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iOS 9 Wi-fi Assist

Not sure where to post this as it is more of an FYI.

In the new iOS 9 release they added a feature called Wi-Fi Assist. In theory this feature is meant to provide a seamless transition from a low Wi-Fi signal to Cell data so a user's experience is not interupted.

What is actually happening is it is overly aggressive (this may only pertain to 9.0.0 and fixed in 9.0.1) and not letting the user know they are using cell not Wi-Fi.

The first issue that this is causing is users' cell bills are skyrocketing because they are performing data intensive tasks (streaming movies, downloading large apps and data) because they think they are on Wi-Fi but are actually, not.

The second we are seeing in our call center is that captive-portal pages are not coming up on the device and when the user roams back to an area with good Wi-Fi coverage the device still thinks it is online, but it actually is not.

Right now we are advising guests to turn Wi-Fi assist off and/or upgrade to the 9.0.1 firmware.

Just thought you should all be aware.

Thanks.

aelibby

5 ·

Re: Firmware rollback ?

Hi Vybhav

I have done some tests with a Xi3 with 370 firmware, old firmware, and a Ruckus R500:

All tests where done with a late 2012 MacBook Pro 3X3:3 device and Ruckus Speedflex.

This shows that there's only very little difference between the new and old firmware. But this is only true if you set the channel manually.
If you have the AP in Auto Channel the result is much worse for the new firmware. It changes channel constantly, 2-3 times pr. minute. The old firmware is much more stabile when running auto channel. Even if you leave the AP on over night, it never stabilizes on a specific channel. It keeps jumping around like crazy, and this must be a bug in the new firmware.

Customer also did some tests with Linksys EA6900:

I don't know what Client customer is testing with, but I can find out?

Regards
Martin

Neerup

5 ·

Harmony 1.1 Update: At a glance video

Check it out here.

Harmony 1.1 Update Video

ericsr

5 ·

Re: Harmony Update coming soon...

We are inching closer to the release. The plan is for a submission to Apple tomorrow, so that usually takes 10 days to get into the store. We are planning to release AP firmware tomorrow as well, which would be immediately available for all APs. Android will likely be ready at the same time Apple is released and another announcement will be made. I will fully detail the changes once we release AP firmware.

Thanks for your patience. This is a major update for the Harmony app. Feedback is critical.

ericsr

5 ·

Re: How to do firmware updates

ok, how's this for instructions:

If you have set your AP to a static IP address, the AP may not be able to get firmware updates. If this is the case, you can try these steps:
1. SSH into the AP using a terminal program like PuTTY at the preset IP address (username: xclaim-mfg default password: XXX Password may be set to the password configured by you when setting up your Harmony app.)
2. type "fw set host 23.236.53.216" and hit enter
3. type "fw update" and hit enter
4. wait for reboot (the terminal program will disconnect, please wait approximately 2 minutes for the AP to boot back up.)
5. try the web interface at the preset IP address. If it comes up, you are done. If not, try to access it again through the SSH terminal program as listed in step 1 and type in the command "reboot"
6. after confirming that the web interface works, connect to the AP by SSH once again and login
7. type the command "fw set host update.xclaimwireless.com" and hit enter, then disconnect from the AP. Everything should be working properly again at this point.

dgingeri

5 ·

Web Interface Screenshot Tutorial

Here you go.

http://goo.gl/nKfCX2

ericsr

5 ·

Re: Harmony Update coming soon...

The most important thing is to just make sure you are capable of receiving updates (make sure AP has DNS access). There will be a new AP image coming this week (fingers crossed) and then new iOS and Android in 10-15 days after that.

ericsr

5 ·

Happy Holidays from Xclaim: Goodies are available.....

We are staggering a rollout of new AP firmware that will implement a fully functioning web interface. This was the single biggest request over the last 45 days and we listened. We have included some needed features, such as:

Can designate SSID to particular radio
Hide SSID
Rate shaping per SSID

We hope this interface is welcomed and we are also hard at work on the next release of Harmony (iOS and Android).

I have put together a walkthrough of the web UI so you can review in advance. Feedback is always welcome.

New Web Interface

The APs will check for new firmware every 24 hours and then the app can notify you of the update. You can also be sneaky and reboot your AP (should then download the update) but you would need to reboot it 2 times as well to make sure all is set (wait about 3 mins in between reboots). The first rollouts will be available about 7PM EST.

IMPORTANT NOTE: I would encourage you to use the web interface OR the Harmony app. They are not in sync yet as we are waiting on app submission to consolidate the configuration. You can certainly use the web interface as your only form of configuration as there is no longer that requirement to use the app. The Harmony app is about to get much better as we have improved device discovery and configuration. Look for a new updated in January for both platforms. You could use the app to discover your APs (so you know the IP addresses) and then use only the web interface for everything else.

Thank you to everyone for the GOOD and BAD comments. It helps to make us deliver a better product.

Sincerely,

Xclaim team

ericsr

5 ·