Video Chat Between Access Points

[androidguy]

If I have multiple access points located around my house like I am planning to do when someone is video chatting on the Wi-Fi, for example, Google Hangouts or Skype and they move to a different location in my house and their devices switches the access point from the one they started on will the chat continue on uninterrupted? When I say multiple access points I mean they would all have the same SSID and Passphrase just different channels. Thanks in advance for all advice and information!

 

[boosted1g]

For video chat it will most likley stutter for a moment while it switches, depedning on the program it may drop the call all together.

 

[androidguy]

For video chat it will most likley stutter for a moment while it switches, depedning on the program it may drop the call all together.

The only ones used at my house are Google Hangouts, Skype, and very rarely Apple's Facetime. Would any of these drop the call? Thanks

 

[boosted1g]

You will have to either look up each program or just test it out. I have never tried doing video chat or voip while moving from on access point to another so I have no first hand knowledge on the programs. It all comes down to how long of a connection lapse the program allows before dropping the connection. I would check to see if the programs have any adjustible settings to combat this.

 

[bill001g]

A larger problem will be that the PC refuses to change from AP to AP even when the signal is really bad and dropping a huge amount of traffic. Android devices tend to be the worst offenders at this. On a pc you can change the roaming aggressiveness in the nic settings.

It is a trade off between not switching when the signal is degraded to switching back and forth too much.

What will happen depends how long the PC detects the outage. If it switches quick enough you should see a couple second stall. If it is long enough it may decide the interface is in a down condition and close all the open sessions. You would then have to re log into everything. Most times it switches quick enough so you do not get disconnected from the end application.

This is a huge issue that large wireless vendors spend huge resources trying to fix so it is not a simple thing to get working in a consistent manner. Cisco has huge writeups on this topic and other related under the general topic of "ip mobility"

 

[androidguy]

You will have to either look up each program or just test it out. I have never tried doing video chat or voip while moving from on access point to another so I have no first hand knowledge on the programs. It all comes down to how long of a connection lapse the program allows before dropping the connection. I would check to see if the programs have any adjustible settings to combat this.

I ran the Cat 6 cable to where I plan to locate the access point and set it up as I was planning to do. Then I started the Hangouts chat and roamed between the 2 and there was absolutely no lag or delay, seamless, just to let you know the test device was a Moto X on 4.4.2 to a Droid Ultra on 4.2.2. Currently the ethernet cable is somewhat hidden behind furniture, under mats, and doorways, etc. until I take the time too run it through the attic, I have not done so yet because it's summer and very hot. Thanks again for your help!