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WiFi Clients Not 5GHz

Todd Richards

Hey all!  We are new Sophos users as of January and are looking for some advice for our wireless clients.  We have both a private and guest network set up, both of which allow for connection using 2.4 and 5GHz.  Recently, our users are complaining about slow connections and issues, especially when using Skype or Zoom.  Today I looked at the firewall and it shows that they are all connected using 2.4GHz, even those the devices most (that I know of) are capable of 5GHz connections.

This might be a silly question, but is my only option to change the frequency band setting for the network to 5GHz only?  Should I duplicate the network (currently set to Bridge to AP LAN) and set one for 2.4HGz and the other for 5GHz?

The device was set up by a local SOPHOS consultant based on our existing SonicWALL.  I was hoping to solve this on my own before reaching back out to them.

 

SPECS
UG125w running SFOS 17.0.6 MR-6



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  • 0

    Is the XG the only WLAN device or are there some accesspoints, too? I'm especially thinking of AP15 accesspoints.

    5GHz has a smaller range than 2,4GHz, maybe the clients can't see the 5GHz WLAN where they are?

  • 0 in reply to kerobra_retired

    The UG is the only device.  I do remote support for the client, and it sounds like they are just down the hall from the device.  The signal strength is strong.

    Does the UG present two options (one for 2.4 and one for 5GHz) to the client, or is it up to the client to choose the best one?

    I edited my question to ask about setting up separate 2.4GHz and 5GHz networks.  Thoughts?

  • 0 in reply to Todd Richards

    You can define 2.4 only / 5.0 only SSIDs and broadcast both over the same device. I would at least publish a new 5.0 GHz only WLAN and ask some device users to test this connections. The other should be deleted (ignored) on the device to be sure the right one is chosen.

    I'm not sure which algorithm decides which network to choose, maybe the strongest signal wins, what could be a bit messy with a 2.4/5.0 combined WLAN. But I can't offer experience here since our customers mostly use AP15 devices or AP100X devices where range is more important than the throughput.

  • 0 in reply to kerobra_retired

    I will set up a test and see how that goes. Thanks for the tips - I will update with my results!

  • 0 in reply to Todd Richards

    So I set up a new 5GHz wireless network.  The laptop that is closest to the firewall doesn't see it.

    In the UG interface, there is an option for Access Points - with one listed ("LocalWifi0").  When I click on it to edit, it shows the existing two wireless networks, and it won't allow me to add my new 5GHz network, I'm guessing because the access point settings are using the 2.4GHz band.  Below is a screenshot of the settings and the error message.

     

      

     

     

  • +1 in reply to Todd Richards

    Hi  

    Unfortunately with the built-in local access point of the XG, you are only able to utilize either the 2.4GHz OR the 5GHz. Your options are either to test using only the 5GHz band or having another external AP so that you can utilize both.

    Regards,

  • 0 in reply to FloSupport

     That's what my conclusion was - thanks for confirming.  I changed the access point to just 5GHz (and added my test 5GHz network) but nobody could see it.  I then changed the existing ones to 5GHz but they weren't able to connect.  Maybe I need a firewall reboot in between.  These are new iPhone and newer laptop users, so it shouldn't be a problem.

    I will reach out to my reseller team to see about an external AP.  Unfortunately the "or" wasn't explained very well...

    Thanks for everyone's help!

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  • 0 in reply to FloSupport

     That's what my conclusion was - thanks for confirming.  I changed the access point to just 5GHz (and added my test 5GHz network) but nobody could see it.  I then changed the existing ones to 5GHz but they weren't able to connect.  Maybe I need a firewall reboot in between.  These are new iPhone and newer laptop users, so it shouldn't be a problem.

    I will reach out to my reseller team to see about an external AP.  Unfortunately the "or" wasn't explained very well...

    Thanks for everyone's help!

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