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Understanding Channel Assignment

The channel defines the portion of the radio spectrum the radio uses for transmitting and receiving. The range of available channels for the radio is determined by the radio mode and the country code setting. Each radio mode offers a number of channels, depending on how the spectrum is licensed by national and transnational authorities such as the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) or the International Telecommunication Union (ITU-R).

You can configure a static channel on a per-radio basis. The valid 802.11b/g or 802.11a channel numbers vary depending on the country code. For example, valid 802.11b/g channels for the US are 1 to 11 and valid channels for most European countries are 1 to 13. The default static channel for 802.11b/g is 6. The default static channel for 802.11a is 36.

If the radio is configured to be in 802.11a mode and the country code is covered by a regulatory domain that requires radar detection, then the access point attempts to use the statically configured channel first. If radar is detected on that channel, the access point then uses the 802.11h protocol for selecting the channel. This means selecting a radar-free channel and performing a 60-second availability check before operating on that channel. Regulatory domain requirements specify that the access point must move out of the operating channel within the “channel leave time” (10 seconds) of when radar is detected. Additionally, the access point must perform a 60-second availability check to determine that the new channel is radar-free before operating on that channel. However, per 802.11h, when radar is detected on a channel, the access point sends a channel switch announcement and five beacons with the new channel number. Because the new channel cannot be confirmed within the channel leave time, the new channel number advertised in the channel announcement and beacon frames is the first non-radar channel, which may or may not be the new operating channel. Also, clients that roam to the newly announced channel might time out while waiting for the access point because it will take at least 60 seconds for the access point to actually start operating on its new channel.

If you select auto for the channel setting, the access point scans available channels and selects a channel where no traffic is detected. The channel is chosen from the list of valid channels for that country and radio band. In the 5-GHz band, if a radar sensitive channel is selected in regulatory domains that require radar detection, the access point performs a 60-second passive scan searching for radar before operating on that channel. If radar is not detected, the access point will operate on that channel; otherwise, the access point will select another channel from the list of valid channels.