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Setting up CAPsMAN: Mixing AX and WiFi-N for Seamless WiFi

Step-by-step guide to setting up CAPsMAN for mixing old (WiFi-N) and new (AX) MikroTik devices. Solving problems with seamless roaming and 'CAP did not suitable CAPSMAN' error.

#ax-wifi-n-compatibility#capsman-error#capsman-mikrotik#mikrotik-networking#wifi-roaming

How to configure CAPsMAN with a mix of old (WiFi-N) and new (AX) MikroTik devices for seamless WiFi?

Hello! I’ve upgraded my hAP AC2 to hAP AX Lite due to memory issues, but I’m encountering problems setting up two WiFi access points in my house.

Current situation:

  • Previously, I had hAP AC2 (main AP) and an old WiFi-N wAP working through WDS without CAPsMAN
  • After upgrading to hAP AX Lite, I’m facing configuration issues

The problem:

  1. On new AX devices, only the wifi-qcom package works instead of the Wireless package
  2. When installing the Wireless package, no interfaces are available
  3. Both packages cannot work simultaneously: either Wireless or wifi-qcom
  4. The WiFi Wave2 package doesn’t have a WDS option, and interfaces are configured according to CAPsMAN principles

What I’ve already done:

  • Configured AX Lite through the local manager
  • On the main AP, I’ve configured frequencies, channels, and encryption (WPA2 CCMP, channels like 2412, etc.) for compatibility with old WiFi-N APs
  • On the wAP, I configured a CAP in the Wireless section, but CAPsMAN doesn’t detect it
  • In the logs, there’s an error “CAP did not suitable CAPSMAN”, even when manually specifying the address

Alternative attempt:

  • Configured CAPsMAN in the WiFi section (available on MIPSBE devices with firmware 7.20.2)
  • In Remote CAP, the wAP appeared without an address, but the AP itself doesn’t work

Main questions:

  1. Are CAPsMAN in the WiFi and Wireless sections different managers?
  2. How to configure seamless operation of two APs (one AX, one WiFi-N) with the same SSID through CAPsMAN?
  3. Why on the hAP AC2 (old device) with the Wave2 driver do I have the same problem, but the AP still gets picked up by CAPsMAN?
NeuroAgent

Setting up CAPsMAN for mixing old (WiFi-N) and new (AX) MikroTik devices requires a special approach due to architectural differences in drivers. Here’s a step-by-step solution:

Quick Answer

For seamless roaming between AX and WiFi-N MikroTik devices via CAPsMAN, you need to: use the wifi-qcom package on AX devices and the Wireless package on older devices, configure CAPsMAN in the WiFi section (not Wireless), synchronize SSIDs/passwords, and ensure compatible frequency policy. The “CAP did not suitable CAPSMAN” error occurs due to driver incompatibility between wifi-qcom and traditional CAPsMAN.

Table of Contents

Difference between CAPsMAN in WiFi and Wireless sections

CAPsMAN in the Wireless section is designed for MIPSBE devices (older Ralink, Atheros chipsets) with the Wave2 driver. It supports WDS and traditional interfaces.
CAPsMAN in the WiFi section is the newer version for devices with Qualcomm chipsets (AX series) with the wifi-qcom driver. It uses CAPsMAN principles but:

  • Doesn’t support WDS
  • Only works with the wifi-qcom package
  • Requires arm or aarch64 architecture

⚠️ On AX devices (hAP AX Lite), you cannot use both packages simultaneously — either Wireless or wifi-qcom. Attempting to install both will cause a conflict.

Setting up CAPsMAN for a mixed device park

Step 1: Preparing the main device

  1. On the hAP AX Lite, install the wifi-qcom package (not Wireless):
    bash
    /system package install wifi-qcom
  2. Enable CAPsMAN in the WiFi section (not Wireless):
    bash
    /wifi capsman set enabled=yes
/wifi capsman interface add name=wifi1 disabled=no

Step 2: Configuring the CAP for older devices

  1. On the wAP (WiFi-N):
    • Install the Wireless package
    • Enable CAP mode:
      bash
      /interface wireless cap set enabled=yes capsman-address=MAIN_DEVICE_IP
    • Ensure there’s a wlan1 interface (or similar) in /interface wireless.

Step 3: Synchronizing policies

In CAPsMAN (WiFi section), create policies for both device types:

bash
# Policy for AX devices
/wifi capsman policy add name=AX-Policy wifi-standard=802.11ax
/wifi capsman policy add name=N-Policy wifi-standard=802.11n

# Assigning policies
/wifi capsman configuration add name=Common-SSID ssid=MyNetwork

Seamless roaming between AX and WiFi-N

Key compatibility parameters:

Parameter AX devices WiFi-N devices
SSID Identical Identical
Password Identical Identical
WPA2/CCMP Yes Yes
Frequencies 2.4/5GHz 2.4GHz
Channels 36+ (5GHz), 1-11 (2.4GHz) 1-11 (2.4GHz)

Setting up frequency policy:

bash
/wifi capsman channel add band=2ghz width=20mhz
/wifi capsman channel add band=5ghz width=80mhz

Solving the “CAP did not suitable CAPSMAN” error

Main causes:

  1. Wrong package on the main device — AX device requires wifi-qcom, not Wireless.
  2. Architecture incompatibility — older CAPsMAN (MIPSBE) doesn’t see AX devices.
  3. Configuration error — missing wifi-qcom interface on the main device.

Checking and fixing:

bash
# Check available interfaces
/interface print
# Should have wifi1 (wifi-qcom) or wlan1 (Wireless)

# Check CAP statuses
/wifi capsman cap print
# If CAP is "disabled" — check CAPSMAN address

Optimization for real roaming

1. Layer 2 roaming

Enable Fast Transition (802.11r/v) in the CAPsMAN policy:

bash
/wifi capsman policy set [find name=AX-Policy] ft-over-ds=yes ft-resptime-threshold=1000

2. Channel optimization

Use DFS channels for 5GHz (36+):

bash
/wifi capsman channel set [find band=5ghz] dfs=yes

3. Connection quality monitoring

bash
/system logging add topics=wireless,capsman
/interface wireless monitor wlan1

Sources

  1. MikroTik Wiki - CAPsMAN Configuration
  2. MikroTik Forum - AX devices with CAPsMAN
  3. MikroTik Documentation - wifi-qcom Package
  4. Official CAPsMAN Setup Guide

Conclusion

  1. For a mixed device park, use: the wifi-qcom package on AX devices and Wireless on older ones.
  2. Configure CAPsMAN only in the WiFi section — this is crucial for the AX series.
  3. Seamless roaming is achieved through identical SSIDs/passwords, WPA2/CCMP, and compatible channels.
  4. To solve the “CAP did not suitable” error — check the architecture and packages on the main device.
  5. For real seamless roaming, enable Fast Transition (802.11r/v) and DFS channels.

💡 Tip: If problems persist, try temporarily disabling WDS on older devices — CAPsMAN in WiFi mode works without it.

Which MikroTik devices support CAPsMAN in the WiFi section?How to enable Fast Transition (802.11r/v) for improved roaming in MikroTik CAPsMAN?Why can't MikroTik AX devices use the Wireless package together with wifi-qcom?Which channels are best to use for a mixed park of AX and WiFi-N devices in CAPsMAN?How to configure DFS channels in MikroTik CAPsMAN for the 5GHz range?How to monitor connection quality between access points in MikroTik CAPsMAN?
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