Mixing AP 37xx, 38xx, and 39xx aps in one environment

[Bryan_Donahue]

I have a mixture of ap models in school environments, and it seems as if the clients are showing a preference for 39xx aps over 38xx aps. In adjacent rooms where I have different types, I will have many more connections to the 39xx ap. (there are typically 20-25 chromebooks in each classrooom) and there will be 50-60 connections to the 39xx ap and 15-20 connections to the 38xx ap in the next room. Is this possible? Preventable?

[Jeremy_Gibbs]

This is what the ExtremeWireless user guide says about load balancing...

You can configure APs that are co-located in an open area, such as a classroom, a conference hall, or an entrance lobby, to act as a load balance group. Load balancing distributes clients across the co-located APs that are members of the load balance group. The co-located APs should provide the same SSID, have Line-of-Sight (LoS) between each other, and be deployed on multiple channels with overlapping coverage.

So I don't think LB is a solution to your problem. Maybe drop the power on the 3935 a few dB. See if that makes a difference.

[Bryan_Donahue]

The channels don't overlap, the power levels are similar and seem appropriate (14-16dB), the distance between access points is about 30 feet.

[Bryan_Donahue]

It's not really a question of two ap's. It's a pattern throughout the building. We formerly had 3825 aps in every other classroom. Then added 3935 aps in the every OTHER classrooms that hadn't previously had one. So it's a pattern I see throughout the building that the 3935's tend to have more client connections than the 3825's. So load balancing groups would be complicated. Maybe I just need to consolidate 3935's and 3825's by building.

[James_A]

Have you considered setting up a load balance group between the APs?

It is good practice to keep the APs in a given area the same model if possible, I try and upgrade whole buildings at a time.

[Jeremy_Gibbs]

Also, what is the distance between these APs if you had to estimate?