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AP-STA mode

Overview

Experimental (Unsupported)

This describes an installation of RaspAP on the Raspberry Pi Zero W or Zero 2 W models. However, the same steps apply to any device with a chipset capable of supporting this mode.

A managed mode AP, variously known as WiFi client AP mode, a micro-AP or simply AP-STA, usually works with the Quick Installer if the steps below are followed carefully. This feature was added to RaspAP specifically to support Internet of Things (IoT) and embedded applications for the Pi Zero W, however it is equally useful for a broad range of projects.

Disclaimer

This mode is completely unsupported and should be used for educational purposes only. If you need a reliable solution with an access point (AP) and wireless client (STA) on the same device, obtain a second Wi-Fi adapter and follow this walkthrough instead. Issues related to this will be labeled as invalid and closed. No hard feelings.

Before proceeding with the installation, it's important to have a basic understanding of how AP-STA works.

What is AP-STA mode?

Many wireless devices support simultaneous operation as both an access point (AP) and as a wireless client/station (STA). This is sometimes called Wi-Fi AP/STA concurrency. In this configuration, it is possible to create a software AP acting as a wireless repeater for an existing network, using a single wireless device. This capability is listed in the following section in the output of iw list:

$ iw list | grep -A 4 'valid interface'
    valid interface combinations:
    * #{ managed } <= 1, #{ P2P-device } <= 1, #{ P2P-client, P2P-GO } <= 1,
      total <= 3, #channels <= 2
    * #{ managed } <= 1, #{ AP } <= 1, #{ P2P-client } <= 1, #{ P2P-device } <= 1,
      total <= 4, #channels <= 1

The second valid interface combination indicates that both a managed and AP configuration is possible. The constraint #channels <= 1 means that your software AP must operate on the same channel as your Wi-Fi client connection.

Note

If you have a second wireless adapter bound to wlan1 on a Pi Zero W (or other device), refer to this FAQ.

Use cases

There are many scenarios in which AP-STA mode might be useful. These are some of the more popular ones:

  1. A device that connects to a wireless AP but needs an admin interface to configure the network and/or other services.
  2. A hub for Internet of Things devices, while also creating a bridge between them and the internet.
  3. A guest interface to your home wireless network.

Security is an important consideration with IoT and it can be beneficial to keep your devices on a separate network, for safety’s sake. No one wants a random internet user turning your lights on and off.

How does AP-STA work?

In this configuration, we create a virtual network interface (here uap0) and add it as the AP to the physical wlan0 device. This virtual interface is used by several of the services needed to operate a software access point. RaspAP manages these configurations in the background for you. Relevant sections are displayed below as examples.

dhcpcd.conf: 

# RaspAP uap0 configuration
interface uap0
static ip_address=192.168.50.1/24
nohook wpa_supplicant

hostapd.conf: 

# RaspAP wireless client AP mode
interface=uap0

dnsmasq.conf: 

# RaspAP uap0 configuration
interface=lo,uap0               # Use interfaces lo and uap0
bind-interfaces                 # Bind to the interfaces
domain-needed                   # Don't forward short names
bogus-priv                      # Never forward addresses in the non-routed address spaces

On AP-STA startup and system reboots, RaspAP's service control script adds the virtual uap0 interface and brings it up, like so:

iw dev wlan0 interface add uap0 type __ap
ifconfig uap0 up

After the virtual uap0 interface is added to the wlan0 physical device, we can then start up hostapd. It is important that the virtual interface is brought up first, otherwise it will fail with the message "could not configure driver mode". We also need to be sure that the interface is not managed by systemd-networkd, so this service should be disabled. These steps are handled by the RaspAP daemon.

With a basic understanding of AP-STA mode, we can proceed with the installation.

Installation

  1. Begin by flashing an SD card with the latest release of Raspberry Pi OS (32- or 64-bit) Lite.
  2. Prepare the SD card to connect to your WiFi network in headless mode according to this FAQ.
  3. Enable ssh access by creating an empty file called "ssh" (no extension) in the SD card's root.
  4. Insert the SD card into the Pi Zero W and connect it to power. Note: the standard power supply for the Raspberry Pi is 5.1V @ 2.5A. Other power sources may result in undervoltage or other issues. Do not use the micro USB connection.
  5. Connect to your Pi via ssh. ssh pi@raspberrypi.local is typical.
  6. Follow the project prerequisites exactly. Do not skip any of these steps.
  7. Invoke the Quick Installer as normal: curl -sL https://install.raspap.com | bash.
  8. The installer automatically detects a Pi (or other device) without an active eth0 interface. In this case, you will not be prompted to reboot your Pi.
  9. Open the RaspAP admin interface in your browser, usually http://raspberrypi.local.
  10. The status widget should indicate that hostapd is inactive. This is expected.
  11. Confirm that the Wireless Client dashboard widget displays an active connection.
  12. Choose Hotspot > Advanced and enable the WiFi client AP mode option.
  13. Optionally, enable Logfile output as this is often helpful for troubleshooting.
  14. Choose Save settings and Start hotspot.
  15. Wait a few moments and confirm that your AP has started.

Note

The WiFi client AP mode option will be disabled, or "greyed out", until a wireless client is configured.

When to reboot?

Rebooting before configuring AP-STA mode is likely the main cause of problems for users with the Pi Zero W. The reason is the default configuration is designed for a wired (ethernet) AP.

Once the Pi Zero W is configured in AP-STA mode, RaspAP will store several values in /etc/raspap/hostapd.ini: 

LogEnable = 1
WifiAPEnable = 1
BridgedEnable = 0
WifiManaged = wlan0
These are used by RaspAP's systemd control service raspapd to determine that a managed mode AP is enabled for the Pi and restore the connection after subsequent reboots.

Changing hostapd settings

Changes to the hotspot configuration should be applied to the wlan0 physical device, not uap0 (a virtual interface). In other words, if you wish to change hostapd settings, stop the hotspot, disable AP-STA, make your config changes on wlan0, re-enable AP-STA and finally restart hostapd. An explanation is available here.

Discussions

Questions or comments about using AP-STA mode? Join the discussion here.