Airport Extreme losing 5GHz internet connection

By default, both the 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz bands use the same wireless network name on the AirPort Extreme.

The theory here is that each wireless device will be able to connect to the best quality connection automatically. So, a 5 GHz device will connect to 5 GHz (assuming it is in close proximity to the AirPort router) and 2.4 GHz devices will connect to 2.4 GHz because that is their only option.

In practice, things do not always work as well as the theory might suggest.......device become confused about which network they should use to connect.

IF.....you have not already tried this (your post did not indicate that you had)......you might want to give it a try to see if it helps.

There is an option in AirPort Utility that will allow you to assign a different name to the 5 GHz network. If you do this......in theory.....you can "point" or "force" 5 GHz capable devices to connect to the 5 GHz network.....since it has a different name than the 2.4 GHz network.

AirPort Utility > Edit > Wireless Tab > Wireless Options > 5 GHz Name

The Ubee EWV320 is not a simple modem, but a combination wireless router/modem or gateway device. How do you have your AirPort Extreme configured to work with this device? What exact model of the Extreme do you have and is it connected to the Ubee by wire or wireless?

Thanks for the updates.

When this occurs where are your wireless clients located when they are connected to the 5 GHz network? Same room, different room, or different floor? If not in the same room, there may be a chance that Wi-Fi interference may be the culprit and causing the time outs.

If Wi-Fi interference is ruled out, then the only thing that comes to mind is that it may be possible that you have a defective Extreme base station. Especially since all of your wireless clients are experiencing connectivity issues, regardless of the radio band they connect to.

If you can access these destinations when connected to your AirPort on the 2.4 GHz band, but only have issues when connected to the 5 GHz one, then the only thing that is common, as far as I can tell, it the base station ... and why I think it may be faulty. If you have another wireless router handy that provides a 5 GHz signal, you could test that as well. If you still have an issue then it would go back to my original thought ... Wi-Fi interference. If not, then it is the AirPort.

Glad that this helped.

The downside to assigning a different wireless network name to the 5 GHz network is that if your device moves a few rooms away from the room where the router is located, the device will stubbornly try to hold onto the very weak and slow 5 GHz at that remote location........where the 2.4 GHz signal will be much stronger......and also likely faster.

So, if all your 5 GHz devices will stay in close proximity to the router.....things will probably work well.

Sorry to resurrect this about a month later, but I'm having the exact same issue.

I understand the idea of naming the 5GHz network a different name, but this is a workaround, and defeats the purpose of having a device connect to whichever provides the better signal. Apple even has this turned off by default, naming the 2.4GHz and 5.0GHz wireless network the same out of the box.

The other key here is that the 5GHz network doesn't just "die." Everything internal is reachable (same as the original poster on this thread). Only Internet traffic is halted. So, it's not having a problem with the WiFi. The Apple router is having a problem ROUTING the wifi.

So, by implementing the workaround, the routing issue is "fixed" (bypassed). But it creates problems if a 5GHz device moves out of range of the base station. The end user then has to manually disconnect from the 5Ghz network and connect to the 2.4GHz. (ideally, this would happen automatically, but apple devices are "sticky" and will hold onto a network it can still "see," even when distance prevents communication.

So, does anyone have a solution to this, as opposed to the workaround described (which, again, works very well... but you lose functionality).

--Dulac

PS: Everything was working smoothly using the same name for the first week I had this... then everything fell apart. Not sure that I can identify the cause or what might have changed.

Here's an article explaining how it is MEANT to work...

http://arstechnica.com/apple/2012/11/best-of-both-worlds-setting-up-wi-fi-for-io s-on-2-4-and-5ghz/

--Dulac

Well you're not alone.....after replacing the outside wire to the house, the modem from the cable company and just today the Apple router, I'm faced with the same issues you're having. The irony here is that I had another older (3-4 years) Apple router that one day just started doing this. I have set up with both networks and a guest network. All had been fine till the end of January or beginning of February of this year. I installed a 10 year old Linksys router for the past 2 weeks or so and had it cascading with the older Apple router hoping to narrow it down. After 2 weeks of repeatedly watch the Apple router fail I broke down today and got a new one only to have it do the same thing after installing it 4 hours earlier. Did you or anyone else here figure out what is causing all this non-sense?

I have no good answers. After spending days trying to get it working as it should, I reset it to factory defaults and reconfigured everything. That worked. But I'm fearful that the issue will reappear. Only time will tell...

Well by all rights this was a new configuration as it's a brand new router that I bought today from an Apple Store. I'm just so **** frustrated with it all. Thanks for the quick reply.