Why do Google Mini and Home devices broadcast wifi beacon packets for a hidden network?

[stephenrjr]

Google Home Mini, Home, and Nest Audio devices advertise themselves on Wifi prior to being joined to a home.  But, after they join and are connected to the in-home Wifi system, they continue to advertise their presence on a hidden network matching the same Wifi channel to which they are already connected.  In these beacon packets, they indicate 'access point' as if to allow other Google devices to connect with them. 

1) What functionality does this enable?

2) Is there a way to disable this behavior to avoid polluting the Wifi channel with low-bandwidth beacon packets?

[Muddi]

Hey stephenrjr,

Thanks for reaching out. To confirm, are you pertaining to the temporary hotspot/SSID that the Google Mini is broadcasting? Can you send us a screenshot or a photo of what you're seeing on your WiFi network, so we can check it further?

Looking forward to your response.

Cheers,

Muddi

[stephenrjr]

Hi Muddi - not sure I would called it 'temporary' since these persist even after completing the joining process.

I'm using an app called 'WiFi Explorer' on my Mac and can change the 'Advanced Details'.  I have 2 Access Points in my setup and there are separate 2.4G channels on each AP:  Channel 4 and 9 (non-overlapping and avoiding my noisy neighbor channels!).

Here are the details for the hidden Google network advertising on Channel 9:


And the information for the other hidden network on Channel 4:

The vendor listed for each of these networks is 'Google Inc.'  I'm not entirely sure how WiFi Explorer determined the vendor, but the OUI for each hidden BSSID is 'FA:8F:CA'

Let me know if you need more information - I can also provide Wireshark captures of the beacons, if needed.

[Muddi]

Hey stephenrjr,

Thanks for sharing all the details, and we appreciate your efforts. We'd love to take a look into this for you. Please fill out this form with all the needed information then let me know once done.

Cheers,

Muddi

[Muddi]

Hey stephenrjr,

Checking in to see if you are able to fill out the form? 

Looking forward to your response.

Cheers,

Muddi

[Muddi]

Hey stephenrjr,

Just wanted to check if you are able to fill out the form? If not, please click this link and let us know once done.

Cheers,

Muddi

[Jake]

Hey stephenrjr,

I wanted to check in and see if you had any questions. Please let me know, as I will be locking the thread in 24 hours due to inactivity.

Best regards,

Jake

[Jake]

Hey stephenrjr,

It has been a few days since the last reply, and I am going to lock the thread at this time. If you have any questions, please feel free to create a new post. 

Best regards,
Jake