Two SSID and password for 1 wireless NIC access point

Hi, I have a remote site running one wireless Network with 1 SSID/PW for the network.
Cell based.

I need to modify network to add another SSID/PW to use the same NIC so that devices
that are trying to log into the non existent SSID/PW (current situation) can be managed.
I had both networks running, one on Satellite, the other on Cell, and removed the Satellite
Wi-Fi forgetting to move the devices attached to it to SSID1 before I removed it. The solution
will be done over the Cell remotely, so must be bullet proof, eg not take down, other than
intermittently, the Cell SSID1 connection. Otherwise a 5 hour drive to get to physical site.

All help greatly appreciated. Win 10 is OS.




Note hotspot supports guest network, but one network has to be on 2.4 Ghz, the other on
5 Ghz. So putting SSID2 on 5 Ghz would make sense except all clients on SSID2 network only support
2.4 Ghz.

I will be using Teamviewer talking to PC via hotspot, SSID1, to do the changes.

Regards, Dana

Configure Multiple SSIDs on a Network - Cisco

Multi-SSID Deployment Considerations - Cisco Meraki

I see in Win 10 I can add a guest VPN as adapter but VPN must have internet
access, which Verizon hotspot users report many problems.

So still the question seems to remain, can a single adapter support 2 SSIDs
for access to it ? If so how to setup via remote tools w/o dropping primary
SSID....


Regards, Dana.

Hi Dana,

If I understand correctly, You want to "catch" the devices that where connected to SSID1 that are lost at the moment with the PC/AP with SSID2 ?

Creating a second SSID on the PC depends on the capability of the HotSpot Software you are using. but it should fix the problem instantly.

How is the internet and PC/AP are configured / connected at the moment ?

What is the HotSpot software you are using ?

There were two SSID originally, SSID1 which is hotspot ID, and SSID2 which was
Hughes Satellite ID PC was connected to.

Now I want SSID1 unchanged, the PC to now connect to SSID1 to get internet access,
and the PC to also have SSID2 for clients to connect to as Satellite is off. To present an
SSID2 for them to log into so I can modify them and move them to SSID1 and recover
from my error, dropping satellite and its SSID they originally used.

The hotspot is a stand alone Verizon 8800L.

Internet <> Hotspot <> PC, so PC is logged into the hotspot as a client and using SSID1 to do that.

Hotspot software has its own firmware.

PC has 1 wireless NIC.


Regards, Dana.

Ok, I think I understand, at the moment IoT devices connected on SSID2 are disconnected because Hughes network device has been removed, is that right ?

If you are not using the guess network of the Verizon Router, You can configure it with the exact parameters required for the lost devices. You should be able to do that without loosing connectivity permanently. probably when the router is going to apply the configuration, but it should be temporary.

It's a lot of "should", because I can never guarantee everything is going to react like planned. If possible for you to have someone on site to physically intervene in case of "mess-ups" would be an assess.

And there are good chances are that those IoT devices will need to be restarted to connect on the new AP.

The Verizon is not a "router" in the classic sense. It cannot support two nets running on
same freq, one has to be on 2.4, the other 5 Ghz. In order to keep remote access I have
to keep SSID1 on 2.4.

It does offer a guest config, SSID2, but that has to be put on 5 Ghz, it cannot share
the 2.4 Ghz band it has with SSID1. All the clients are limited to 2.4, so thats out as
an option.

Looks like I am stuck going to site.

Thanks all for the help.

Regards, Dana.

Hey! Dana thanks for the response.

Ok depending on the criticality of these IoT's and regarding the transport you have to do to fix the problem...

You might want to "Go for it" before going on site.

At this point if you are able to connect to the Verizon, enable the 5ghz network, and switch the PC to 5GHz and it comes back online... You have chances...

Because you will be able to configure the 2.4 band without loosing connection.

Now !!! don't tell me that both 2.4 and 5 GHz networks are not interconnected... because it's the death call.

Configure the 2.4 GHz band to be able to take control of the lost devices.

Now the next steps are dependant on the network configuration capability of your IoT's

Most IoT devices have a utility to find / configure them, it uses simple packet transport and should work if broadcasting is enabled. If you manage to configure correctly the 2.4 Wifi network this utility should find the devices and let you access them. with correct creds.

Without all of this you need to press reset button on each of them and use the makers re-enrolment procedure.

I say all that without knowing what kind of automation device you are using, but it's the general rules.

Can you tell me what kind of IoT's you are recovering ?

The IOTs are two older wireless webcams, set up on the old SSID2 to communicate
wireless to PC. I do not think they support 5 Ghz.

I will have to check if NIC in PC supports 5 Ghz.

I also do not know if Hotspot gets good 5 Ghz signal but I can set up a guest
net on 5 and check its signal strength, I think, via connecting to Hotspot on
2.4 as is now.

Painful....:)

Regards, Dana.

Looks verifiable, It's pretty complicated, but doable...

You say web cam, but you mean Wifi cams, I think. Do you know what brand / model ? That would certify the means of configuration available on them.

Once the setup done you can leave the PC on the 5GHz network, it will have a better speed if close enough to the AP.

Edit: Network cams, video recorders, video transcoders, are not part of Iot's there are called "surveillance Devices" and have most of the time much more configuration options. .