend Wireless

    I have set up a new Time Capsule dual band (TCBStn) as a base station (connected to the internet). I want to connect a new Airport Extreme dual band in a family room far away from the base via Ethernet. This family room has an Apple TV to which I want to stream video. I am not able to connect the AE via the Airport Utility as the Airport Utility does nor recognize the AE.

    My recommendation is to configure your two base station as a "roaming" network. This will allow wired/wireless clients to connect to either and still be able to "see" each other for sharing.
    Please start by powering-down all of your network components as follows:
    o Power-down the modem, Time Capsule (TC), AirPort Extreme Base Station (AEBS), Apple TV (ATV), and the iMac. Note: The power-down order is not critical.
    o With all of these components powered down, disconnect both the TC & AEBSn from the network, and then, perform a "factory default" reset on both to get them back to their "out-of-the-box" configuration.
    o After both have been reset, remove them from power, and then, reconnect them as follows: modem > \[WAN port] > TC > \[LAN port] > \[WAN port] AEBSn, where ">" represents an Ethernet connection.
    o Power-on the modem; wait at least 10-15 minutes.
    o Power-on the TC; wait at least 5-10 minutes.
    o Power-on the AEBSn; wait at least 5-10 minutes.
    o Power-on the iMac.
    o For now, leave the ATV powered-off.
    In this configuration, both routers will be transmitting their own wireless network, each having a Network Name of something like: Apple Network NNNNNN, where the Ns represent the last six digits of their respective AirPort IDs.
    Now, from the iMac, use the AirPort Utility (in Manual Setup) to access the TC to make the following configuration changes:
    o Time Capsule > Base Station > Time Capsule Name = TC
    o Time Capsule > Wireless > Wireless Mode = Create a wireless network
    o Time Capsule > Wireless > Wireless Network Name = <enter the desired Network Name>
    o Time Capsule > Wireless > Radio Channel Selection = Automatic
    o Internet > Internet Connection > Connect Sharing = Share a public IP address
    o Leave all the other default settings (for now).
    o Click on Update to write the new configuration to the TC.
    While still in the AirPort Utility, select the AEBSn, and then, make the following changes:
    o AirPort > Base Station > AirPort Extreme Name = AEBSn
    o AirPort > Wireless > Wireless Mode = Create a wireless network
    o AirPort > Wireless > Wireless Network Name = <use the same Network Name that you created for the TC>
    o AirPort > Wireless > Radio Channel Selection = Automatic
    o Internet > Internet Connection > Connect Sharing = Off (Bridge Mode)
    o Leave all the other default settings (for now).
    o Click on Update to write the new configuration to the AEBSn.
    You should now have a basic roaming network. Verify that your iMac can access the Internet while connected to either base station by wire or wireless. Please post back your results.

  • Airport Extreme Wrong Region/Country

    I use an iMac with an Airport Extreme (version ac).  If I go to Airport Utility for the Airport Extreme and then select the Wireless tab and then the wireless options oval it lists my country as Thailand.  While that is where I purchased the device, I now live in the United States again.  I cannot seem to reset this to the U.S. as the only countries listed in the pick list are in Asia.  How do I get another pick list which would show the U.S. as an option?  I am having networking difficulties and the diagnostics utility told me I had a country code conflict which needed to be corrected.
    Thanks for any help you can provide.

    I am having networking difficulties and the diagnostics utility told me I had a country code conflict which needed to be corrected.
    Thailand is not to different from the US.
    The diagnostic program always picks country as major problem but it is not really as long as the two regions have near to the same channels available.
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    Start over with a factory reset.. When you do the setup do not use the names recommended by the airport utility.. use all very short names, no spaces and pure alphanumerics.
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    Wireless names.. AE24ghz and AE5ghz
    Set the channel for 2.4ghz to 11 and 5ghz to 149
    If Thailand doesn't allow that use Australia which does.
    If you run into trouble post again.. my email is open in the profile for now.. email me direct and I might be able to help further.. if you are really brave.
    But other wireless issues are more often associated with that all round heaven for software bugs.. yosemite.

  • When connecting wired my router straight from my internet provider I get speeds in the 90mps range.  Now when connecting wired through my airport extreme I get speeds near 10mps. Also when using wireless for my ipad3 I recieve download speeds of .63mps.

    When connecting, wired, to my router from my ISP I get speeds in the 90mbps range.  Then when connecting, wired, to my Airport Extreme I get speeds of 10mbps.  Wirelessly I get download speeds of 6mbps on my laptops and only 1mbs with my Ipad3.  I am making sure only one device is sharing the network to make sure to get accurate results.  Why are things so slow?

    Hi Ty,
    First, check with you ISP to see what speed they've promised.  In my case, they indicated that the speed should be greater than 50 Mbps.  If they say that it should be significantly higher than what your getting, then try the following if you're using Airport Utility v.6.:
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    2. Click on the visual representation of the Airport Extreme and then select "Edit" (bottom right corner)
    3. When the window opens (to a tab "Base Station"), click on the "Wireless" tab,
    -it should have the following options: Network Mode, Wireless Network Name, Wireless Security, Wireless Password, Verify Password, a checkbox with "Enable Guest Network", and a button "Wireless Options..."]
    4. Select "Wireless Options", which should open another window with the following options:
    5Ghz network name, Country, a checkbox with "Create hidden Network", Radio Mode, 2.4 GHz Channel, and 5 GHz Channel [both of which can stay on "Automatic"]
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    Once you click "Save", your router will blink amber for a little while and then it should work.
    Hope this helps.  Let me know if it does/doesn't.
    DFLovesBikes
    p.s. I apologize if the directions were excessively explicit, but I was thinking about my 73 year-old mother trying to follow them, so I erred on the side of making them more understandable.  Good luck.

  • HP LaserJet 1200 Doesn't Like My New Airport Extreme

    worked fine with the older airport extreme, never an issue. with the new AE the printer's green light flashes and nothing will print, very strange, or it will print one page of the document and then stop cold. the printer status window showing 'no jobs printing' even as it sits there flashing green. spent an hour on the phone with apple tech support, resetting printing system, deleting and re-adding the printer numerous times, made sure the driver was updated, that is was properly setup as a bonjour printer, all to no avail. very frustrating and one of the first times i haven't been able to troubleshoot an Apple product and get it to work. i've been a wireless user since the products first came out.
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    When you created your wireless network with the Airport Extreme, did you select having your wireless network backwards compatible with "b/g" devices? If your wireless network was created as "N" compatible for "N" compatible wireless cards only, an iPhone will not be able to connect to your wireless network since the iPhone's wireless card is not "N" compatible.

  • FCP X keeps looking for my airport extreme harddrive, HELP

    HI,
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    Now, unless i'm at home on my home network, or have the hard drive plugged into my mac when final cut pro x is running, every minute a pop up box comes up saying "There was a problem connecting to the server "base1fool"  (base1fool is the name of my airport extreme)  It is making the program unuasable!!!  I even uninstalled it, using app cleaner, and reinstalled 10.0.4 and still have the same problem!!
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    Brooks

    Run Airport Utility to see if there are any firmware updates for your Airport Extreme, also run Software Update. If both are up-to-date then your issue may be with your ISP or the neighborhood your are in has too many WI-FI networks all fighting for the same channel. First do a DNS Settings Update and then check, if that doesn't help then download and install iStumbler (Google it) to check the networks in your area. If you see a channel conflict with neighbors then use Airport Utility to change the Airport Extreme's channel to one not being use.

  • Need to reset Airport Extreme password, but the instructions provided by Apple and the support community do not match with what I get in my computer.

    I have followed the directions given on the Apple support pages and the ones provided in this community, but they do not match with what I get from the Airport Utility. According to the dorections, after starting a soft restart on the Airport Extreme, I should select the network from the menu bar item (which I suppose is the symbol for wi fi). Then it says to open the Airport Utility and select the Airport Base Station, ok up to now. But the instructions say that after selecting the base station to "click Continue". In my Airport Utility, which is the latest version, there is no Contimue. When I select the Base Station I get a bubble with information on the base and an "Edit" button. By clicking on this button, I am able to get a new window with info on the Base, inlcuding password, but I never get the window which says that the device has been reset. I need help, as I have bought a second Apple computer and need the password to set the wifi preferences, and I forgot the password for the Airport Extreme.

    You're doing everything right. The problem is that the Apple Knowledge Base article is outdated and the screenshots do not correspond to the new version of AirPort Utility.
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    Look at the column "Kind". The entry you want to select will be labeled "AirPort network password" (not "AirPort base station password" or anything else).
    If you are trying to recover the AirPort Base Station password then the entry you want to select will be labeled "AirPort base station password" not "AirPort network password".
    Double-click that, and in the window that appears check the box for "Show password".
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    Make note of it.
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  • Can I use powerline wireless adapters with airport extreme

    can I use power line wireless adapters with airport extreme?

    Can this work?
    Yes
    I read somewhere that powerline adapters are not compatible with Airport.
    That information is not correct.
    If the AirPort Extreme is already set up as your "main" router, you would connect a short Ethernet cable from one of the LAN <-> ports on the Extreme to the power line adapter.
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