cis Routed Around the Failure to Another Access Point Paths between access points Access point failed Figure 7-15 An example of a mesh Wi-Fi network with every access point to every access point www.TechnicalPDF.com connection. (Courtesy of NETGEAR) There is currently no mesh networking standard for all of the functions required in mesh networks. Thus, the entire network must now be provided by a single vendor. The current standard only specifies how the link layer puts the data on and takes it off the Wi-Fi network. A new certification program called Wi-Fi Certified Home Design is still evolving that may enable access points from diverse manufacturers to interoperate together. This will enable people and institutions to use equipment from different vendors to interoperate with each other. Band Steering, Client Steering and Time Synch in Mesh Networks Mesh networks include both band steering and client steering. In band steering the network is able to route the same traffic between 2.4GHz and 5GHz depending on band availability. Client steering connects clients (user devices) to the access point that has the strongest signal strength and the least congestion. Time synch is a Wi-Fi capability used in mesh networks to distribute and synchronize traffic. It enables clients to connect to multiple access points at the same time and an application in a server. Over-the-top streaming where speakers and audio are synchronized down to a microsecond SO that characters' speech is coordinated with the way actors speak is an example of time synch. Devices on Wi-Fi Networks-Access Points and Controllers Access points translate between Wi-Fi wireless signals and Ethernet LAN signals and vice versa. An access point has an antenna and chips with 802.11a, 802.11b, 802.11g, and 802.11n, or 802.11ac protocols. Access points for the residential market also include routers with ports to which Ethernet cables are connected. The router aggregates traffic and sends it to the Internet via Gigabit Ethernet on fiber cable, or cable modems. 