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WiFi Explorer Changelog

What's new in WiFi Explorer 3.5.1

Jan 18, 2024
  • Adds support for Huawei AP names.
  • Improves error handling when parsing malformed information elements.
  • Fixes incorrect wide channel and visualization of Wi-Fi 7 networks using 320 MHz channels.
  • Other minor fixes and improvements.

New in WiFi Explorer 3.5 (Sep 6, 2023)

  • Adds support for the Multi-Link (107) element.
  • Fixes the decoding of the Transmit Power Envelope element.
  • Fixes an issue where some WPA/WPA2 networks were being identified as WPA2 only.
  • Other minor fixes and improvements.

New in WiFi Explorer 3.4.4 (Jul 21, 2023)

  • Fixes a crash that may occur when decoding certain Aruba-specific information elements.
  • Fixes filtering by security mode.
  • Improves vendor name resolution.
  • Other minor fixes and improvements.

New in WiFi Explorer 3.4.3 (Jun 8, 2023)

  • Adds support for Wi-Fi 7 (IEEE P802.11be/D3.1) networks.
  • Adds support for Alta Labs access points.
  • Adds support for Aruba's LCI vendor-specific IE.
  • Fixes the Reduced Neighbor Report IE decoder to display all Neighbor AP Information fields.
  • Fixes visualization of 5 GHz networks using 160 MHz channels in the UNII-3 and UNII-4 bands.
  • Fixes refreshing of charts to match the refresh rate of scans.
  • Other minor fixes and improvements.

New in WiFi Explorer 3.4.2 (Apr 9, 2023)

  • Fixes incorrect security mode for networks using FT SAE.
  • Improves vendor name detection heuristics.
  • Improves support for 6 GHz networks.
  • Other minor fixes and improvements.

New in WiFi Explorer 3.4.1 (Jan 26, 2023)

  • Adds support for scanning and displaying 6 GHz networks on Macs with Wi-Fi 6E.
  • Adds support for Extreme Networks AP name in Nokia vendor-specific IE.
  • Other minor fixes and improvements.

New in WiFi Explorer 3.4 (Nov 10, 2022)

  • Adds support for AP name for Arista and Alcatel-Lucent access points.
  • Improves the Spectrum view by highlighting the primary channel of the selected network.
  • Improves vendor name resolution for HP and Ubiquiti access points.
  • Fixes incorrect calculation of channel width for 802.11n networks.
  • Fixes a memory leak that may occur when parsing certain malformed information elements.
  • Drops support for macOS High Sierra 10.13.
  • Other minor fixes and improvements.

New in WiFi Explorer 3.3.6 (May 31, 2022)

  • Fixes an issue that causes annotations not to be saved.
  • Fixes incorrect mode and advertised amendments for networks in files saved using older versions of WiFi Explorer.
  • Adds WPS (Wi-Fi Protected Setup) column back (this time for sure).
  • Improves parsing of the Country information element.
  • Other minor fixes and improvements.

New in WiFi Explorer 3.3.5 (Apr 20, 2022)

  • Changes to maintain a single vendor database that can be shared by other apps, including WiFi Signal.
  • Improves vendor name resolution for Meraki APs.
  • Improves the Quick Look plugin for .wifiexplorer files.
  • Improves detection of FT Adaptive mode when using WPA3.
  • Fixes an issue when refreshing after updating the vendor database.
  • Other minor fixes and improvements.

New in WiFi Explorer 3.3.4 (Mar 14, 2022)

  • Adds ability to define 0% and 100% dBm values when displaying signal strength as %.
  • Other minor fixes and improvements.

New in WiFi Explorer 3.3.3 (Jan 14, 2022)

  • Brings back the WPS (Wi-Fi Protected Setup) column, which we removed by mistake in a previous update.
  • Fixes the display of invalid UTF8-encoded SSIDs.
  • Improves the filtering of networks by BSSID.

New in WiFi Explorer 3.3.2 (Nov 15, 2021)

  • Improves handling of network names that contain non-printable characters.
  • Other fixes and improvements.

New in WiFi Explorer 3.3.1 (Aug 4, 2021)

  • Fixes an issue when entering filter strings with tabs and other whitespace characters.
  • Fixes highlighting of column values matching the specified filter.
  • Other fixes and improvements.

New in WiFi Explorer 3.2 (Jun 18, 2021)

  • Adds support for the Time Zone, Multiple BSSID, and Multiple BSSID-Index information elements.
  • Improves support for the Roaming Consortium, HS2.0 Indication, HE Capabilities, and HE Operation information elements.
  • Fixes missing keyboard shortcut for entering/exiting full screen mode.
  • Fixes number of spatial streams for Wi-Fi 6 networks using a 160 MHz channel width.
  • Other fixes and improvements.

New in WiFi Explorer 3.1 (May 4, 2021)

  • Adds support for the Reduce Neighbor Report and Wi-Fi Alliance MBO-OCE information elements.
  • Fixes the display of networks in the 5 GHz band that are using a 160 MHz channel width.
  • Other fixes and improvements.

New in WiFi Explorer 3.0.4 (Feb 26, 2021)

  • Fixes an issue where some recommendations were not being presented for certain networks.

New in WiFi Explorer 3.0.3 (Feb 23, 2021)

  • Fixes an issue when opening files from iCloud Drive.
  • Improves saving of files.
  • Improves recommendations when in the presence of mesh networks.
  • Other fixes and improvements.

New in WiFi Explorer 3.0.2 (Dec 20, 2020)

  • Fixes an issue when displaying Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax) network information in the toolbar.
  • Fixes Touch Bar support.
  • Other fixes and improvements.

New in WiFi Explorer 3.0.1 (Nov 26, 2020)

  • Fixes a crash when trying to export scan results to CSV.

New in WiFi Explorer 3.0 (Nov 18, 2020)

  • Refined user interface
  • New, comprehensive help.
  • Adds ability to show/hide automatic filters.
  • Adds ability to negate automatic filters by pressing the space bar on the selected filter.
  • Adds support to manage annotations in Preferences.
  • Adds annotations as automatic filters.
  • Adds ability to select networks by clicking in the Spectrum or Signal Strength graphs.
  • Fixes incorrect max data rate calculations for VHT 20 MHz channels.
  • Other bug fixes and performance improvements.

New in WiFi Explorer 2.6.2 (Jul 19, 2020)

  • Fixes an issue that occurs on first launch where rows are too small to accommodate the text.

New in WiFi Explorer 2.6.1 (Jul 19, 2020)

  • Adds option to show/hide vertical grid lines in tables.
  • Fixes incorrect max data rates for 11ax APs using 160 MHz channels.
  • Fixes decoding of the country string field in the Country Code IE.
  • Fixes decoding of the channel width field in the HE Capabilities IE.
  • Fixes power constrains (Power Constraint IE) units (dBm -> dB).
  • Fixes a few issues in the decoding of the HE Operation IE.
  • Improves decoding of the TIM IE.
  • Improves parsing of supported data rates.
  • Improves heuristics for resolving vendor names.
  • Other fixes and UI tweaks.

New in WiFi Explorer 2.6 (Aug 12, 2019)

  • Added support for macOS Catalina 10.15 (Beta).
  • Added ability to show the vendor's logo next to its name (when available).
  • Added "Show Text Only" option for columns.
  • Other bug fixes and UI tweaks.

New in WiFi Explorer 2.5.5 (Jul 4, 2019)

  • Fixes annotations integration with WiFi Signal.
  • Improves heuristics to resolve vendor and device names.

New in WiFi Explorer 2.5.4 (Feb 8, 2019)

  • Fixed incorrect security mode identification for some WPA2 networks.
  • Improved recommendations for certain network configurations.

New in WiFi Explorer 2.5.3 (Feb 6, 2019)

  • Added Touch Bar support. You can now start/stop the scan, as well as quickly apply filters using the Touch Bar.
  • Added support for Mist AP names.
  • Added ability to filter by channel range. You can now use, for example, the filter expression 36-48 to display only the networks configured on channels 36, 40, 44 or 48.
  • Fixed some issues when resizing the main window.
  • Fixed appearance of checkboxes and other UI components when using dark mode in macOS Mojave 10.14.
  • Other minor UI tweaks and enhancements.

New in WiFi Explorer 2.5.2 (Nov 9, 2018)

  • Added WPA3 support.
  • Added the Generation column to display new Wi-Fi Alliance's generational names.
  • Added grouping support for LANCOM access points.
  • Improved display of security-related information.
  • Improved parsing of certain information elements.
  • Other minor UI tweaks.

New in WiFi Explorer 2.5.1 (Sep 25, 2018)

  • Added support for 802.11ax D3.0 (D2.1 is no longer supported).
  • Added support for Wi-Fi Alliance's OWE (Opportunistic Wireless Encryption) Transition Mode.
  • Added ability to expand/collapse automatic filter categories by clicking the category name.
  • Fixed bug where app would not start scanning automatically upon launch.

New in WiFi Explorer 2.5 (Sep 10, 2018)

  • Added support for hidden networks (requires macOS High Sierra 10.13 or later).
  • Added "Hide Column" option to networks table's contextual menu to easily hide the selected column.
  • Fixed an issue where app would start scanning when launched by opening a file.

New in WiFi Explorer 2.4.3 (May 15, 2018)

  • Fixed a crash that may occur when a network's information element contains malformed data.

New in WiFi Explorer 2.4.2 (May 4, 2018)

  • Fixed a crash that occurs when launching the app in languages other than English.
  • Improved color scheme to make sure networks can be better identified in the graphs.
  • Removed erroneous heuristic that incorrectly identifies certain access points to be manufactured by Meraki.
  • Other stability improvements.

New in WiFi Explorer 2.4 (Mar 16, 2018)

  • New UI to make quick filters easier to use and to make room for new features.
  • Added support for 802.11ax Draft 2.1 networks.
  • Added a right side view that displays a list of common issues for the selected network that may result in degraded performance or connectivity problems (English and Spanish version only; other languages will be supported in future updates).
  • Fixes to the Spanish, Portuguese and Italian localizations.
  • Fixed crash that would happen when parsing the WPS IE.

New in WiFi Explorer 2.3.3 (Nov 29, 2017)

  • Added device name decoding for Routerboard (MikroTik) access points.
  • Fixed an issue where SSIDs of length 32 were not being decoded correctly.
  • Fixed vertical text alignment of cells in the Advanced Details table.
  • Fixed incorrect shortcuts for increasing/decreasing time scale in chart.
  • Fixed an issue with the vendor lookup heuristics that was causing vendor names to be misidentified.
  • Fixed a UI glitch in the Network Details view.
  • Improved parsing of Cisco specific information elements.
  • Improved grouping and vendor lookup for Meraki APs.
  • Improved Split View support for small screen resolutions.

New in WiFi Explorer 2.3.2 (Jun 22, 2017)

  • Fixed an issue where mode was being incorrectly set to 802.11ac for 2.4 GHz networks using 256 QAM.
  • Fixed filtering by security mode (802.1X).
  • Fixed decoding of the Country Information IE under certain circumstances.
  • Renamed "Service Set" and "Radio" categories to "Network Name" and "Access Point", respectively.
  • Improved display of SSIDs containing emoji.
  • Improved resizing of table columns.
  • Improved copy option for network entries and information elements.
  • Improved vendor name lookup and identification heuristics for Ubiquiti and Apple access points.
  • Improved parsing of Mesh and WPS information elements.
  • Updated the app's Help book.

New in WiFi Explorer 2.3.1 (Mar 23, 2017)

  • Fixed a crash in 10.9 and older systems.
  • Fixed sorting of "Min Rate" and "Max Rate" columns.

New in WiFi Explorer 2.3 (Mar 22, 2017)

  • Fixed AP name parsing for Extreme Networks (formerly Zebra) APs.
  • Fixed filtering by security type, and by channel width.
  • Fixed export options to include missing fields.
  • Improved identification of vendor name for Meraki APs.
  • Improved accessibility.

New in WiFi Explorer 2.2 (Sep 8, 2016)

  • Changed shortcuts for filtering by signal strength from [numeric key] to Option+[numeric key].
  • Changed scan sensitivity option so it can be set up to -100 dBm.
  • Changed minimum column widths.
  • Fixed an issue where 802.1X was being incorrectly identified as PSK.
  • Fixed grouping by radio for some Meraki access points.
  • Fixed an issue where column widths were not being maintained between launches.
  • Fixed an issue where recent used filters were not being maintained between launches.
  • Fixed an issue where filtering by multiple fields using negation (!) was not working correctly.
  • Fixed an issue where main window will grow in size between launches.
  • Fixed a crash that occurs when parsing certain malformed information elements.
  • Improved stability and performance.

New in WiFi Explorer 2.1 (Dec 15, 2015)

  • Fixes an issue where state of side panel is not maintained between launches.
  • Fixes incorrect parsing of MCS set in different information elements.
  • Fixes incorrect 802.11 modes.
  • Fixes incorrect security modes.
  • Fixes opening of files using drag & drop.
  • Other minor bug fixes.

New in WiFi Explorer 2.0.3 (Oct 22, 2015)

  • Fixes an issue where channel width was not being updated correctly when changing AP settings.
  • Adjusted UI to support the new split view in full screen mode in El Capitan.
  • Other minor bug fixes and UI tweaks.

New in WiFi Explorer 2.0.2 (Sep 17, 2015)

  • Ready for El Capitan.
  • Fixes filtering so that ',' corresponds to "OR" and '&' to "AND" when filtering networks using multiple fields.
  • Fixes filtering so that RSSI levels in dBm can be entered as a valid filter option (e.g. ">=-82", ">-70").
  • Fixes import of annotations when using lowercase BSSIDs.
  • Adds filtering by signal strength using the keyboard, for example, press '9' to display networks with signal strength >= 90% (or -90 dBm if using dBm as unit for signal strength), '8': >= 80% (or -80 dBm), '7': >= 70% (or -70 dBm) and so on. Press '0' to clear filter and display all networks. Keys below numbers ('Q', 'W', 'E', etc.) gives you intermediate values, for example, press 'T' to display networks with signal strength >= 55% (or -55 dBm if using dBm as unit for signal strength).
  • Adds option to automatically hide 2.4 or 5 GHz section of channel graph if no networks are displayed in these frequency bands.
  • Integrates annotations with WiFi Signal 3.4.
  • Other minor bug fixes and UI improvements.

New in WiFi Explorer 2.0.1 (May 9, 2015)

  • Fixes bug that was causing the app to filter out networks with an RSSI of -85 dBm or lower.
  • New app icon.

New in WiFi Explorer 2.0 (May 1, 2015)

  • Fixes incorrect max. data rates under certain circumstances.
  • Fixes incorrect state of Stop button when not scanning.
  • Addresses issue caused by certain access points that advertise a secondary channel even though they are set to operate at 20 MHz channel width only.
  • Addresses an issue where intermittent 0 dBm RSSI values might be reported by OS X for certain networks.
  • Better looks in OS X Yosemite.
  • Networks can be quickly filtered by ESSID, PHY mode, radio, vendor or signal strength levels.
  • Networks can be grouped by physical radio in Signal Strength and Channels graph.
  • Beacon interval and basic rates can now be added as columns.
  • DFS channels can be hidden in Channels graph if not being used by any networks.
  • Made sure CSV file generated from export option includes all fields.
  • Vendors database can now be updated from within the app.
  • Other minor bug fixes plus stability and performance improvements.

New in WiFi Explorer 1.7.2 (Nov 26, 2014)

  • Bug fixes and stability improvements.
  • Updated vendors database.

New in WiFi Explorer 1.7.1 (Oct 17, 2014)

  • Fixes crash that might occur when parsing an ERP IE.
  • Resolves 'Unknown' IE for some WFA vendor specific and 802.11u IEs.
  • Resolves 'Unknown' IE for CSA IEs.
  • Fixes incorrect toolbar state under some circumstances.

New in WiFi Explorer 1.7 (Oct 2, 2014)

  • Fixes time display for other languages in signal strength vs. time graphs.
  • Fixes bug when hovering over graphs in Network Details tab.
  • Minimum supported OS version is now 10.7.
  • Re-signed to be in compliance with latest code-signing requirements.
  • Updated vendors database.

New in WiFi Explorer 1.6.2 (Aug 9, 2014)

  • Adjusted scan interval to prevent periodic drops in time graphs under some circumstances.
  • Other minor fixes.
  • Updated vendors database.

New in WiFi Explorer 1.6.1 (Jun 3, 2014)

  • Fixed incorrect conversion from dBm to % for extremely high RSSI values.
  • Fixed error that causes previous used filter to reappear at every launch of the app.
  • Fixed incorrect data rate information for 802.11ac networks configured with 40 MHz channel widths.
  • Updated vendors database.

New in WiFi Explorer 1.6 (Apr 28, 2014)

  • Fixes to scan engine and shorter scan/refresh intervals
  • Other bug fixes and a few UI tweaks
  • Updated vendors database

New in WiFi Explorer 1.5.5 (Dec 9, 2013)

  • Fixed crash that occurs when re-ordering certain columns
  • Updated vendors database

New in WiFi Explorer 1.5.4 (Oct 31, 2013)

  • Fixes issue that would cause incorrect signal strength readings
  • Restores compatibility with 32-bit systems
  • Other minor fixes
  • Updated vendors database

New in WiFi Explorer 1.5.2 (Aug 16, 2013)

  • UI fixes for smaller screen sizes (e.g. 11-inch MacBook Air)
  • French, Italian, and Portuguese language support
  • Updated vendor database

New in WiFi Explorer 1.5.1 (Jul 4, 2013)

  • Fixes crash in some systems
  • Fixes bug where an incorrect number of spatial streams is displayed

New in WiFi Explorer 1.5 (Jun 26, 2013)

  • Fixes channel numbering and width for 802.11ac networks
  • Fixes memory leak
  • Fixes issue with checkbox in networks table
  • Updated vendors database

New in WiFi Explorer 1.4.1 (May 1, 2013)

  • Fixed issue that would cause the "Export" menu item to be always disabled
  • Annotations can now be displayed under network name in channels graphs

New in WiFi Explorer 1.4 (Apr 18, 2013)

  • Fixes channel graph shapes to represent more accurately the spectral signature of the wireless network modulation type (see FAQ section in Help for more information)
  • Resolves an issue that could cause 100% CPU usage when clicking "Stop"
  • Selectable columns (see Advanced tab in Preferences)
  • Editable column for annotations, comments (see Advanced tab in Preferences)
  • Keyboard shortcuts
  • Other minor fixes and UI tweaks

New in WiFi Explorer 1.3.5 (Jan 22, 2013)

  • Fixes problems introduced after changes made in the previous version, in particular:
  • Application crashing in Snow Leopard.
  • Incorrect raw/avg/max/min signal strength and noise estimations for associated networks.

New in WiFi Explorer 1.3.4 (Jan 16, 2013)

  • ATTENTION: This version is broken in Snow Leopard. If you're running Snow Leopard, please do not update. A new version that fixes this problem has been submitted to the App Store and it is currently waiting for approval:
  • Fixes filtering by SSID when it includes numeric values.
  • Fixes networks with the same BSSID but different frequency band being categorized as duplicates.
  • Fixes sort order of columns not being remembered after closing and opening the application.
  • Fixes signal strength and noise values inconsistencies when compared to related app WiFi Signal.
  • Incorporates a new comprehensive Help.
  • Updates vendors database.

New in WiFi Explorer 1.3.3 (Oct 26, 2012)

  • Fixes an issue where associated networks configured as "hidden" were not being displayed in Snow Leopard.

New in WiFi Explorer 1.3.2 (Oct 18, 2012)

  • Fixed a problem where app would not find any networks in the 5GHz band, or any networks in the 5GHz band using a DFS channel (52-140).
  • Fixed a problem where after changing the SSID of a network, an old entry would persist resulting in two networks with the same BSSID but different SSID.
  • Fixed multiple stability issues introduced in recent versions of the app.
  • Updated vendors database.

New in WiFi Explorer 1.3.1 (Jul 26, 2012)

  • Fixed crash when no supported Wi-Fi interfaces are found.
  • Fixed crash when retrieving information from associated network if network is hidden.
  • Updated vendors database.
  • Added Spanish localization.
  • Ready for Mac OS X Mountain Lion.

New in WiFi Explorer 1.3 (Jun 8, 2012)

  • New filter controls.
  • Updated vendors database.
  • Other minor fixes.

New in WiFi Explorer 1.2.3 (Apr 19, 2012)

  • Fixed incorrect network mode detection.
  • Lion's full-screen mode is now supported.
  • Column reordering is now supported.
  • Added SNR plot to Network Details tab.
  • Adjusted UI to support lower resolution screens.
  • Other UI fixes.

New in WiFi Explorer 1.2.2 (Apr 7, 2012)

  • Added ability to show which network the user is connected to.
  • Added ability to detect hidden networks when associated.
  • Fixed incorrect encryption detection.
  • Fixed incorrect network mode detection.
  • Fixed spectrum "heat bar" for 40 MHz channels.

New in WiFi Explorer 1.2.1 (Feb 17, 2012)

  • Fixed a bug that would prevent the app from finding any networks if Wi-Fi is on but not associated to any network.
  • Included supported encryption algorithms, data rates and some other additional information about the network in the export function.

New in WiFi Explorer 1.2 (Feb 15, 2012)

  • Set to automatically start scan after opening.
  • Added graphical signal level indicator in table.
  • New information tab showing network details.
  • Detection of mixed modes (e.g. 802.11b/g/n, 802.11g/n) - Lion only.

New in WiFi Explorer 1.1 (Jan 24, 2012)

  • App preferences: ability to set scan sensitivity, time interval for deletion of out-of-range networks, hide ad-hoc and/or secure networks, and to start scanning automatically after opening.
  • Added support to determine if wireless router's or AP's WPS (Wi-Fi Protected Setup) capabilities are enabled.