DrayTek VigorAP 906 WiFi6 (2.9Gbps AX) Mesh Access Point – VAP906-K

The DrayTek VigorAP 906 WiFi 6 Mesh Access Point is a high-performance WiFi 6 AX3000 solution for your home or business network and is designed to handle high density environments, where many clients are expected to connect to your wireless network. The VigorAP 906 access point is designed to enhance wireless signal coverage which can help eliminate WiFi dead zones and improve the quality of the WiFi connection. This high-performance AX3000 access point can offer datalink rates up to 2400 Mbps in 5GHz band and up to 574 Mbps in 2.4GHz band. The VigorAP 906’s compatibility with a variety of DrayTek AP management options helps reduce the cost of network deployments. Options include VigorACS (sold separately), VigorConnect, router-based AP management, and AP-based AP management. Standard standalone mode is also supported for flexible installations and five (5) Gigabit Ethernet ports allows multiple wired devices to be connected as well.

Key Features

• WiFi 6 – Fast & Efficient
  Dual-band AX3000 WiFi 6 access point for fast performance with greater capacity.
• Power Over Ethernet
  Power the VigorAP 906 through its Ethernet cable with standard IEEE 802.3af PoE (DC 12V PSU included, PoE injector sold separately).
• WPA3 Security & VLANs
  Supports the latest WiFi security standard. Segment wireless networks with VLANs and WPA3-Enterprise.
• AP & Range Extender Operating Modes
  Extend wireless signal from an existing network or use the VigorAP 906 as a standalone AP.
• Desk or Wall Mounted
  Flexible mounting options allow you to choose the most practical location.
• Router-based Central Management
  Manage, monitor and provision VigorAPs connected to a DrayTek Vigor router (sold separately).
• Five (5) Gigabit LAN Ports
  Provide fast network connectivity to wired devices. Use the VigorAP 906 as a wireless Ethernet bridge.
• AP-Assisted Roaming
  DrayTek VigorAPs ensure that clients are always connected to their closest access point.
• Wireless Optimisation
  Band Steering, Airtime Fairness and AP-Assisted Mobility features improve wireless network efficiency.
• Easy to Configure and Manage
  Setup of the VigorAP 906 is easy with the DrayTek Wireless app.
• Mobile Device Management
  Visualise client data usage and control client access through the VigorAPs advanced web interface.
• Central Management with VigorACS
  Manage VigorAPs from the cloud with DrayTek VigorACS.

WiFi 6 – Fast & Efficient

The DrayTek VigorAP VAP906-K is a WiFi 6 AX3000 access point. The WiFi 6 wireless standard does more than simply boost speeds for single users, it also improves overall performance for busy environments. More efficient resource sharing results in greater overall performance, lower latency and less pauses in connectivity for users.

To achieve this, WiFi 6 or 802.11ax brings in several new technologies (including some features used extensively by 4G and LTE networks), to enhance speeds even as many users demand content at the same time. As more devices need bandwidth more frequently, WiFi 6 utilises the following key technologies to enable this:

• Higher capacity with OFDMA and Multi-User MIMO.
• Less interference with BSS Coloring.
• Dual-band performance boost with 2.4GHz and 5GHz WiFi 6.
• Stronger security with WPA3.
• Better battery life on mobile devices with Target Wake Time.

WPA3 Wireless Security & VLANs

The VigorAP 906 supports the latest WPA3 security standards and offers a multitude of network management features to allow implementation of complex wireless networks. Hotspot Web Portal is also available for Captive Portal and branding on hospitality WiFi networks.

WPA3-Enterprise security offers greater 192-bit encryption strength for networks using RADIUS & 802.1x authentication. RADIUS authentication can be managed either with an external server or the VigorAP’s built-in RADIUS server.

The VigorAP 906 supports up to four (4) wireless networks per wireless band. Fully segmented from each other with 802.1q VLANs, guest network access is fully separated from internal company data.

AP Assisted Roaming

Large wireless networks spanning multiple access points may sometimes seem slow to users, because their device is clinging on to a far away access point. When a closer access point is available for their device to connect to, this can instead slow down overall performance for all users connected to that now distant AP.

DrayTek solves this issue with AP-Assisted Roaming, which requires no central controller to operate. With AP-Assisted Roaming, VigorAPs communicate with each other to determine which clients can get a better signal as those clients move around.

If a client moves into range of another VigorAP access point, that AP informs the now distant AP, which makes an informed decision to disconnect the remote ‘sticky’ client. This allows the client to quickly re-associate with their nearest AP, giving the user stronger signal and better speeds.

Easy Setup with the DrayTek Wireless app

DrayTek’s Wireless app assists you with setting up VigorAP 906 access points and a Mesh Wireless network. Once installed on your smartphone or tablet, use the Quick Start Wizard to set your VigorAPs to operate as a Mesh Wireless network. Set up a single VigorAP 906 as a standalone access point, or extend an existing wireless network as a range extender. Simply scan the access point’s QR code to detect it, or manually input the VigorAP’s default SSID & password, then configure your wireless network with step-by-step guidance. When it’s all set up, view the Mesh Wireless status and connected wireless clients from the app.

Set up a Mesh network with the DrayTek Wireless app

Use the DrayTek Wireless app to set up a new DrayTek Mesh Wireless network:

1. Connect a VigorAP 906 into your network and scan its QR code with the DrayTek Wireless app.
2. Use the Quick Start Wizard to set it as the Mesh Root and configure the Wireless network name and password.
3. Connect up the power to any new Mesh Node APs. They will wait the for Mesh Root to adopt them.
4. Search for new Mesh Nodes with the DrayTek Wireless app and add them to the Mesh group.
5. Wait a couple of minutes for the VigorAP 906 to auto configure and set up the new Mesh Nodes.
6. Your Mesh wireless network is now ready for use.

Power-over-Ethernet (PoE)

The VigorAP 906 has built-in PoE+ (IEEE 802.3at Power over Ethernet) as standard. Connect the VigorAP to a PoE+ enabled Ethernet switch or PoE+ injector (both sold separately) to power it without local power to the unit (power supply), and the VigorAP 906 will take its power from the Ethernet cable. The VigorAP 906 supports Gigabit PoE+ (requires Gigabit PoE+ injector/switch, such as the VigorSwitch P1280x or P2100 models – sold separately).

PoE is ideal for situations where you do not have mains power available in the exact location where you want to install the VigorAP 906, or just for general tidiness in locations where the AP is installed somewhere prominent. The DrayTek VigorAP 906 is also supplied with an AC/DC mains PSU for installations where you are not using PoE.

Five Gigabit Ethernet Ports

The VigorAP 906 has five (5) wired Ethernet ports. As the ports are all Gigabit, you can be sure that the AP is fed at the maximum speed in order to get the most out of both the 2.4GHz and 5Ghz bands simultaneously. In Mesh and Range Extender modes, the VigorAP 906 bridges its wireless uplink to the LAN ports, providing fast connectivity to each additional device connected, without the need for an additional network switch or a long cable run. LAN Port A4 can also be used as the PoE input if you’re powering the AP via PoE.

Dual Band 11ax Wave 2 Access Point

The VigorAP 906 is an 802.11ax (WiFi 6) Wave 2 access point, improving performance by increasing the amount of data that can be sent at one time. 11ax Wave 2 includes Multi User MIMO (Multiple In, Multiple Out) or MU-MIMO technology, further building upon the MIMO technologies introduced with 802.11n (WiFi 4). When used with MU-MIMO capable wireless clients, the VigorAP’s MU-MIMO technology allows each antenna (or Spatial Stream) to send to separate wireless clients, potentially doubling the data transmission rate to clients.

Significant limitations of wireless throughput are the frequency space and radio time, shared between all users. A typical wireless access point can send data to only one client at a time with its radio. With enough users connected, congestion slows down transfer speeds more & more, as the AP divides its time between each client. Multi User MIMO allows the VigorAP to send data out to more than one wireless client at a time, splitting bandwidth between the VigorAP’s Spatial Streams instead of the access point’s time as a whole. This can be particularly useful in locations with many phones, tablet and laptops connecting, where the VigorAP’s more efficient transmissions could allow each access point to serve more clients than an 802.11ac (WiFi 5) Wave 1 or 802.11n (WiFi 4) access point.

Wireless Optimisation

DrayTek’s VigorAP access points have many features designed to improve wireless performance on your network, to ensure that every wireless client gets the best possible experience.

• Airtime Fairness
  Aims to maximise the total wireless throughput by improving how time is shared between wireless clients to prevent slower clients from negatively affecting other users and to enable faster clients to obtain higher speeds that they’re capable of.
• Band Steering
  Increases capacity for Vigor Access Points by directing wireless clients that are capable of connecting to 5GHz wireless networks to the less congested and faster 5GHz (802.11ac and 802.11ax) band. The aim is to more evenly distribute wireless clients between the AP’s wireless radios.
• AP Assisted Mobility
  Allows VigorAP access points on the network to improve how clients handle moving between VigorAPs. It intelligently allows VigorAPs to disassociate clients from a VigorAP, when the client could get a better connection with a nearer VigorAP access point.
• Mobile Device Management
  Control which type of devices connect to your VigorAP access points, for instance, to stop desktop and laptop computers connecting to a network intended for guest’s mobile phones and tablets.

Wireless Security & VLANs

The VigorAP 906 features multiple levels of wireless security. Encryption using WPA2 or WPA3 is available and you can also use the access control list (ACL) to specify the hardware addresses of clients which are permitted to connect (by MAC hardware address). Any unauthorised hardware is refused access. For additional user authentication, you can have the VigorAP 906 authenticate clients with an 802.1x RADIUS (Remote Authentication Dial-in User Service) server, or use its internal RADIUS server.

The VigorAP 906 supports the 802.1q VLAN protocol so that if it is connected to an 802.1q enabled LAN, it can split tagged data (whether it’s different subnets or intended for different users) and broadcast each on its own SSID. This means, for example, that your guest WiFi access is provided on a separate isolated SSID with no access to your company data.

AP & Range Extender Modes

The VigorAP 906 can be used as a standalone wireless access point, to provide wireless connectivity for a router or network that doesn’t currently have wireless. Access Point mode can create up to four (4) separate Wireless networks (or SSIDs). The VigorAP 906 can provide completely separate private and guest wireless networks through the use of 802.1q VLAN tags with a router or network that supports VLAN tagging, such as the DrayTek Vigor 2865 router (sold separately).

Range Extender mode allows the VigorAP 906 to extend the wireless coverage of any existing wireless network. In this mode, the VigorAP 906 connects to a remote wireless network, allowing it to provide internet and network access to wireless clients that connect to the VigorAP 906’s wireless network.

Central Management with DrayTek VigorACS

The DrayTekhttps://www.3grouterstore.co.uk/product-category/manufacturers/draytek/ VigorAP 906 can be managed by the DrayTek VigorACS central management system – a cloud platform which can manage most DrayTek products – routers, wireless access points and Ethernet switches, giving you complete visibility and control of your DrayTek product estate, even without a DrayTek Vigor router on site.

The DrayTek VigorACS management system can be used to configure and provision DrayTek VigorAP access points, similarly to performing these actions through the VigorAP’s web interface, with a familiar menu layout in the Configuration section of VigorACS. Profiles for groups of access points can be provisioned in VigorACS by selecting a VigorACS network, then accessing Configuration > AP Profile to configure profiles and apply them selectively.

DrayTek’s VigorACS management monitors each VigorAP access point, with a Dashboard view giving a central overview of the most important information from the VigorAP’s current status.

Central Management with a DrayTek Router

The VigorAP 906 can operate in standalone autonomous mode, but can also form part of a centrally managed wireless installation by adding a compatible DrayTek wireless controller such as the Vigor 2865 router (sold separately). This enables you to centrally control, manage and administer multiple AP devices installed around your building/campus. Management also enables efficient usage of your wireless access point through load-balancing, whereby wireless clients are distributed across several access points to reduce congestion.

The DrayTek router operating as the wireless controller can provision DrayTek VigorAP access points using the Central AP Management profiles configured on the router, with an option to Auto Provision – auto configuring newly installed VigorAP access points with the Auto Provisioning profile, upon initial connection to the DrayTek Vigor router’s network.

Dual-LAN

The VigorAP 906 can support two (2) completely independent LANs. Each is connected via its own independent RJ45 Ethernet interface. There are Ethernet RJ45 interfaces for LAN A (4 ports) and LAN B (one port). These networks remain completely isolated from each other. Each LAN can be assigned its own separate Wireless SSID so they remain separated even on the Wireless LAN. This is the equivalent of having two (2) completely separate access points and is ideal for public and private networks in the same location or wireless LANs for two separate companies.

Wireless On/Off Switch & WiFi Protected Setup

The WLAN On/Off & WPS button on the VigorAP 906 serves as a physical on/off switch for the Wireless LAN if you wish to quickly disable it at any time, whilst still leaving your wired ports active.

Wireless Security (encryption) is important to protect your data (privacy) but also to prevent unauthorised people from accessing your network or your internet connection. The WPS system means that instead of having to create and enter long encryption keys, you can activate WPS registration to ‘pair’ wireless devices such as printers with the VigorAP’s wireless network. When WPS is enabled, press and hold the WPS button, then activate WPS on your wireless device; the two devices then automatically exchange encryption keys. WPS can be disabled if not required or for more security.

Desk or Wall Mounted

For a convenient and tidy installation, the VigorAP 906 is designed to be free-standing or installed on walls. It’s ideal for providing wireless access to large rooms and public spaces. Just find a stable, flat location such as a desk to benefit from wired and wireless access to the network. For mounting on solid walls, a mounting kit (included with the unit) is provided.

Mobile Device Management

Through the web interface of the VigorAP 906, network administrators can easily check on AP data usage and clients connected, with options to disconnect or block disruptive clients. Mobile Device Management builds on regular Access Control, which can be used to whitelist and blacklist individual clients. MDM makes it possible to set up SSIDs that only Windows or Apple desktops can connect to, disconnecting Android or iOS clients or vice versa, to suit the requirements of your wireless network. Analytics data from each VigorAP graphs how many wireless clients have connected to the AP over time, as well as how many wireless clients passed by without connecting.

 

Specifications