Force wifi to specific BBSID. (force 5ghz)

You could try this open source solution:

https://github.com/qpSHiNqp/airport-bssid

Use google translate to check out.

In Nihongo (also a little propaganda)

Recent Mac airport command can not connect to AP with BSSID specification. qpSHiNqp the Interop Tokyo when had participated as STM in 2013, it has created a tool that can be Assoc in BSSID is specified because this it was troubled by the cause.

Interop Tokyo has a huge huge exhibition network called ShowNet and a huge number of APs used by visitors and exhibitors etc. are installed.These APs are blowing WiFi of several different policies Of course, things of the same policy are offered with the same ESSID (usually called SSID) ESSID is a type of hidden / encapsulation that allows users to use WiFi without being aware of individual AP settings Meanwhile, since the task of conducting the connectivity test at the individual AP level also occurs as in the case of the network construction unit, the Association at the BSSID level is carried out from the relation between the AP and the BSSID obtained beforehand It is desirable that communication checking is possible at the AP level.

From such circumstances, I raised the tools I made in 2013 to github, but for some time over the past few months, issue reports from foreign users got up and finally the network construction period of Interop Tokyo 2016 also started I thought that I will maintain it for a long time, so I think that there are incomplete parts, but if you find a bug, please report Issue, if you like it, Star will be my best pleasure, especially , Issue report from Makuhari group responds as much as possible on the same day. Please do your best this year as well.

I didn't compile it; I ran it in a terminal window.

Run terminal, navigate to the directory in which you placed the files, then type ./airport-bssid eth0 <paste in BSSID>

For example:

1. I downloaded the files to: /Users/<username>/Desktop/personal/airport-bssid-master
2. The executable is in the Build directory, so: /Users/<username>/Desktop/personal/airport-bssid-master/Build
3. Then: ./airport-bssid eth0 <paste in BSSID>

I was able to get the BSSID by:

1. Option+Clicking on the wifi icon in the toolbar
2. Click on "Open Wireless Diagnostics"
3. Ignore the window that appears
4. Go to the Window menu, choose Scan
5. In that window, find the BSSID that you want and type that into the command line, like: ./airport-bssid eth0 aa:bb:cc:dd:ee:ff

Running the command does something, but it didn't magically associate with the AP associated with the BSSID. Disabling and re-enabling wifi did do something, in that it temporarily attached to the proper AP, but then it crapped out. You might investigate that line of thought (running the command, disable, reenable).

Have success, but not sure what it all means. I could set up a second router to see how it might work. Note: I've hidden the router password and MAC addresses partially.

mac $ ifconfig en1
en1: flags=8822<BROADCAST,SMART,SIMPLEX,MULTICAST> mtu 1500
  ether 78:9f:..:..:..:12
  nd6 options=1<PERFORMNUD>
  media: autoselect (<unknown type>)
  status: inactive


mac $ sudo ifconfig en1 up
mac $ sudo ifconfig en1 down
mac $ /Users/mac/Downloads/airport-bssid-master/Build/Release/airport-bssid en1 00:19:..:..:..:9a
The interface is down. Please activate the interface before connecting to network!
mac $ sudo ifconfig en1 up
mac $ /Users/mac/Downloads/airport-bssid-master/Build/Release/airport-bssid en1 00:19:5b:..:..:9a
***** Scanned networks *****
* [ssid: MyComputerNetwork      , bssid:  00:19:5b:..:..:9a, channel:  11, rssi: -46 dBm]
****************************
Could not connect to the network: Error Domain=com.apple.wifi.apple80211API.error Code=-3905 "The operation couldn’t be completed. (com.apple.wifi.apple80211API.error error -3905.)"
mac $ /Users/mac/Downloads/airport-bssid-master/Build/Release/airport-bssid en1 00:19:5b:..:..:9a <my-password>
***** Scanned networks *****
- [ssid: DIRECT-05-HP ENVY 5660 series, bssid:  ec:8e:b5:....:06, channel:  6, rssi: -71 dBm]
* [ssid: MyComputerNetwork      , bssid:  00:19:5b:..:..:9a, channel:  11, rssi: -43 dBm]
****************************
Associated to network "MyComputerNetwork" (BSSID: 00:19:5b:..:..:9a)
mac $ ifconfig en1
en1: flags=8863<UP,BROADCAST,SMART,RUNNING,SIMPLEX,MULTICAST> mtu 1500
  ether 78:9f:..:..:..:12
  inet6 fe80::...:....:....:fe12%en1 prefixlen 64 scopeid 0x5
  inet 192.168.0.146 netmask 0xffffff00 broadcast 192.168.0.255
  nd6 options=1<PERFORMNUD>
  media: autoselect
  status: active
mac $

You will find your answer to that question here. If you scroll down on that page, you will find an article how to connect to networks, Use Multiple Network Locations with your Mac, the principle that I use to connect in a big building with one of our deployments to connect to specific networks.

When used correctly, it will connect to the specific network every time, even with stronger signals present.

Ideally, one should start an own threat with your own problem.

HTH

Leo

For me in Yosemite.

"Opening Wireless Diagnostics. To open this tool, hold the Option key down on your keyboard, click the Wi-fi icon on the bar at the top of your screen, and select Open Wireless Diagnostics."

http://www.howtogeek.com/211034/troubleshoot-and-analyze-your-mac%E2%80%99s-wi-f i-with-the-wireless-diagnostics-tool/

I could copy the 10.6 version of the command and send it to you. Send me an email. See my profile.

R

pmcdunnough wrote:

The command to connect to a particular BSSID works great for me, but it doesn’t seem to maintain after sleep. I have to run it again. Mind you, I did not use quotation marks for the password. Could this be the issue? It would be nice to permanently associate a particular BSSID with an SSID ( that is tell it never to connect at 2.4GHz for a particular wifi router). I am using OSX 10.12.x. This is for an iMac that really flies on 5GHz but crawls at 2.4GHz, so I am trying to have it never use 2.4.

Philip

You could maybe write an AppleScript or Automator app and put it in your System Preferences -> Users & Groups -> Login Items, so it runs after you boot and login to your Mac. If you auto-login, then it will run as it is bring up your desktop after boot.

Bump.

I'm floating in a sea of xfinitywifi hotspots but it seems the one I'm sitting closest to has the lousiest Internet speeds. In the rare situations my mac does connect to a different AP I get really great speeds (for what I need).

So yeah... a solution would be nice. 🙂

I have the same problem as Greg Holden. I would like to either:

1. block access points by BSSID, or
2. connect to a specific access point by BSSID

That way I would be empowered to choose the best xfinitiwifi hotspot. As it stands, the one closest to me has no internet connection at all, but OS X keeps connecting to it anyway.

Hi Leo, unfortunately, that doesn't resolve the problem we're facing. For vwssl, Greg, and myself, we're all facing the same concern: all the access points have the same SSID name. They run in both 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz so there isn't a way to differentiate speed by SSID name. In addition each access point has its own performance limitations based on the number of active connections and the download speed of the cable connection. In my case, its even more drastic because access point nearest to me broadcasts its SSID but the internet connection doesn't work at all. We want to connect to a different access point by BSSID (MAC address) but can't figure out how to do that. Your link about locations seems like it would be good if you need to connect to a different SSID name. That doesn't work for us because all the access points have the same SSID. If I'm missing something from the link, please let me know.

By the way, what did you do to try out the tool? The readme files is a repeat of what is in the git page.

Do I need to compile the command?

What folder is the command in?

I looked at the source, it's only 115 lines long.

R

Ok, Here is what I tried. You have any idea what ifname is?

How do I activate the interface name (ifname)? Will not that start my wifi session?

R

mac $ /System/Library/PrivateFrameworks/Apple80211.framework/Versions/A/Resources/airport -s
                            SSID BSSID             RSSI CHANNEL HT CC SECURITY (auth/unicast/group)
               MyComputerNetwork ................. -42  11      N  -- WPA(PSK/TKIP/TKIP) 
mac $ /Users/mac/Downloads/airport-bssid-master/Build/Release/airport-bssid 
usage: /Users/mac/Downloads/airport-bssid-master/Build/Release/airport-bssid <ifname> [<bssid>] [<password>]
mac $ /Users/mac/Downloads/airport-bssid-master/Build/Release/airport-bssid -s
The interface is down. Please activate the interface before connecting to network!
mac $ ifconfig
lo0: flags=8049<UP,LOOPBACK,RUNNING,MULTICAST> mtu 16384
  options=3<RXCSUM,TXCSUM>
  inet6 ::1 prefixlen 128 
  inet 127.0.0.1 netmask 0xff000000 
  inet6 fe80::1%lo0 prefixlen 64 scopeid 0x1 
  nd6 options=1<PERFORMNUD>
gif0: flags=8010<POINTOPOINT,MULTICAST> mtu 1280
stf0: flags=0<> mtu 1280
en0: flags=8863<UP,BROADCAST,SMART,RUNNING,SIMPLEX,MULTICAST> mtu 1500
  options=10b<RXCSUM,TXCSUM,VLAN_HWTAGGING,AV>
  ether 98:5a:eb:cf:65:eb 
  inet6 fe80::9a5a:ebff:fecf:65eb%en0 prefixlen 64 scopeid 0x4 
  inet 192.168.0.140 netmask 0xffffff00 broadcast 192.168.0.255
  nd6 options=1<PERFORMNUD>
  media: autoselect (100baseTX <full-duplex>)
  status: active
en1: flags=8863<UP,BROADCAST,SMART,RUNNING,SIMPLEX,MULTICAST> mtu 1500
  ether 78:9f:70:7a:fe:12 
  inet6 fe80::7a9f:70ff:fe7a:fe12%en1 prefixlen 64 scopeid 0x5 
  inet 192.168.0.146 netmask 0xffffff00 broadcast 192.168.0.255
  nd6 options=1<PERFORMNUD>
  media: autoselect
  status: active
en2: flags=8963<UP,BROADCAST,SMART,RUNNING,PROMISC,SIMPLEX,MULTICAST> mtu 1500
  options=60<TSO4,TSO6>
  ether 2a:00:00:bf:26:70 
  media: autoselect <full-duplex>
  status: inactive
en3: flags=8963<UP,BROADCAST,SMART,RUNNING,PROMISC,SIMPLEX,MULTICAST> mtu 1500
  options=60<TSO4,TSO6>
  ether 2a:00:00:bf:26:71 
  media: autoselect <full-duplex>
  status: inactive
p2p0: flags=8843<UP,BROADCAST,RUNNING,SIMPLEX,MULTICAST> mtu 2304
  ether 0a:9f:70:7a:fe:12 
  media: autoselect
  status: inactive
awdl0: flags=8943<UP,BROADCAST,RUNNING,PROMISC,SIMPLEX,MULTICAST> mtu 1452
  ether 9a:01:47:7c:74:9a 
  inet6 fe80::9801:47ff:fe7c:749a%awdl0 prefixlen 64 scopeid 0x9 
  nd6 options=1<PERFORMNUD>
  media: autoselect
  status: active
bridge0: flags=8863<UP,BROADCAST,SMART,RUNNING,SIMPLEX,MULTICAST> mtu 1500
  options=63<RXCSUM,TXCSUM,TSO4,TSO6>
  ether 9a:5a:eb:fc:bd:00 
  Configuration:
  id 0:0:0:0:0:0 priority 0 hellotime 0 fwddelay 0
  maxage 0 holdcnt 0 proto stp maxaddr 100 timeout 1200
  root id 0:0:0:0:0:0 priority 0 ifcost 0 port 0
  ipfilter disabled flags 0x2
  member: en2 flags=3<LEARNING,DISCOVER>
         ifmaxaddr 0 port 6 priority 0 path cost 0
  member: en3 flags=3<LEARNING,DISCOVER>
         ifmaxaddr 0 port 7 priority 0 path cost 0
  nd6 options=1<PERFORMNUD>
  media: <unknown type>
  status: inactive
mac $ /Users/mac/Downloads/airport-bssid-master/Build/Release/airport-bssid -s awdl0
The interface is down. Please activate the interface before connecting to network!
mac $

I don't think -s is a valid option, or if it is it's being used incorrectly. When I copy and paste your command (airport-bssid -s awdl0) into my computer it gives the exact same error.

You can determine the name of your wifi connection by, again, option+clicking on the wifi icon and looking at the VERY TOP line. On my machine, for example, it says "Interface Name: eth0" (that's a zero).

For you, it's going to be eth0, 1, 2, or 3. In looking at your ifconfig output, I think it's eth1 as eth0 is in full-duplex mode (which makes me think you have an ethernet cable plugged in).

So you'd type: ./airport-bssid eth0 <bbsid>

You will find your answer to that question here