How does a client choose an access point (AP) to get associated?
A. Access point (AP) choice is done on the machine radio of the client. Based on the manufacturer, driver, type of card, and so forth, it can use different metrics to make the choice. The most common AP affiliation mechanism used in most clients is based on signal strength received by the client from the APs. The 802.11 standard requires only that the wireless client card reports signal strength with a simple metric called Received Signal Strength Indicator (RSSI). The client then associates with the AP with the strongest signal. It is well known that these algorithms can lead to poor performance. The main reason is due to its lack of knowledge of the load on different APs.
