Wireless terminal roaming method and device, access controller, medium and program product

Abstract

The invention provides a wireless terminal roaming method and device, an access controller, a medium and a program product, which can be used in the technical field of wireless communication. The method is applied to a first AC, and the method comprises the following steps: responding to access of a first wireless terminal STA to any wireless access point AP managed by the first AC, and if it is determined that the first STA is not associated with the first AC, respectively sending a roaming query request to at least one neighbor AC; the signal coverage range of the neighbor AC is adjacent to the signal coverage range of the first AC; and if response information sent by the target neighbor AC for the roaming query request is received, roaming with the target neighbor AC through a corresponding tunnel. According to the method, the number of invalid query requests is reduced, and the query efficiency is improved.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present application relates to the technical field of wireless communication, and in particular to a wireless terminal roaming method and device, an access controller, a medium and a program product. BACKGROUND

[0002] Inter-Access Controller (AC) roaming involves inter-AC interaction, and a roaming-in AC and a roaming-out AC need to establish a tunnel to realize roaming. In a scenario of a large number of distributed AC networking, by configuring a roaming group, a plurality of specified ACs are added to the same roaming group, so that the ACs can roam each other. When a wireless terminal (Station, STA) accesses any Access Point (AP), the AC to which the AP belongs, i.e., the roaming-in AC, sends a query request to each AC in the same group. After receiving the query request, the AC in the same group determines whether the STA is associated with the AC, and responds to the query request and performs inter-AC roaming with the roaming-in AC. Since the roaming-in AC needs to send a query request to each AC in the roaming group, only one AC will respond, and there are many invalid requests.

[0003] In related technologies, one solution is to specify an AC in the roaming group as a master controller, and store a terminal list of each AC in the roaming group by the master controller. When the STA accesses the AP, the roaming-in AC sends a query request to the master controller, the master controller determines which AC the STA belongs to, and informs the roaming-in AC, so that the two ACs perform roaming. This way requires a higher performance of the master controller, and may need to use a higher model than other ACs, resulting in a higher cost. Another solution is that the ACs in the roaming group synchronize their respective terminal lists with each other, and each AC needs to store the terminal list of other ACs in the roaming group, so that when the STA accesses the AP, the roaming-in AC determines which AC the STA belongs to by itself. This way increases the storage pressure of the AC. SUMMARY

[0004] The present application provides a wireless terminal roaming method, device, access controller, medium and program product to solve the problems of low roaming query efficiency and resource waste in related technologies.

[0005] In a first aspect, the present application provides a wireless terminal roaming method, which is applied to a first Access Controller (AC), and the method comprises:

[0006] In response to a first wireless terminal (STA) accessing any wireless Access Point (AP) managed by the first AC, if it is determined that the first STA is not associated with the first AC, a roaming query request is sent to at least one neighbor AC respectively; the neighbor AC is an AC whose signal coverage range is adjacent to the signal coverage range of the first AC.

[0007] If the response information sent by the target neighbor AC for the roaming query request is received, roaming is performed with the target neighbor AC through a corresponding tunnel.

[0008] In some embodiments, the sending of the roaming query request to at least one neighbor AC respectively comprises:

[0009] If it is determined that the type of the access AP is a border AP, or it is determined that the type of the access AP is an inland AP and the first STA accesses the access AP using a re-association request frame, a roaming query request is sent to all neighbor ACs of the first AC respectively.

[0010] In some embodiments, the sending of the roaming query request to at least one neighbor AC respectively comprises:

[0011] If it is determined that the type of the access AP is a border AP, a roaming query request is sent to each neighbor AC having a mapping relationship with the access AP respectively.

[0012] In some embodiments, if it is determined that the first STA is not associated with the first AC, the method further comprises:

[0013] If it is determined that the type of the access AP is an inland AP and the first STA accesses the access AP using an association request frame, the first STA is associated according to a first association strategy.

[0014] In some embodiments, after the sending of the roaming query request to at least one neighbor AC respectively, the method further comprises:

[0015] If the response information is not received within a second preset time length, the first STA is associated according to a first association strategy.

[0016] In some embodiments, the method further comprises:

[0017] The at least one neighbor AC corresponding to the first AC is determined through an exchange of foreign AP information within a first preset time length after the first AC is powered on.

[0018] And / or,

[0019] The at least one neighbor AC corresponding to the first AC is determined through a roaming trajectory learning within a first preset time length after the first AC is powered on.

[0020] In some embodiments, a plurality of ACs are included in a roaming domain virtual local area network (VLAN), and the plurality of ACs include the first AC. The at least one neighbor AC corresponding to the first AC is determined through an exchange of foreign AP information within a first preset time length after the first AC is powered on, comprising:

[0021] performing the following operations within a first preset time period after the first AC is powered on until the first preset time period is reached, the following operations comprising:

[0022] obtaining neighbor AP information reported by any first AP managed by the first AC; the neighbor AP information comprising AP identifiers respectively corresponding to each neighbor AP identified by the first AP;

[0023] in a case where the neighbor AP information contains a foreign AP identifier not belonging to the first AC, adding the foreign AP identifier to a foreign AP list, and periodically broadcasting the foreign AP list within the roaming domain VLAN;

[0024] if response information sent by a second AC for the foreign AP list is received, determining that the second AC is a neighbor AC; the response information being sent by the second AC to the first AC in a case where the second AC determines that the foreign AP list contains an AP identifier corresponding to the second AC.

[0025] In some embodiments, the roaming domain VLAN comprises a plurality of ACs, and the plurality of ACs contain a first AC, and the at least one neighbor AC corresponding to the first AC is determined by a roaming track learning manner within a first preset time period after the first AC is powered on, comprising:

[0026] performing the following operations within a first preset time period after the first AC is powered on until the first preset time period is reached, the following operations comprising:

[0027] in response to a second STA accessing any first AP managed by the first AC, if it is determined that the second STA is not associated with the first AC, broadcasting a roaming query request within the roaming domain VLAN;

[0028] if response information sent by a third AC for the roaming query request is received, determining that the third AC is a neighbor AC.

[0029] In some embodiments, further comprising:

[0030] if response information sent by a third AC for the roaming query request is received within a second preset time period, roaming with the third AC through a corresponding tunnel;

[0031] if no response information is received within the second preset time period, associating with the second STA according to a first association strategy.

[0032] In some embodiments, further comprising:

[0033] In the process of determining the at least one neighbor AC corresponding to the first AC, the type of each first AP is determined, and the type of each first AP is written into an internal AP list; the type is a border AP or an inland AP, each neighbor AP of the inland AP belongs to the first AC, and at least one neighbor AP of the border AP does not belong to the first AC;

[0034] If the type of any first AP is a border AP, the mapping relationship between the first AP and the corresponding neighbor AC is stored; the corresponding neighbor AC is an AC to which a neighbor AP of the first AP that does not belong to the first AC belongs.

[0035] In some embodiments, if the at least one neighbor AC corresponding to the first AC is determined by exchanging foreign AP information, in the process of determining the at least one neighbor AC corresponding to the first AC, the type of each first AP is determined, including:

[0036] In the case that the neighbor AP information reported by the first AP contains a foreign AP identifier that does not belong to the first AC, the type of the first AP is determined to be a border AP;

[0037] In the case that each AP identifier in the neighbor AP information reported by the first AP belongs to the first AC, or in the case that the neighbor AP information reported by the first AP contains a foreign AP identifier that does not belong to the first AC and no response information is received within a second preset time period, the type of the first AP is determined to be an inland AP.

[0038] In some embodiments, if the at least one neighbor AC corresponding to the first AC is determined by learning a roaming track, in the process of determining the at least one neighbor AC corresponding to the first AC, the type of each first AP is determined, including:

[0039] After the roaming query request is broadcasted in the roaming domain VLAN, if response information sent by a third AC for the roaming query request is received within a second preset time period, the type of the access AP is determined to be a border AP;

[0040] If no response information is received within the second preset time period, the type of the access AP is determined to be an inland AP.

[0041] In some embodiments, the sending of the roaming query request to the at least one neighbor AC respectively includes:

[0042] In response to the number of ACs included in the roaming domain VLAN being greater than a first preset threshold, the roaming query request is sent to the at least one neighbor AC respectively, and the neighbor AC is determined by exchanging foreign AP information and learning a roaming track.

[0043] In some embodiments, the sending the roaming query request to at least one neighbor AC respectively comprises:

[0044] In response to the number of ACs included in the roaming domain VLAN being less than or equal to the first preset threshold and the configured sending mode being sending the request to the neighbor AC, sending the roaming query request to at least one neighbor AC respectively, the neighbor AC being determined by the roaming track learning mode.

[0045] In some embodiments, the method further comprises:

[0046] In response to the number of ACs included in the roaming domain VLAN being less than or equal to the first preset threshold and the configured sending mode being roaming domain broadcast request, broadcasting the roaming query request in the roaming domain VLAN;

[0047] If the response information sent by any one AC to the roaming query request is received, roaming with the AC through the corresponding tunnel.

[0048] In a second aspect, the present application provides a wireless terminal roaming device, the device being arranged in a first access controller AC, the device comprising:

[0049] The sending module is configured to, in response to a first wireless terminal STA accessing any wireless access point AP managed by the first AC, if it is determined that the first STA is not associated with the first AC, send a roaming query request to at least one neighbor AC respectively, the neighbor AC being an AC whose signal coverage range is adjacent to the signal coverage range of the first AC.

[0050] The roaming module is configured to, if the response information sent by a target neighbor AC to the roaming query request is received, roam with the target neighbor AC through the corresponding tunnel.

[0051] In a third aspect, the present application provides an access controller, comprising a processor and a memory connected to the processor in communication;

[0052] The memory stores computer execution instructions;

[0053] The processor executes the computer execution instructions stored in the memory to implement the wireless terminal roaming method according to any one of the first aspect.

[0054] In a fourth aspect, the present application provides a computer readable storage medium, the computer readable storage medium storing computer execution instructions, the computer execution instructions being executed by the processor to implement the wireless terminal roaming method according to any one of the first aspect.

[0055] In a fifth aspect, the present application provides a computer program product comprising a computer program which, when executed by a processor, implements the wireless terminal roaming method of any one of the first aspect.

[0056] The wireless terminal roaming method, device, access controller, medium and program product provided by the present application can obtain at least one neighbor AC corresponding to the first AC when the first STA accesses any AP managed by the first AC, if it is determined that the first AC is not associated with the first STA, which means that the first STA has not connected to the wireless network through the first AC before. In this case, the roaming query request is sent to the at least one neighbor AC, and if the response information sent by any AC of the at least one neighbor AC is received, the target neighbor AC sending the response information is roamed through a tunnel. The neighbor AC is defined as an AC whose signal coverage range is adjacent to that of the first AC, which reduces the number of invalid query requests, thereby reducing the total data transmission amount, reducing the bandwidth usage, and further reducing the overall load of the network. On this basis, compared with the scheme of specifying an AC as a general controller, the present application avoids the dependence on a single general controller through a distributed query mechanism, thereby reducing the requirement for device performance and cost. On this basis, compared with the scheme of synchronizing the terminal list of each AC in the roaming group, the present application sends the roaming query request to the neighbor AC only when needed, rather than synchronizing all terminal lists, thereby reducing the storage pressure of the AC. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0057] The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated herein and constitute part of the specification, illustrate embodiments consistent with the present application and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the present application.

[0058] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of an application scenario provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0059] Figure 2 is a flowchart of a process for determining at least one neighbor AC corresponding to the first AC by exchanging foreign AP information according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0060] Figure 3 is a flowchart of a process for determining at least one neighbor AC corresponding to the first AC by learning roaming trajectory according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0061] Figure 4 is a schematic diagram of an AC "jurisdiction" provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0062] Figure 5 is a schematic diagram of another AC "jurisdiction" provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0063] Figure 6 is a flowchart of a wireless terminal roaming method provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0064] Figure 7 is a schematic diagram of a wireless terminal roaming scenario provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0065] Figure 8 is a structural schematic diagram of a wireless terminal roaming apparatus provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0066] Figure 9 is a structural schematic diagram of an access controller provided by an embodiment of the present application.

[0067] The specific embodiments of the present application have been shown through the above-described drawings, and will be described in more detail hereinafter. These drawings and the written description are not intended to restrict the scope of the present application in any way, but to illustrate the concept of the present application to those skilled in the art by referring to specific embodiments. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0068] The exemplary embodiments will be described in detail herein with reference to the attached drawings. In the following description, the same numbers are used to indicate the same or similar components. The embodiments described in the following exemplary embodiments do not represent all the implementations in accordance with this application. Instead, they simply represent exemplary devices and methods in accordance with some aspects of the application, as detailed in the appended claims.

[0069] The terms "first", "second", and the like, are used only for descriptive purposes, and are not to be construed as indicating or implying relative importance or a specific number of indicated technical features. In the description of each of the embodiments, the meaning of "a plurality of" is two or more, unless otherwise specifically limited.

[0070] In the thin AP architecture, the AP and the AC usually communicate through a tunneling protocol, and the AP transmits the received wireless data to the AC through a tunnel for processing. For example, the tunneling protocol is the Control And Provisioning of Wireless Access Points Protocol Specification (CAPWAP) protocol.

[0071] The STA roams among the thin APs, and is divided into AC-in roaming and AC-AC roaming. The AC-in roaming is controlled by a single AC throughout the roaming process. The AC-AC roaming involves AC-AC interaction, and the in-AC and the out-AC need to establish a tunnel to roam. In the scenario of a large number of distributed AC networking, there are more AC-AC roaming requirements between regions.

[0072] One approach in related technologies is to configure roaming groups, adding multiple ACs to the same roaming group to indicate that the ACs can roam together. When a STA connects to any AP, the AC to which that AP belongs, i.e., the roaming AC, sends a query request to each AC in the same group. After receiving the query request, if the AC in the group determines that the STA is in its terminal list, it responds to the query request and initiates inter-AC roaming with the roaming AC. This approach has a drawback: because the roaming AC needs to send query requests to all other ACs in the roaming group, but only one AC will respond, resulting in many invalid requests.

[0073] To address the aforementioned shortcomings, one approach in related technologies is to designate one AC within the roaming group as the central controller. This central controller stores the terminal lists of all ACs within the roaming group. When a STA connects to an AP, the roaming AC sends a query request to the central controller. The central controller, based on its stored terminal lists, determines which AC the STA belongs to and informs the roaming AC, thus enabling roaming between the two ACs. This method places high demands on the performance of the central controller and may require a more powerful model than the other ACs, resulting in higher costs. Another approach in related technologies involves ACs within the roaming group synchronizing their terminal lists. Each AC stores the terminal lists of other ACs in the roaming group, allowing the roaming AC to independently determine which AC the STA belongs to when it connects to the AP. This method increases the storage burden on the ACs.

[0074] In response to the shortcomings of related technologies, the inventors of this application discovered in their research that for two ACs capable of roaming between ACs, their signal coverage ranges are relatively close. This signal coverage range refers to the sum of the signal coverage ranges of the APs managed by the AC. Therefore, when a STA accesses an AP, the roaming AC is the AC to which the AP belongs, while the roaming AC is very likely an AC whose signal coverage range is close to that of the roaming AC. It can be seen that the roaming AC only needs to send roaming query requests to a few neighboring ACs, without having to send roaming query requests to every AC in the roaming group.

[0075] Based on this, the application provides an improved wireless terminal roaming scheme. In the case that the first STA accesses any AP managed by the first AC, if it is determined that the first AC is not associated with the first STA, it indicates that the first STA has not connected to the wireless network through the first AC before. In this case, only a roaming query request can be sent to at least one neighbor AC, and if the response information sent by any AC in the at least one neighbor AC is received, the target neighbor AC sending the response information is roamed through a tunnel. The definition of the neighbor AC is that the signal coverage range of the AC is adjacent to the signal coverage range of the first AC, so that the number of invalid query requests is reduced, thereby reducing the total data transmission amount, reducing the bandwidth usage, and further reducing the overall load of the network. On this basis, compared with the scheme of specifying an AC as a total controller, the application avoids the dependence on a single total controller through a distributed query mechanism, thereby reducing the requirement for device performance and cost. On this basis, compared with the scheme that the ACs in the roaming group synchronize their respective terminal lists with each other, the application sends a roaming query request to the neighbor AC only when needed, rather than synchronizing all terminal lists, thereby reducing the storage pressure of the AC.

[0076] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of an application scenario provided by an embodiment of the application. As shown in Figure 1 the application scenario is a wireless local area network architecture, which includes multiple ACs: AC10, AC11 and AC12.

[0077] Taking AC10 as an example, the AC10 is used for centrally managing and controlling multiple APs 20, and the APs 20 are used for directly communicating with the STAs 30.

[0078] Among them, the multiple ACs belong to the same roaming domain virtual local area network (English: Virtual Local Area Network, abbreviated as VLAN). When deploying the wireless local area network architecture, a VLAN can be divided from a physical local area network, the VLAN is regarded as a roaming domain VLAN (RD-VLAN), and the roaming domain VLAN is respectively configured on each AC, so that the multiple ACs are located in the same roaming domain VLAN. It should be noted that the roaming domain VLAN can be divided by a technician according to actual business requirements, and the application does not limit this.

[0079] Since the multiple ACs belong to the same roaming domain VLAN, for any AC in the roaming domain VLAN, the AC can broadcast a message in the roaming domain VLAN, and each AC in the roaming domain VLAN can receive the message, and the AC can also receive the broadcast message of other ACs in the roaming domain VLAN, and sends response information to the AC broadcasting the message for the received message.

[0080] It can be seen that the scheme in the prior art needs the technician to configure all the ACs in the same group to join the roaming group on each AC in the roaming group in advance, for example, if there are 10 ACs in the roaming group, the technician needs to configure all the other 9 ACs to join the roaming group on each AC, and the configuration operation is complicated, while the present application only needs the technician to configure the same roaming domain VLAN on each AC, so that there is only one configuration operation for an AC, and there is no need to configure all the other ACs in the roaming group to join the roaming group on each AC, thereby simplifying the user configuration operation.

[0081] In an application scenario, when the STA 30 accesses any AP 20 in the wireless local area network architecture, the AP 20 uploads the related information of the STA 30 to the AC to which the AP 20 belongs, and the AC performs the wireless terminal roaming method provided in the present application to realize roaming.

[0082] It should be noted that the number of ACs can be set according to actual needs, and the present application does not limit this, and for the convenience of representation, Figure 1 Three examples are taken.

[0083] The wireless terminal roaming method provided in the present application can be applied in network use scenarios such as enterprise office, campus, public environment (such as airport, shopping mall, hotel, etc.), and the present application does not limit this.

[0084] The technical solutions of the present application and how the technical solutions of the present application solve the above technical problems will be described in detail below with specific embodiments. The following specific embodiments can be combined with each other, and the same or similar concepts or processes can not be described in detail in some embodiments. The embodiments of the present application will be described below with reference to the drawings.

[0085] The execution subject of the wireless terminal roaming method provided in the present application is a wireless terminal roaming device, which is integrated in an AC. As described in the above application scenario, the roaming domain VLAN includes a plurality of ACs, and the following takes the first AC in the roaming domain VLAN as an example for description, and the implementation of the wireless terminal roaming method by each AC in the roaming domain VLAN is the same as that by the first AC.

[0086] In the present application, the first AC determines at least one neighbor AC of the first AC within a period of time after the first AC is powered on. In an optional embodiment, the implementation of determining at least one neighbor AC corresponding to the first AC includes:

[0087] determining at least one neighbor AC corresponding to the first AC by exchanging foreign AP information within a first preset time period after the first AC is powered on; and / or determining at least one neighbor AC corresponding to the first AC by roaming trajectory learning within a first preset time period after the first AC is powered on.

[0088] The power-on refers to power-on start. The first preset time length can be set according to actual requirements, and the application does not make any limitation, for example, the first preset time length is 5 days, 7 days, 10 days, etc.

[0089] The process that the first AC determines at least one neighbor AC can be regarded as that the first AC is in a learning period, and the length of the learning period is the first preset time length. Optionally, the first AC enters the learning period immediately after power-on, and the triggering manner includes that the first AC automatically enters the learning period after power-on, or the first AC is manually triggered to enter the learning period after power-on. The manual triggering of the first AC to enter the learning period is specifically implemented as that the first AC is manually controlled to enter the learning period on a remote control interface of the first AC, or the first AC is manually configured to enter the learning period.

[0090] By introducing the concept of the learning period, the first AC can dynamically identify the neighbor ACs in the roaming domain VLAN, and the dynamic learning mechanism can more flexibly adapt to the change of the network topology, and improve the adaptability and expansibility.

[0091] The optional embodiment above reduces the demand for manual configuration by automatically identifying the neighbor AC, reduces the workload of the technical personnel, and improves the efficiency of network deployment and maintenance.

[0092] The exchange of foreign AP information and the roaming track learning will be described below.

[0093] Figure 2 is a flowchart provided by an embodiment of the application for determining at least one neighbor AC corresponding to the first AC by exchanging foreign AP information. As shown in Figure 2 The process of determining at least one neighbor AC corresponding to the first AC by exchanging foreign AP information within the first preset time length after the first AC is powered on includes the following operations within the first preset time length after the first AC is powered on until the first preset time length is reached, and the operations include steps S101-S103.

[0094] In step S101, neighbor AP information reported by any first AP managed by the first AC is acquired, and the neighbor AP information includes AP identifiers corresponding to each neighbor AP identified by the first AP.

[0095] The first AC is used for centrally managing and controlling a plurality of first APs. After the first AC is powered on, the first AC respectively issues an acquisition instruction to each first AP managed by the first AC, so that each first AP respectively acquires corresponding neighbor AP information and reports the acquired neighbor AP information to the first AC.

[0096] The neighbor AP of the first AP is an AP located around the first AP. The AP identifier is used to uniquely identify the AP, so as to distinguish different APs. For example, the AP identifier is a basic service set identifier (BSSID). Optionally, the implementation of the first AP obtaining the neighbor AP information includes: periodic spectrum scanning, scanning by using an AI radio, or scanning by using a radio resource measurement (RRM) protocol of wireless LANs, for example, the RRM protocol is an 802.11K protocol.

[0097] In step S102, in a case where the neighbor AP information contains a foreign AP identifier that does not belong to the first AC, the foreign AP identifier is added to a foreign AP list, and the foreign AP list is periodically broadcast in the roaming domain VLAN.

[0098] In the embodiment of the present application, after the first AC obtains the neighbor AP information reported by any first AP, it is determined whether the neighbor AP information contains a foreign AP identifier that does not belong to the first AC. Optionally, the first AC stores an internal AP list containing AP identifiers of APs belonging to the first AC. Accordingly, the determination of whether the neighbor AP information contains a foreign AP identifier that does not belong to the first AC is specifically implemented as follows: for each AP identifier in the neighbor AP information, it is queried from the internal AP list whether the AP identifier is contained in the internal AP list. If the AP identifier is contained in the internal AP list, the AP indicated by the AP identifier belongs to the first AC. Conversely, if the AP identifier is not contained in the internal AP list, the AP indicated by the AP identifier does not belong to the first AC, and the AP identifier can be considered as a foreign AP identifier.

[0099] In a case where the neighbor AP information contains a foreign AP identifier that does not belong to the first AC, it is indicated that the AP indicated by the foreign AP identifier is very likely to belong to an AC adjacent to the first AC. In this case, the foreign AP identifier can be added to a foreign AP list, and the foreign AP list is periodically broadcast in the roaming domain VLAN, so that other ACs in the roaming domain VLAN can receive the foreign AP list broadcast by the first AC.

[0100] Optionally, the frequency of periodically broadcasting the foreign AP list can be set according to actual needs, which is not limited in the present application. For example, the frequency is 2 minutes, 5 minutes, or 10 minutes.

[0101] Step S103, if the response information sent by the second AC for the foreign AP list is received, it is determined that the second AC is a neighbor AC; the response information is sent by the second AC to the first AC when it is determined that the foreign AP list contains the AP corresponding identifier of the second AC.

[0102] In the embodiment of the present application, the ACs in the roaming domain VLAN except the first AC determine whether the foreign AP list contains the AP corresponding identifier of the local AC after receiving the foreign AP list broadcasted by the first AC. Optionally, taking the second AC as an example, the second AC stores an internal AP list containing the AP identifiers of each AP belonging to the second AC. Correspondingly, the determination of whether the foreign AP list contains the AP corresponding identifier of the second AC is specifically implemented as follows: for each foreign AP identifier in the foreign AP list, it is queried from the internal AP list whether the foreign AP identifier is contained, if the internal AP list contains the foreign AP identifier, the AP indicated by the foreign AP identifier belongs to the second AC; otherwise, if the internal AP list does not contain the foreign AP identifier, the AP indicated by the foreign AP identifier does not belong to the second AC.

[0103] In the case that the foreign AP list contains the AP corresponding identifier of the second AC, the second AC sends response information to the first AC to "claim" the foreign AP. The response information includes the AC identifier corresponding to the second AC and the AP identifier corresponding to the AP belonging to the second AC in the foreign AP list.

[0104] Optionally, the determination of the second AC as a neighbor AC is specifically implemented as follows: the AC identifier corresponding to the second AC is added to the neighbor AC list, and the neighbor AC list includes the AC identifier corresponding to each neighbor AC determined by the first AC. The AC identifier is used to uniquely identify the AC to distinguish different ACs. For example, the AC identifier is the Internet Protocol (IP) address or network identifier of the AC, for example, the network identifier is the Media Access Control (MAC) address.

[0105] Optionally, after determining the second AC as a neighbor AC, the first AC also establishes a tunnel with the second AC, so as to communicate through the tunnel subsequently, and realize inter-AC roaming. For example, the tunnel is a Multicast Tunnel Interface (MTI) tunnel.

[0106] Wherein, for any first AP managed by the first AC, if the signal coverage of the first AP has an overlapping area with the signal coverage of a neighbor AP of the first AP, and the neighbor AP does not belong to the first AC, it is highly possible that the neighbor AP belongs to an AC adjacent to the first AC, and the signal coverage of the AC has an overlapping area with the signal coverage of the first AC, thus the AC can be regarded as an AC adjacent to the first AC, i.e., a neighbor AC of the first AC.

[0107] The embodiment of the present application determines the neighbor ACs by exchanging foreign AP information, and automatically acquires and processes the neighbor AP information reported by the first AP by using the neighbor discovery capability of the AP, so that the first AC can establish the neighbor relationship between the ACs in a short time.

[0108] Optionally, the first AC can not only enter the learning period immediately after being powered on to determine the neighbor ACs, but also can re-enter the learning period after the learning period to determine new neighbor ACs once a new AC is added to the roaming domain VLAN. Wherein, the trigger mode of re-entering the learning period includes: the first AC automatically enters the learning period in response to the addition of the new AC to the roaming domain VLAN; or the first AC is manually triggered to enter the learning period in the case of adding the new AC to the roaming domain VLAN. Wherein, the manual triggering of the first AC to enter the learning period is specifically implemented as: manually controlling the first AC to enter the learning period on the remote control interface of the first AC; or manually configuring the first AC to enter the learning period on the first AC.

[0109] Wherein, the process of determining the addition of the new AC to the roaming domain VLAN includes: simultaneously powering on and entering the learning period by the ACs in the roaming domain VLAN, periodically broadcasting the foreign AP list in the learning period, and no longer broadcasting the foreign AP list by the ACs after the learning period, at which time it is considered that the neighbor ACs of the ACs are confirmed to be complete. After the learning period, if the AC receives the foreign AP list broadcasted by any AC, it is considered that the AC is a newly added AC in the roaming domain VLAN, and the AC is in the learning period.

[0110] By re-entering the learning period when adding the new AC to the roaming domain VLAN, the ACs in the roaming domain VLAN can update the previously determined neighbor ACs, so that the determined neighbor ACs are more accurate.

[0111] Figure 3 is a flowchart of determining at least one neighbor AC corresponding to the first AC by the roaming trajectory learning method provided by the embodiment of the present application, as shown in Figure 3As shown, the process of determining at least one neighbor AC corresponding to the first AC through the roaming track learning manner within the first preset time duration after the first AC is powered on includes: performing the following operations within the first preset time duration after the first AC is powered on until the first preset time duration is reached, which includes steps S201-S202.

[0112] In step S201, in response to the second STA accessing any first AP managed by the first AC, if it is determined that the second STA is not associated with the first AC, a roaming query request is broadcasted in the roaming domain VLAN.

[0113] In step S201, in response to the second STA accessing any first AP managed by the first AC, if it is determined that the second STA is not associated with the first AC, a roaming query request is broadcasted in the roaming domain VLAN.

[0114] In the wireless network, the association between the STA and the AC means that the STA is connected to the network through the AP, and the access process and subsequent communication process are managed and controlled by the AC. When the STA accesses an AP for the first time, the AP will report the STA information of the STA to the AC to which the AP belongs, and the AC will record the STA in the terminal list, indicating that the STA is currently managed by the AC.

[0115] Optionally, the first AC stores a terminal list containing STA identifiers corresponding to STAs associated with the first AC; accordingly, determining whether the second STA is associated with the first AC is specifically implemented by determining whether the terminal list contains the STA identifier corresponding to the second STA. If it does, it means that the second STA is already associated with the first AC; otherwise, if it does not, it means that the second STA is not associated with the first AC.

[0116] If it is determined that the second STA is not associated with the first AC, it means that the second STA is accessing the first AC for the first time, and the second STA may have been associated with other ACs in the roaming domain VLAN or may not have been associated with any AC in the roaming domain VLAN. In this case, the first AC broadcasts a roaming query request in the roaming domain VLAN, and all other ACs in the roaming domain VLAN can receive the roaming query request. Compared with the prior art of sending a roaming query request to each other AC in the roaming group, the method of broadcasting a roaming query request only needs to send the roaming query request once by the first AC, reducing the number of request transmissions, thereby reducing the total data transmission amount, reducing the bandwidth usage, and further reducing the network load. The roaming query request carries the STA identifier corresponding to the second STA.

[0117] It should be noted that if it is determined that the second STA is already associated with the first AC, it means that the second STA has accessed the first AC before, and the AC internal roaming process is directly followed.

[0118] In step S202, if the response information sent by the third AC in response to the roaming query request is received, it is determined that the third AC is a neighbor AC.

[0119] In the embodiment of the present application, after receiving the roaming query request broadcast by the first AC, the ACs other than the first AC in the roaming domain VLAN determine whether the second STA is associated with the local AC. If the second STA is associated with the local AC, the response information is sent to the first AC to "claim" the second STA. The response information includes the AC identifier corresponding to the local AC and the STA identifier corresponding to the second STA. Alternatively, taking the third AC as an example, the third AC stores a terminal list containing the STA identifiers corresponding to the STAs associated with the third AC. Accordingly, if the third AC determines that the terminal list contains the STA identifier corresponding to the second STA, it means that the second STA is associated with the third AC, and the response information is sent to the first AC. Otherwise, if the third AC determines that the terminal list does not contain the STA identifier corresponding to the second STA, it means that the second STA is not associated with the third AC, and the roaming query request is ignored, i.e., no response is made to the roaming query request.

[0120] Alternatively, the determination that the third AC is a neighbor AC is specifically implemented by adding the AC identifier corresponding to the third AC to a neighbor AC list, which includes the AC identifier corresponding to each neighbor AC determined by the first AC.

[0121] Alternatively, after determining that the third AC is a neighbor AC, the first AC establishes a tunnel with the third AC to facilitate subsequent communication through the tunnel and realize inter-AC roaming. Exemplarily, the tunnel is an MTI tunnel.

[0122] The embodiment of the present application determines the neighbor AC through the roaming trajectory learning method. Only when the STA actually roams between ACs, the signal coverage ranges of the two ACs can be perceived to be adjacent. Therefore, when the second STA is accessed, the third AC responding to the roaming query request is determined as the neighbor AC of the first AC through broadcasting the roaming query request, and the accuracy is high.

[0123] The step S202 is explained for the case of receiving the response information, accordingly, the method provided by the embodiment of the application further includes: if the response information sent by the third AC for the roaming query request is received within the second preset time length, roaming is performed through the corresponding tunnel with the third AC. The second preset time length can be set according to actual needs, for example, the second preset time length is 50 milliseconds, 60 milliseconds, etc. The first AC is adjacent to the third AC, and the first AC establishes a tunnel with the third AC after receiving the response information, so that inter-AC roaming is performed through the tunnel, to enable the STA to normally use the wireless network.

[0124] In the embodiment of the application, there is also a case that no response information is received, that is, if the response information is not received within the second preset time length, the second STA is associated according to the first association strategy.

[0125] If the response information is not received within the second preset time length, it is indicated that the second STA is not associated with any AC in the roaming domain VLAN, and therefore, the second STA can be considered as first accessing, so that the second STA is associated with the first AC according to the first association strategy, to enable the second STA to perform intra-AC roaming through the first AC. The first association strategy can refer to the technical means of the STA first accessing and associating with the AC in the related art, and the embodiment of the application will not be described here.

[0126] In Figure 3 On the basis of the embodiment shown in the figure, the embodiment of the application further provides two supplementary schemes. One scheme is that if the response information is received within the second preset time length, the first AC can perform roaming with the third AC through a tunnel, to ensure that the session information and state of the second STA can be seamlessly transferred, and to improve the reliability and efficiency of roaming. The other scheme is that if the response information is not received within the second preset time length, the second STA can be associated according to the first association strategy, and this flexible strategy ensures that the second STA can perform effective roaming, and guarantees the continuity of network service.

[0127] Generally, the AP managed by the AC has regional characteristics, that is, the AP managed by each AC is physically aggregated, and the sum of the signal coverage range of the AP managed by each AC can be referred to as the "jurisdiction" of the AC, which can be regarded as the signal coverage range of the AC. There are two cases of inter-AC roaming:

[0128] One case is that the "jurisdiction" of two ACs has an overlapping area, and the STA can move through the overlapping area. Referring to Figure 4As shown in the AC "jurisdiction" schematic diagram, the "jurisdiction" of AC1 overlaps with the "jurisdiction" of AC2, so AC inter roaming can occur between AC10 and AC11; the "jurisdiction" of AC11 overlaps with the "jurisdiction" of AC12, so AC inter roaming can occur between AC11 and AC12; the "jurisdiction" of AC10 does not overlap with the "jurisdiction" of AC12, so AC inter roaming cannot occur between AC10 and AC12.

[0129] Another case is that the "jurisdiction" of two ACs does not overlap, and there is a signal blind area in between, but the signal loss time of STA30 when crossing the signal blind area does not exceed the anti-jitter time, so it is not enough for STA30 to time out and go offline, and AC inter roaming can be connected. Referring to Figure 5 As shown in the AC "jurisdiction" schematic diagram, the "jurisdiction" of AC13 does not overlap with the "jurisdiction" of AC14, but when STA30 crosses from the "jurisdiction" of AC13 to the "jurisdiction" of AC14, it can cross the signal blind area within the anti-jitter time, so AC inter roaming can occur between AC13 and AC14. Among them, for the definition of anti-jitter time, when STA30 leaves the signal coverage range of AC13, AC13 will keep the online state of STA30 for a period of time, if STA30 is online again within this period of time, it is not considered that STA30 is offline and then online, but it is considered that STA30 is always online, this period of time is called anti-jitter time, and the anti-jitter time can be set according to actual needs, for example, 2 minutes, 5 minutes, etc.

[0130] It can be seen that by exchanging foreign AP information to determine the neighbor AC, the neighbor discovery capability of the AP is used to quickly collect the information of the surrounding APs, so that the neighbor relationship between the ACs can be established in a short time, and the determined neighbor AC is the AC which has an overlapping area with the signal coverage range of the first AC. But this way cannot determine the neighbor AC which has no overlapping area with the signal coverage range of the first AC but the signal blind area is not enough to make the STA time out and go offline, while the roaming trajectory learning method can determine the neighbor AC in the above two cases, but it needs to determine the neighbor AC when the STA accesses, so the neighbor AC determined by simultaneously using the exchange foreign AP information method and the roaming trajectory learning method is more comprehensive.

[0131] In Figure 2 and Figure 3 On the basis of the embodiments shown, in an optional embodiment, the type of each first AP managed by the first AC can also be determined in the process of determining the neighbor AC, and accordingly, the wireless terminal roaming method provided by the application further comprises:

[0132] In the process of determining the at least one neighbor AC corresponding to the first AC, the type of each first AP is determined and written into an internal AP list; the type is a border AP or an inland AP, and each neighbor AP of the inland AP belongs to the first AC, and at least one neighbor AP of the border AP does not belong to the first AC;

[0133] If the type of any first AP is a border AP, a mapping relationship between the first AP and a corresponding neighbor AC is stored; the corresponding neighbor AC refers to an AC to which a neighbor AP of the first AP that does not belong to the first AC belongs.

[0134] Optionally, the mapping relationship between the first AP and the corresponding neighbor AC is stored by adding the mapping relationship between the first AP and the corresponding neighbor AC to the internal AP list, or storing the mapping relationship between the first AP and the corresponding neighbor AC in a border AP mapping relationship table. The border AP mapping relationship table stores the mapping relationship between each border AP and a corresponding neighbor AC.

[0135] By writing the type of the first AP into the internal AP list, the first AC can update and manage the AP information in real time. In addition, by distinguishing the border AP and the inland AP, the network administrator can more clearly understand the network topology structure. The border AP is located at the boundary of different ACs, and the inland AP is completely within the management range of the same AC. This type of distinction helps the visualization of the network topology, so that the network administrator can more intuitively understand the distribution and mutual relationship of the APs, facilitating network planning and optimization.

[0136] In an optional implementation, if the at least one neighbor AC corresponding to the first AC is determined by exchanging foreign AP information, the implementation of determining the type of each first AP in the process of determining the at least one neighbor AC corresponding to the first AC includes:

[0137] In a case where the neighbor AP information reported by the first AP contains a foreign AP identifier that does not belong to the first AC, it is determined that the type of the first AP is a border AP.

[0138] In a case where each AP identifier in the neighbor AP information reported by the first AP belongs to the first AC, or in a case where the neighbor AP information reported by the first AP contains a foreign AP identifier that does not belong to the first AC and no response information is received within a second preset time length, it is determined that the type of the first AP is an inland AP.

[0139] If the neighbor AP information reported by the first AP contains a foreign AP identifier not belonging to the first AC, and the first AC receives the response information within the second preset time length, it indicates that the foreign AP indicated by the foreign AP identifier belongs to a neighbor AC of the first AC, and the signal coverage range of the first AP and the signal coverage range of the foreign AP have an overlapping area, and correspondingly, the signal coverage range of the first AC and the signal coverage range of the neighbor AC have an overlapping area, so the first AP is located at the boundary of the first AC and the neighbor AC, and the type of the first AP is a boundary AP.

[0140] If each AP identifier in the neighbor AP information reported by the first AP belongs to the first AC, it indicates that the signal coverage range of the first AP does not have an overlapping area with the signal coverage range of any foreign AP, so the first AP is not located at the boundary of the first AC and any neighbor AC, and the type of the first AP can be considered as an inland AP.

[0141] If the neighbor AP information reported by the first AP contains a foreign AP identifier not belonging to the first AC, and the first AC does not receive the response information within the second preset time length, it indicates that no AC in the roaming domain VLAN claims the foreign AP indicated by the foreign AP identifier, which may be because the foreign AP belongs to another manufacturer or has not joined the roaming domain VLAN, and thus the type of the first AP can be considered as an inland AP.

[0142] Exemplarily, the initial type of each first AP in the internal AP list is an unknown identity AP, if the first AP cannot scan a foreign AP, the type of the first AP is updated from the initial type to an inland AP; if the first AP can scan a foreign AP, and the foreign AP has been claimed by another AC, the type of the first AP is updated from the initial type to a boundary AP, and the mapping relationship between the first AP and the AC claiming the foreign AP is also written into the internal AP list; if the first AP can scan a foreign AP, but no AC claims it within the learning period, the type of the first AP is updated from the initial type to an inland AP.

[0143] The embodiment of the application accurately identifies the boundary AP and the inland AP by analyzing the neighbor AP information reported by the first AP.

[0144] In an optional implementation, if at least one neighbor AC corresponding to the first AC is determined by the roaming trajectory learning manner, the implementation of determining the type of each first AP in the process of determining at least one neighbor AC corresponding to the first AC includes:

[0145] After the roaming query request is broadcasted in the roaming domain VLAN, if the response information sent by the third AC for the roaming query request is received within a second preset time length, it is determined that the type of the access AP is a border AP.

[0146] If the response information is not received within the second preset time length, it is determined that the type of the access AP is an inland AP.

[0147] The second STA accesses any AP managed by the first AC, and the AP can be regarded as an access AP.

[0148] If the response information sent by the third AC for the roaming query request is received within the second preset time length, it is indicated that the third AC is a neighbor AC of the first AC, and the second STA can perform inter-AC roaming through the access AP, and thus it can be determined that the type of the access AP is a border AP.

[0149] If the response information is not received within the second preset time length, it is indicated that the second STA is not associated with any AC in the roaming domain VLAN, and the second STA performs intra-AC roaming through the access AP, and thus it can be determined that the access AP is an inland AP. It should be noted that if other STAs access the access AP and perform inter-AC roaming through the access AP in the process of determining at least one neighbor AC corresponding to the first AC, the type of the access AP can also be updated to a border AP.

[0150] The embodiments of the present application distinguish between the border AP and the inland AP by analyzing whether the response information for the roaming query request is received or not, and this method is relatively simple and easy to implement.

[0151] In the embodiments of the present application, after at least one neighbor AC corresponding to the first AC is determined, when the STA accesses any AP managed by the first AC, the first AC performs the wireless terminal roaming method provided by the present application to realize roaming of the STA. Figure 6 is a flow diagram of a wireless terminal roaming method provided by the embodiments of the present application. As shown in the figure, the method is applied to a first AC. The wireless terminal roaming method comprises the following steps: Figure 6

[0152] In response to the first STA accessing any AP managed by the first AC, if it is determined that the first STA is not associated with the first AC, the roaming query request is sent to at least one neighbor AC, respectively. The neighbor AC is an AC whose signal coverage range is adjacent to the signal coverage range of the first AC.

[0153] ​The first STA accesses an AP, and the AP reports STA information of the first STA to the first AC, the STA information including a STA identifier. Optionally, the first AC stores a terminal list including STA identifiers corresponding to STAs associated with the first AC; and the determination of whether the first STA is associated with the first AC is implemented by determining whether the terminal list includes the STA identifier corresponding to the first STA. If the terminal list includes the STA identifier corresponding to the first STA, it is determined that the first STA is associated with the first AC; otherwise, it is determined that the first STA is not associated with the first AC.

[0154] If it is determined that the first STA is not associated with the first AC, it is determined that the first STA accesses the first AC for the first time, and the first STA can be associated with other ACs in the roaming domain VLAN or can not be associated with any AC in the roaming domain VLAN. In this case, since the first AC has determined at least one neighbor AC, the first AC can send a roaming query request to the at least one neighbor AC, respectively. Specifically, the first AC obtains AC identifiers corresponding to the at least one neighbor AC from the neighbor AC list. In one case, the first AC has established a tunnel with each neighbor AC when determining the neighbor AC, and the first AC sends a roaming query request to the neighbor AC indicated by the obtained at least one AC identifier through the tunnel, respectively, to ensure that the roaming query request can be correctly routed to the neighbor AC. The roaming query request carries the STA identifier corresponding to the first STA. In another case, the first AC does not establish a tunnel when determining the neighbor AC, and then the first AC needs to establish a tunnel with each neighbor AC before sending a roaming query request.

[0155] It should be noted that if it is determined that the first STA is associated with the first AC, it is determined that the first STA has accessed the first AC before, and then the AC-in roaming processing is directly performed.

[0156] In step S302, if the response information sent by the target neighbor AC in response to the roaming query request is received, roaming is performed through the corresponding tunnel with the target neighbor AC.

[0157] The at least one neighbor AC receives the roaming query request sent by the first AC, respectively, and determines whether the first STA is associated with the local AC after receiving the roaming query request sent by the first AC. Optionally, taking any neighbor AC as an example, the neighbor AC stores a terminal list including STA identifiers corresponding to STAs associated with the neighbor AC; and the determination of whether the first STA is associated with the neighbor AC is implemented by determining whether the terminal list includes the STA identifier corresponding to the first STA. If the terminal list includes the STA identifier corresponding to the first STA, it is determined that the first STA is associated with the neighbor AC; otherwise, it is determined that the first STA is not associated with the neighbor AC.

[0158] For the convenience of distinguishing, the neighbor AC associated with the first STA is called target neighbor AC, and the target neighbor AC sends the response information to the first AC for the roaming query request in the case that the first STA is determined to have associated with the target neighbor AC, so as to "claim" the first STA. The response information includes the AC identifier corresponding to the target neighbor AC and the STA identifier corresponding to the second STA.

[0159] The first AC sends the roaming query request to the at least one neighbor AC after receiving the response information.

[0160] In the case that the first STA accesses any AP managed by the first AC, if it is determined that the first AC is not associated with the first STA, it indicates that the first STA has not connected to the wireless network through the first AC before. In this case, at least one neighbor AC corresponding to the first AC can be acquired, so that the roaming query request is sent to the at least one neighbor AC only. If the response information sent by any AC of the at least one neighbor AC is received, the target neighbor AC sending the response information is roamed through the tunnel. The definition of the neighbor AC is that the signal coverage range is adjacent to the signal coverage range of the first AC, so that the number of invalid query requests is reduced, thereby reducing the total data transmission amount, reducing the bandwidth usage, and further reducing the network load. On this basis, compared with the scheme of specifying an AC as a total controller, the distributed query mechanism is used in the present application to avoid the dependence on a single total controller, thereby reducing the requirement for the performance of the device and the cost. On this basis, compared with the scheme that the terminal lists of the ACs in the roaming group are synchronized with each other, the roaming query request is sent to the neighbor AC only when needed in the present application, instead of synchronizing all the terminal lists, so that the storage pressure of the AC is reduced.

[0161] The step S302 is described for the case of receiving the response information. In the present application, there is also a case that no response information is received. Accordingly, after the roaming query request is sent to the at least one neighbor AC respectively, the method provided by the present application further includes:

[0162] If the response information is not received within the second preset time length, the first STA is associated according to the first association strategy.

[0163] If the response information is not received within the second preset time length, it indicates that the first STA is not associated with any AC in the roaming domain VLAN, and thus the first STA can be considered to be accessed for the first time, so that the first STA is associated with the first AC according to the first association strategy, so that the first STA can roam in the AC through the first AC. The first association strategy can refer to the technical means of the STA accessing and associating with the AC for the first time in the related art, and the present application will not be described here.

[0164] In an alternative embodiment, the implementation of the step of sending the roaming query request to each of the at least one neighbor AC in step S301 comprises: if it is determined that the type of the access AP is a border AP, or it is determined that the type of the access AP is an inland AP and the first STA accesses the access AP using a re-association request frame, then the roaming query request is sent to each of all the neighbor ACs of the first AC.

[0165] The first AC stores an internal AP list, which includes each AP managed by the first AC, and further includes the type of each AP, which is either a border AP or an inland AP. Thus, the first AC can query the type of the access AP from the internal AP list.

[0166] The request frame used by the STA when accessing the AP can be an association request frame, or a re-association request frame.

[0167] In the first case, if it is an association request frame, it means that the STA considers that it is accessing the wireless network for the first time, and thus there is no need to send a roaming query request to the neighbor ACs. Correspondingly, the method provided by the embodiment of the present application further comprises: if it is determined that the type of the access AP is an inland AP and the STA accesses the access AP using an association request frame, then the first AC is associated with the STA according to a first-time association strategy.

[0168] In the second case, if it is a re-association request frame, it means that the STA considers that it has accessed the wireless network before and is accessing the wireless network again. Thus, the STA is very likely to have been associated with a certain AC in the roaming domain VLAN. Therefore, in the case where the type of the access AP is a border AP, or the type of the access AP is an inland AP but the STA uses a re-association request frame, a roaming query request can be sent to each of the neighbor ACs.

[0169] By sending the roaming query request to each of all the neighbor ACs, it is ensured that all possible cross-AC roaming paths are covered, and the reliability and success rate of roaming are improved.

[0170] In an alternative embodiment, the first AC further stores a mapping relationship between the APs belonging to the border AP type and the corresponding neighbor ACs. If it is determined that the type of the access AP is a border AP, then a roaming query request can be further sent to each of the neighbor ACs having a mapping relationship with the access AP.

[0171] The first AC can query the neighbor ACs having a mapping relationship with the access AP from the internal AP list or the border AP mapping relationship table. By sending the roaming query request to each of the neighbor ACs having a mapping relationship with the access AP, the number of invalid query requests is further reduced, and the query efficiency is improved.

[0172] In the embodiments of the present application, the roaming track learning manner can determine both the neighbor ACs overlapping the AC and the neighbor ACs not overlapping the AC, and thus has high accuracy, but depends on the access of the STA, resulting in slow determination and long time consumption. The exchanging foreign AP information manner does not depend on the access of the STA, and thus can quickly determine the neighbor ACs, but can only determine the neighbor ACs overlapping the AC, and it is difficult to determine all the neighbor ACs, and thus has low accuracy. Considering that the number of ACs in the roaming domain VLAN can be large or small, the operation of sending the roaming query request to at least one neighbor AC in step S301 can also be performed according to the number of ACs, and specifically includes the following two cases.

[0173] In a first case, in response to the number of ACs included in the roaming domain VLAN being greater than a first preset threshold, the roaming query request is sent to at least one neighbor AC, which is determined by the exchanging foreign AP information manner and the roaming track learning manner. The first preset threshold can be set as needed, for example, the first preset threshold is 4, 5 or 6, etc. The number of ACs included in the roaming domain VLAN being greater than the first preset threshold indicates that the number of ACs is large, and in this case, the exchanging foreign AP information manner and the roaming track learning manner can be used to jointly determine the neighbor ACs, so that the neighbor ACs can be quickly determined and all the neighbor ACs can be determined, and thus the accuracy is high.

[0174] In a second case, in response to the number of ACs included in the roaming domain VLAN being less than or equal to the first preset threshold, the roaming query request is sent to at least one neighbor AC, which is determined by the roaming track learning manner. The number of ACs included in the roaming domain VLAN being less than or equal to the first preset threshold indicates that the number of ACs is small, and in this case, the roaming track learning manner can be used to determine the neighbor ACs, and thus the accuracy is high, and the processing resources of the first AC can also be saved.

[0175] Optionally, in the case that the number of ACs included in the roaming domain VLAN is less than or equal to the first preset threshold, the first AC can also be configured to send the roaming query request in advance, which can be configured to send the request to the neighbor ACs or configured to broadcast the request in the roaming domain.

[0176] In one case, in response to the number of ACs included in the roaming domain VLAN being less than or equal to the first preset threshold and the configured sending mode being sending the request to the neighbor AC, the roaming query request is sent to at least one neighbor AC respectively, which is determined by the exchanging foreign AP information mode or the roaming track learning mode. In another case, in response to the number of ACs included in the roaming domain VLAN being less than or equal to the first preset threshold and the configured sending mode being roaming domain broadcast request, the roaming query request is broadcasted in the roaming domain VLAN; and if the response information sent by any AC to the roaming query request is received, the roaming is performed with the AC through the corresponding tunnel.

[0177] In the embodiment of the present application, the first AC can dynamically adjust the strategy according to the network size, that is, according to the number of ACs included in the roaming domain VLAN, and the flexibility is relatively strong.

[0178] Referring to Figure 1 , the AC 10, the AC 11 and the AC 12 respectively determine at least one neighbor AC in the learning period, and if the STA 30 accesses any AP 20, the AC to which the AP 20 belongs broadcasts the roaming query request in the roaming domain VLAN.

[0179] Referring to Figure 7 , the AC 10 and the AC 11 have determined the neighbor relationship according to the roaming track learning mode and established the MTI tunnel in the learning period, and the AC 11 and the AC 12 have determined the neighbor relationship according to the exchanging AP information mode and established the MTI tunnel in the learning period, and accordingly, if the STA 30 accesses the border AP 21 managed by the AC 11 outside the learning period, the roaming query request is only sent to at least one neighbor AC respectively; and if the STA 31 accesses the inland AP 22 managed by the AC 12, the roaming mode is further selected according to the request frame used by the STA 30.

[0180] Figure 8 is a structural schematic diagram of a wireless terminal roaming device provided by the embodiment of the present application, as shown in Figure 8 , the wireless terminal roaming device 40 can be arranged in the first AC, and the wireless terminal roaming device 40 comprises:

[0181] The sending module 401 is configured to, in response to the first wireless terminal STA accessing any wireless access point AP managed by the first AC, if it is determined that the first STA is not associated with the first AC, send the roaming query request to at least one neighbor AC respectively; the neighbor AC is an AC adjacent to the first AC in signal coverage range;

[0182] The roaming module 402 is configured to, if the response information sent by the target neighbor AC to the roaming query request is received, perform the roaming with the target neighbor AC through the corresponding tunnel.

[0183] In some embodiments, the sending module 401 is specifically configured to:

[0184] If it is determined that the type of the access AP is a border AP, or it is determined that the type of the access AP is an inland AP and the first STA accesses the access AP using a re-association request frame, the roaming query request is sent to all neighbor ACs of the first AC respectively.

[0185] In some embodiments, the sending module 401 is specifically configured to:

[0186] If it is determined that the type of the access AP is a border AP, the roaming query request is sent to each neighbor AC having a mapping relationship with the access AP respectively.

[0187] In some embodiments, if it is determined that the first STA is not associated with the first AC, the roaming module 402 is further configured to: if it is determined that the type of the access AP is an inland AP and the first STA accesses the access AP using an association request frame, associate with the first STA according to a first association strategy.

[0188] In some embodiments, the roaming module 402 is further configured to: after sending the roaming query request to at least one neighbor AC respectively, if no response information is received within a second preset time length, associate with the first STA according to a first association strategy.

[0189] In some embodiments, the determination module is further configured to:

[0190] determine at least one neighbor AC corresponding to the first AC through an exchange of foreign AP information manner within a first preset time length after the first AC is powered on;

[0191] and / or,

[0192] determine at least one neighbor AC corresponding to the first AC through a roaming trajectory learning manner within a first preset time length after the first AC is powered on.

[0193] In some embodiments, the roaming domain virtual local area network (VLAN) includes a plurality of ACs, and the plurality of ACs include the first AC, and when the determination module determines at least one neighbor AC corresponding to the first AC through an exchange of foreign AP information manner within a first preset time length after the first AC is powered on, the determination module is specifically configured to:

[0194] perform the following operations within the first preset time length after the first AC is powered on until the first preset time length is reached, and the following operations include:

[0195] obtain neighbor AP information reported by any first AP managed by the first AC; the neighbor AP information includes AP identifiers respectively corresponding to each neighbor AP identified by the first AP;

[0196] In the case that the neighbor AP information contains a foreign AP identifier not belonging to the first AC, the foreign AP identifier is added to the foreign AP list, and the foreign AP list is periodically broadcasted within the roaming domain VLAN;

[0197] If the response information sent by the second AC for the foreign AP list is received, it is determined that the second AC is a neighbor AC; the response information is sent by the second AC to the first AC in the case that it is determined that the foreign AP list contains an identifier corresponding to an AP belonging to the second AC.

[0198] In some embodiments, the roaming domain VLAN includes a plurality of ACs, and the plurality of ACs includes the first AC, and when the determining module determines at least one neighbor AC corresponding to the first AC through the roaming track learning manner within a first preset time period after the first AC is powered on, the determining module is specifically configured to:

[0199] The following operations are performed within the first preset time period after the first AC is powered on until the first preset time period is reached, and the following operations include:

[0200] In response to the second STA accessing any first AP managed by the first AC, if it is determined that the second STA is not associated with the first AC, a roaming query request is broadcasted within the roaming domain VLAN;

[0201] If the response information sent by the third AC for the roaming query request is received, it is determined that the third AC is a neighbor AC.

[0202] In some embodiments, the determining module is further configured to:

[0203] If the response information sent by the third AC for the roaming query request is received within the second preset time period, roaming is performed through the corresponding tunnel with the third AC.

[0204] If the response information is not received within the second preset time period, the second STA is associated according to a first association strategy.

[0205] In some embodiments, the determining module is further configured to:

[0206] In the process of determining at least one neighbor AC corresponding to the first AC, the type of each first AP is determined, and the type of each first AP is written into an internal AP list; the type is a border AP or an inland AP, each neighbor AP of the inland AP belongs to the first AC, and at least one neighbor AP of the border AP does not belong to the first AC;

[0207] If the type of any first AP is a border AP, the mapping relationship between the first AP and the corresponding neighbor AC is stored; the corresponding neighbor AC is an AC to which a neighbor AP of the first AP that does not belong to the first AC belongs.

[0208] In some embodiments, if the at least one neighbor AC corresponding to the first AC is determined by the exchanging foreign AP information manner, the determining module is specifically configured to:

[0209] In a case where the neighbor AP information reported by the first AP contains foreign AP identifiers not belonging to the first AC, the type of the first AP is determined as a border AP.

[0210] In a case where each AP identifier in the neighbor AP information reported by the first AP belongs to the first AC, or in a case where the neighbor AP information reported by the first AP contains foreign AP identifiers not belonging to the first AC and no response information is received within a second preset time length, the type of the first AP is determined as an inland AP.

[0211] In some embodiments, if the at least one neighbor AC corresponding to the first AC is determined by the roaming trajectory learning manner, the determining module is specifically configured to:

[0212] After the roaming query request is broadcasted in the roaming domain VLAN, if the response information sent by the third AC in response to the roaming query request is received within a second preset time length, the type of the access AP is determined as a border AP.

[0213] If no response information is received within the second preset time length, the type of the access AP is determined as an inland AP.

[0214] In some embodiments, the sending module 401 is specifically configured to:

[0215] In response to the number of ACs included in the roaming domain VLAN being greater than a first preset threshold, the sending module 401 is specifically configured to send the roaming query request to at least one neighbor AC respectively, the neighbor AC being determined by the exchanging foreign AP information manner and the roaming trajectory learning manner.

[0216] In some embodiments, the sending module 401 is specifically configured to:

[0217] In response to the number of ACs included in the roaming domain VLAN being less than or equal to the first preset threshold and the configured sending manner being sending the request to the neighbor AC, the sending module 401 is specifically configured to send the roaming query request to at least one neighbor AC respectively, the neighbor AC being determined by the roaming trajectory learning manner.

[0218] In some embodiments, the roaming module 402 is further configured to:

[0219] In response to the number of ACs included in the roaming domain VLAN being less than or equal to the first preset threshold and the configured sending manner being broadcasting the request in the roaming domain VLAN, the roaming module 402 is further configured to broadcast the roaming query request in the roaming domain VLAN.

[0220] If the response information sent by any one of the ACs for the roaming query request is received, roaming is performed with the AC through a corresponding tunnel.

[0221] The wireless terminal roaming apparatus 40 provided by the embodiments of the present application can implement the technical solutions of the corresponding method embodiments, and the implementation principles and technical effects are similar to those of the corresponding method embodiments, which will not be described here again.

[0222] The embodiments of the present application further provide an access controller. Figure 9 As shown in the figure, the access controller 50 comprises a processor 501 and a memory 502 connected with the processor 501. Figure 9 The memory 502 stores computer execution instructions; and the processor 501 executes the computer execution instructions stored in the memory 502 to implement the wireless terminal roaming method provided by the present application.

[0223] The memory 502 stores computer execution instructions; and the processor 501 executes the computer execution instructions stored in the memory 502 to implement the wireless terminal roaming method provided by the present application.

[0224] In the embodiments of the present application, the memory 502 and the processor 501 are connected through a bus. The bus can be an Industry Standard Architecture (ISA) bus, a Peripheral Component Interconnect (PCI) bus or an Extended Industry Standard Architecture (EISA) bus, etc. The bus can be divided into an address bus, a data bus, a control bus, etc. The components shown in the text, their connections and relationships, and their functions are merely examples, and are not intended to limit the implementation of the present application described and / or claimed herein. The various components are connected with each other through different buses, and can be installed on a common mainboard or in other ways as needed.

[0225] In the exemplary embodiments, a computer readable storage medium is also provided, and the computer readable storage medium stores computer execution instructions. The computer execution instructions are executed by the processor to implement the wireless terminal roaming method provided by the present application.

[0226] In the exemplary embodiments, a computer program product is also provided, and the computer program product comprises a computer program. When the computer program in the computer program product is executed by the processor, the computer program is used to implement the wireless terminal roaming method provided by the present application.

[0227] It should be noted that, for the foregoing method embodiments, for the sake of simple description, they are all described as a combination of a series of actions, but those skilled in the art should know that the present application is not limited to the order of the actions described, because according to the present application, certain steps can be performed in other orders or simultaneously. Secondly, those skilled in the art should know that the embodiments described in the specification are all optional embodiments, and the actions and modules involved are not necessarily required by the present application.

[0228] Further, it should be noted that although each step in the flowchart is shown in sequence according to the direction of the arrow, these steps are not necessarily executed in sequence according to the direction of the arrow. Unless otherwise specified herein, the execution of these steps is not strictly limited in sequence, and these steps can be executed in other orders. Moreover, at least part of the steps in the flowchart can include multiple sub-steps or multiple stages, which are not necessarily executed at the same time, but can be executed at different times, and the execution order of these sub-steps or stages is not necessarily sequential, but can be executed in rotation or alternation with other steps or sub-steps or stages of other steps.

[0229] It should be understood that the above-described device embodiments are only illustrative, and the device of the present application can also be implemented in other ways. For example, the division of units / modules in the above embodiments is only a logical functional division, and actual implementation can have another division method. For example, multiple units, modules or components can be combined, or can be integrated into another system, or some features can be omitted or not executed.

[0230] In addition, unless otherwise specified, each functional unit / module in each embodiment of the present application can be integrated in one unit / module, or each unit / module can exist physically, or two or more units / modules can be integrated together. The integrated unit / module can be realized in the form of hardware or in the form of a software program module.

[0231] If implemented in hardware, the integrated units / modules can be digital circuitry, analog circuitry, or a combination of both. The physical implementation of the hardware structures includes, but is not limited to, transistors, memristors, etc. Unless otherwise specified, a processor can be any suitable hardware processor, such as a central processing unit (CPU), a graphics processing unit (GPU), an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a digital signal processor (DSP), a programmable logic device (PLD), a field programmable gate array (FPGA), a controller, a microcontroller, a microprocessor, or other electronic device. Unless otherwise specified, a memory can be implemented by any type of volatile or non-volatile storage devices or a combination thereof, such as a U disk, a random-access memory (RAM), a static random-access memory (SRAM), a dynamic random-access memory (DRAM), an enhanced dynamic random-access memory (EDRAM), an electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), a programmable read-only memory (PROM), a read-only memory (ROM), a high-bandwidth memory (HBM), a hybrid memory cube (HMC), or various media that can store program codes.

[0232] The integrated units / modules, if implemented in the form of software program modules and sold or used as independent products, can be stored in a computer readable memory. Based on such understanding, the technical solutions of the present application can be embodied in the form of a software product, and the computer software product is stored in a memory, and includes a number of instructions to enable an access controller to perform all or part of the steps of the method of each embodiment of the present application.

[0233] In the above embodiments, the description of each embodiment has its own focus, and the parts not described in detail in a certain embodiment can be referred to the relevant description of other embodiments. The technical features of the above embodiments can be combined arbitrarily, and in order to make the description concise, all possible combinations of the technical features in the above embodiments are not described, however, as long as the combinations of the technical features do not exist contradictory, they should be considered as the scope of the present application.

[0234] Other embodiments of the present application will be apparent to those skilled in the art from consideration of the specification and practice of the application disclosed herein. The application is intended to cover any variations, uses or adaptations of the application following, in general, the principles of the application and including such departures from the present disclosure as come within known or customary practice in the art to which the application pertains or can relate. The specification and examples are to be regarded as exemplary only, and the true scope and spirit of the application are indicated by the appended claims.

[0235] It should be understood that the application is not limited to the precise construction that has been described above and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, and that various modifications and changes can be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the scope of the application. The scope of the application should be limited only by the appended claims.

Claims

1. A method of wireless terminal roaming, characterized by, The method is applied to a first access controller (AC), and the method comprises: in response to a first wireless terminal (STA) accessing any wireless access point (AP) managed by the first AC, if it is determined that the first STA is not associated with the first AC, sending a roaming query request to at least one neighbor AC respectively; the neighbor AC is an AC adjacent to the first AC in signal coverage range; if response information sent by a target neighbor AC for the roaming query request is received, roaming with the target neighbor AC through a corresponding tunnel.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein, The sending of the roaming query request to at least one neighbor AC respectively comprises: if it is determined that the type of the accessed AP is a border AP, or it is determined that the type of the accessed AP is an inland AP and the first STA accesses the accessed AP using a re-association request frame, sending a roaming query request to all neighbor ACs of the first AC respectively.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein, The sending of the roaming query request to at least one neighbor AC respectively comprises: if it is determined that the type of the accessed AP is a border AP, sending a roaming query request to each neighbor AC having a mapping relationship with the accessed AP respectively.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein, If it is determined that the first STA is not associated with the first AC, the method further comprises: if it is determined that the type of the accessed AP is an inland AP and the first STA accesses the accessed AP using an association request frame, associating with the first STA according to a first association strategy.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein, After the sending of the roaming query request to at least one neighbor AC respectively, the method further comprises: if response information is not received within a second preset time length, associating with the first STA according to a first association strategy.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein, The method further comprises: determining at least one neighbor AC corresponding to the first AC through an exchange of foreign AP information within a first preset time length after the first AC is powered on; and / or, determining at least one neighbor AC corresponding to the first AC through a roaming trajectory learning within a first preset time length after the first AC is powered on.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein, The roaming domain virtual local area network (VLAN) comprises a plurality of ACs, and the plurality of ACs comprise the first AC, and the determining of the at least one neighbor AC corresponding to the first AC through the exchange of foreign AP information within the first preset time length after the first AC is powered on comprises: performing the following operations within the first preset time length after the first AC is powered on until the first preset time length is reached, the following operations comprising: obtaining neighbor AP information reported by any first AP managed by the first AC; the neighbor AP information comprises AP identifiers respectively corresponding to each neighbor AP identified by the first AP; in a case where the neighbor AP information contains a foreign AP identifier not belonging to the first AC, adding the foreign AP identifier to a foreign AP list, and periodically broadcasting the foreign AP list within the roaming domain VLAN; if response information sent by a second AC for the foreign AP list is received, determining that the second AC is a neighbor AC; the response information is sent by the second AC to the first AC in a case where it is determined that the foreign AP list contains an AP identifier belonging to the second AC.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein, The roaming domain VLAN includes a plurality of ACs, and the plurality of ACs include a first AC, and the first AC determines at least one neighbor AC corresponding to the first AC through a roaming track learning manner within a first preset time period after the first AC is started, and the method comprises the following steps of: The following operations are performed within the first preset time period after the first AC is started until the first preset time period is reached, and the operations comprise the following steps of: In response to the second STA accessing any first AP managed by the first AC, if it is determined that the second STA is not associated with the first AC, a roaming query request is broadcasted in the roaming domain VLAN; If response information sent by the third AC for the roaming query request is received, it is determined that the third AC is a neighbor AC.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein, Further comprising: If response information sent by the third AC for the roaming query request is received within a second preset time period, roaming is performed with the third AC through a corresponding tunnel; If no response information is received within the second preset time period, the second STA is associated according to a first association strategy.

10. The method of claim 8, wherein, Further comprising: In the process of determining the at least one neighbor AC corresponding to the first AC, the types of the first APs are determined, and the types of the first APs are written into an internal AP list; The types are border APs or inland APs, and the neighbor APs of the inland APs all belong to the first AC, and at least one of the neighbor APs of the border APs does not belong to the first AC; If the type of any first AP is a border AP, the mapping relationship between the first AP and the corresponding neighbor AC is stored; The corresponding neighbor AC is an AC to which a neighbor AP of the first AP that does not belong to the first AC belongs.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein, If the at least one neighbor AC corresponding to the first AC is determined through the exchange of foreign AP information, the types of the first APs are determined in the process of determining the at least one neighbor AC corresponding to the first AC, and the types of the first APs are written into an internal AP list, and the types comprise the following steps: If the neighbor AP information reported by the first AP includes a foreign AP identifier that does not belong to the first AC, it is determined that the type of the first AP is a border AP; If all AP identifiers in the neighbor AP information reported by the first AP belong to the first AC, or if the neighbor AP information reported by the first AP includes a foreign AP identifier that does not belong to the first AC and no response information is received within a second preset time period, it is determined that the type of the first AP is an inland AP.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein, If the at least one neighbor AC corresponding to the first AC is determined through the roaming track learning manner, the types of the first APs are determined in the process of determining the at least one neighbor AC corresponding to the first AC, and the types of the first APs are written into an internal AP list, and the types comprise the following steps: After the roaming query request is broadcasted in the roaming domain VLAN, if response information sent by the third AC for the roaming query request is received within a second preset time period, it is determined that the type of the access AP is a border AP; If no response information is received within the second preset time period, it is determined that the type of the access AP is an inland AP.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein, The roaming query request is sent to the at least one neighbor AC, comprising: In response to the number of ACs included in the roaming domain VLAN being greater than a first preset threshold, a roaming query request is sent to at least one neighbor AC respectively, the neighbor AC being determined by exchanging foreign AP information and roaming track learning.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein, The sending of the roaming query request to the at least one neighbor AC respectively comprises: In response to the number of ACs included in the roaming domain VLAN being less than or equal to the first preset threshold and the configured sending mode being sending a request to a neighbor AC, a roaming query request is sent to at least one neighbor AC respectively, the neighbor AC being determined by roaming track learning.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein, Further comprising: In response to the number of ACs included in the roaming domain VLAN being less than or equal to the first preset threshold and the configured sending mode being roaming domain broadcast request, the roaming query request is broadcasted in the roaming domain VLAN; If response information sent by any one AC to the roaming query request is received, roaming is performed with the AC through a corresponding tunnel.

16. A wireless terminal roaming apparatus, comprising: The device is arranged in a first access controller AC, and the device comprises: A sending module, configured to, in response to a first wireless terminal STA accessing any wireless access point AP managed by the first AC, if it is determined that the first STA is not associated with the first AC, send a roaming query request to at least one neighbor AC respectively, the neighbor AC being an AC whose signal coverage range is adjacent to the signal coverage range of the first AC; A roaming module, configured to, if response information sent by a target neighbor AC to the roaming query request is received, perform roaming with the target neighbor AC through a corresponding tunnel.

17. An access controller, characterized by Comprise: A processor and a memory connected to the processor in communication; The memory stores computer execution instructions; The processor executes the computer execution instructions stored in the memory to implement the wireless terminal roaming method according to any one of claims 1 to 15.

18. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that, The computer readable storage medium stores computer execution instructions, and the computer execution instructions are executed by the processor to implement the wireless terminal roaming method according to any one of claims 1 to 15.

19. A computer program product comprising a computer program, characterized in that, The computer program is executed by the processor to implement the wireless terminal roaming method according to any one of claims 1 to 15.

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