Unable to connect via wireless n

[chorlton2080]

Hi folks

I've been using my RPi for a while now with an Edimax EW-7811UN nano adapter.

The adapter works fine, if slowly, on 802.11g (2.4GHz) mode, but it is a 802.11n capable adapter. Running "iwconfig" confirms that Wheezy recognises the 802.11n capabilities, but insists on connecting to the router's 2.4G connection.

Code: Select all

wlan0     IEEE 802.11bgn  ESSID:"xxxxxxxxxxxxx"  Nickname:"<WIFI@REALTEK>"
          Mode:Managed  Frequency:2.412 GHz  Access Point: xx:xx:xx:xx:xx:xx
          Bit Rate:72.2 Mb/s   Sensitivity:0/0
          Retry:off   RTS thr:off   Fragment thr:off
          Power Management:off
          Link Quality=94/100  Signal level=60/100  Noise level=0/100
          Rx invalid nwid:0  Rx invalid crypt:0  Rx invalid frag:0
          Tx excessive retries:0  Invalid misc:0   Missed beacon:0

I have tried to "hash out" the 2.4G SSID reference in wpa_supplicant to leave the 5G (802.11n) SSID as the only remaining access point, but it refuses to establish a connection. Interestingly, wavemon also fails to see any 5G connections when in scan mode.

I need the extra range afforded by 802.11n, as the 802.11g signal is highly variable (the above example from iwconfig is not representative of the usual signal/quality levels).

Any ideas?

[neilgl]

Hi,
have you got any other wireless devices that can successfully connect at 5GHz to your router (using the 5GHz SSID you have set up)?

Also, I thought that 802.11n can use either 2.4Ghz or 5Ghz frequencies.
And I am not sure that 5GHz has a higher range (i.e. distance) than 2.4GHz ?

Regards.

[chorlton2080]

Hi

Yes. Other devices connect to 5G. The router confirms the Pi is connected as 802.11g.

The improved range of n is likely more due to less crowding on 5GHz than compared to 2.4GHz and better channel control.

[klricks]

N can be either 2.4GHz or 5GHz
In order to use 5GHz both the router and the WIFI dongle must be 'dual band' devices.
The Edimax is a 2.4GHz only (bgn) device: (So it will not work with or even detect any 5GHz networks).
See spec sheet:
http://www.edimax.com/en/produce_detail ... 7&pl1_id=1

In my experience the N using 5GHz is faster but range is severely restricted especially going through walls. It's really best suited for..... in the same room with router applications. The newer AC type (5GHz only) is a bit better in that regard.

I don't know why the dongle is connected to G and not N. You might try turning mixed mode off on the router and run N only and see what happens.