Cisco has developed an extensive line of wireless networking devices and technologies intended to enable anywhere, anytime access to data and other resources and to facilitate teamwork among workers, associates, vendors, and customers. Cisco's wireless product families include Cisco's Small Business, Aironet and Meraki series of access points (APs), plus Cisco's Wireless Network Controller plug-ins and appliances. Progent's certified wireless consultants can help organizations of all sizes to deploy Cisco wireless technology to support the current paradigm of Bring-Your-Own-Device (BYOD) networks by converging their wired and wireless ecosystems to achieve easy deployment, predictable performance, centralized management, uniform policy enforcement, high availability, and advanced protection.
The Cisco Unified Wireless solution can scale to up to 18,000 APs with Layer 3 connectivity across local or offsite locations like enterprise headquarters, university lecture halls, branch offices, and home offices. Cisco's Wi-Fi wireless access points and wireless controllers are part of Cisco's Unified Wireless Network and are engineered to support the same level of protection, throughput, and manageability for wireless networks that businesses demand in their wired infrastructure. Cisco's architecture includes integrated mobile services such as VoIP, IP video, and safe guest access. Cisco's Unified Wireless architecture allows organizations to build Wi-Fi ecosystems that streamline the way they do business and enhance productivity through a dynamic and collaborative employee base.
Progent's Cisco-certified network consulting services offers online or onsite support to assist you to plan, deploy, manage, upgrade, and repair converged wired/wireless networks of any size and for any venue. Also, Progent offers economical online and on-premises Wi-Fi site surveys to assist you to plan and install a wireless LAN with customized wireless access point clustering optimized for your individual office layout, building characteristics, and application workloads.
Cisco Small Business, Aironet, Meraki and Catalyst Access Points
Cisco's Small Business, Aironet, Meraki and Catalyst lines of wireless access points allow you to integrate wired and wireless networks to provide the accessibility, capacity, throughput, protection and ease of management needed to support practically any scenario. Cisco's wireless access points start at bare bones, single-radio 802.11b/g/n devices with throughput of 300 Mb intended for small companies or telecommuters to 802.11ax wireless access points suitable for handling hundreds of wireless clients on each AP and offering throughput in excess of 5 Gigabits per second. Cisco's current line of wireless access points can be clustered to provide the scale to support sites crowded with clients and with a high incidence of video-intense application software.
Cisco Small Business 100, 300 and 500 Family of Wireless Access Points
Cisco's Small Business Family of APs are Linux-powered devices intended as value-priced wireless APs for small offices. Many models in Cisco's Small Business portfolio of wireless access points work with Cisco's Single Point Setup technology, which allows you to set up, control and repair a cluster of access points from a single AP via a simple web browser tool. All models include POE and feature QoS, rogue AP detection, and bridge mode for connecting to another network.
Cisco's Small Business WAP121 Wireless-N Access Point is a wallmount, single-band 2.4GHz unit able to support 16 active 802.11n clients, has a Fast Ethernet interface, permits up to 4 AP devices and 40 active wireless clients in a cluster, and supports sustained data rates of 300 Mbps. Cisco's WAP131 is a desktop dual-radio 802.11a/b/g/n AP that can handle 16 wireless clients per radio for up to 32 clients, features a 10/100/1000 Ethernet interface, and can support sustained data rates of up to 300 Mbps per radio. The WAP131 Wireless-N does not support AP clustering. The Cisco WAP150 is a general-purpose Wave 1 dual-radio AC/n wireless access point that includes a 1xGE Poe port and can support up to 16 clients from each radio with 867 Mbps throughput for 802.11ac devices and 300 Mbps for 802.11n clients. The Cisco Small Business WAP150 supports 4 access points for each cluster.
Cisco's Small Business WAP321 Wireless-N Access Point is a wall-mountable single-band (either 2.4 GHz or 5 GHz) 802.11n device that can handle up to 80 wireless clients sharing an 8-device cluster. The WAP321 features a GE port and can deliver throughput of 300 Mbps for the selected radio. Cisco's WAP351 is a dual-radio 2.4/5 GHz 802.11n wireless access point that includes a 5-port Gigabit Ethernet interface and can handle 32 active clients on each radio for a total of up to 64 clients, and deliver a data rate of 300 Mbps for each radio. The WAP351 AP does not allow clustering. The Cisco WAP361 is a dual-band Wireless-AC/N access point that features a 5-port Gigabit Ethernet switch, allows 32 clients per radio, and delivers 867 Mbps throughput for 802.11ac clients and 300 Mbps performance for 802.11n devices. Cisco's Small Business WAP361 allows eight access points for each cluster. Cisco's wall-mountable Small Business WAP371 Wireless-AC/N is a dual-band device that works with 802.11a/b/g/n as well as the new 802.11ac wireless networking standard. The WAP371 includes a 10/100/1000 Ethernet port, can support 32 wireless clients per radio, and eight access points per cluster.
The Cisco Small Business WAP561 Wireless-N Selectable Band access point features a Gigabit Ethernet port and two concurrent radios that deliver 450 Mbps performance for each radio, support 64 clients per radio, and allow 16 APs per cluster. The Cisco WAP551 is like Cisco's WAP 561 but has a single radio selectable band. The Cisco WAP571 and WAP571E (a weather-proof outside version) are dual-band 802.11ac access points incorporating two Gb Ethernet ports with link aggregation, and up to 1.9 Gbps performance with 1300 Mbps over 11ac and 600 Mbps on 11n. Both wireless access points can handle 32 active WAN clients per radio and 16 access points on each cluster.
The Cisco WAP581 Wireless-AC Dual Radio Wave 2 Wireless Access Point complies with the 802.11ac Wi-Fi 5 standard and offers 4x4 and 3x3 MU-MIMO technology to deliver 2.8 Gbps data rates at 5 GHz and 0.6 Gbps at 2.4 GHz for an aggregate top data rate of 2.4 Gbps. The WAP581 has a fixed 2.5G Ethernet LAN interface and a 10/100/1000 Ethernet LAN interface with 802.3at Power over Ethernet. Cisco's WAP581 Wave 2 Wi-Fi 5 AP supports as many as 200 connective client users, up to 50 active client users for each radio, 16 APs per cluster, and 960 active users for each cluster.
For more information about Progent's support for current and older Cisco Small Business family of wireless access points, refer to Cisco Small Business wireless access points configuration and troubleshooting.
Cisco's Aironet Line of Access Points
Cisco's Aironet line of indoor and outdoor wireless access points has for years been the top-selling access point solution. Aironet access points range from value priced devices to enterprise-class APs. Cisco's Aironet line span several generations of devices compliant with the evolving Wi-Fi specification. Cisco's current portfolio of Aironet access points work with Cisco's Unified Wireless Network software and include 802.11ac Wi-Fi technology, which delivers three times the performance plus greater distance and density than the prior generation of devices. Cisco's latest multi-frequency Aironet access points can handle 802.11n at 2.4 GHz for client devices that lack 802.11ac capability.
The oldest Aironet APs are now legacy devices that have come to end-of-life status and are not supported by Cisco. Progent still offers support for the entire Aironet line of APs and can help you to manage and troubleshoot your existing Aironet Wi-Fi environment or upgrade efficiently to the latest Aironet products. To find out more about Progent's consulting services for current and outdated Aironet wireless access points, see Aironet access points planning and support.
Cisco's Meraki Access Points
Cisco's family of Meraki dual-band indoor wireless access points range from budget-friendly devices for general use to advanced units that offer up to 5.9 Gbit/sec throughput. Each Cisco Meraki indoor AP provides high-end features such as self-configuring installation, in-depth protection, Bring-Your-Own-Device support, built-in analytics, zero-touch web-based firmware updates, and consolidated cloud management for multiple sites. Each Cisco Meraki indoor access point also includes two powerful client-serving radios with enhanced receive sensitivity plus a separate radio that offers (WIDS/WIPS) security for threat detection and deep packet inspection at line rate.
Meraki outdoor access points are IP67 certified, built to withstand rugged outdoor conditions, and tested to resist dust, vibration and moisture. Meraki outdoor wireless access points include a Gigabit Ethernet port and deliver advanced features such as cloud-based management with network-wide visibility and control, 802.1X and native Active Directory integration, built-in antivirus scan, 1-click guest access and isolation firewall, application-aware traffic shaping, plus self-configuring mesh with beamforming. To find out more about Progent's consulting services for Meraki APs and management, refer to Meraki access points planning and support.
Catalyst 9100 Line of Wi-Fi 6 and W-Fi 6E Access Points
Cisco's Catalyst 9100 line of Wi-Fi 6/6E APs are intended for environments ranging from telecommuter homes to high-density convention centers. Cisco Catalyst 9100 APs are compliant with the 802.11ax specification, referred to as Wi-Fi 6, which in turn builds on the previous 802.11ac (Wi-Fi 5) specification. As an improvement to 802.11ac, Wi-Fi 6 is designed to utilize both the 2.4-Ghz and 5-GHz bands. Headline enhancements supported by Catalyst 9100 Series access points include MU-MIMO support for uplink traffic, dual NAVs for better dependability, increased device sleep time for conserving power usage in battery-powered endpoints, adaptive power thresholds for more efficient spectrum utilization, and dynamic fragmentation for reduced overhead. Cisco Catalyst 9100 Series 802.11ax APs support Cisco's EWC, handle as many as 400 client users per Wi-Fi radio, and run on Cisco IOS XE Software.
Cisco's Catalyst 9160 Series Wi-Fi 6E APs are the first Cisco APs to feature the capability to be monitored and managed either on-site with Cisco DNA Center platform or from the cloud by using Meraki Dashboard management utilities. This enables businesses to move to cloud-centric or hybrid management environments on their own timetable. All Catalyst 916x APs meet the a/b/g/n/ac/ax and 6E Wi-Fi specifications and fully support the new 6-GHz band. Each AP has 5 radios and supports up to 400 clients per radio. Every model also contains a dedicated radio for Cisco CleanAir Pro for reducing interference, includes a USB 2.0 port, and offers Bluetooth BLE. Cisco's entry-level Catalyst 9162 Series access point is intended for small businesses, incorporates three 2x2 radios, and includes 1x 100M/1000M/2.5G mGig Ethernet support.
Cisco's Catalyst 9163E Wi-Fi 6E access point is built for tough outdoor venues like campus environments or stadiums. The 9163E comes with three client serving 2x2 radios, one IoT radio, and a tri-band scanning radio. Interfaces include 1x 100M/1000M/2.5G mGig Ethernet, a management console port (RJ-45), 4x N-Type Wi-Fi antenna connectors, and an RP-SMA active GPS/GNSS antenna connector. The 9163E works with Omnidirectional Dipole Self-Identifying Antennas. The Catalyst 9164 Series access point is suited for small and mid-size organizations, incorporates one 2x2 radio and two 4x4 radios, and provides 1x 100M/1000M/2.5G mGig Ethernet support. The Catalyst 9166 Series Wi-Fi access point is suited for large and mid-sized organizations, incorporates three 4x4 radios, and features 1x 100M/1000M/2.5G/5G mGig Ethernet connectivity. The 9166 also includes environmental sensors that track air quality, temperature, and moisture. For more information about Progent's support for Catalyst 9100 Family of Wi-Fi 6/6E Access Points, see Wireless access points system planning, deployment, and management consulting.
Cisco 9800 Series 802.11ax Wi-Fi 6 Wireless Controllers
Cisco Catalyst 9800 line of Wi-Fi 6-compatible wireless LAN controller appliances allow you to automate and manage advanced Wi-Fi networks that incorporate 802.11ax access points. 802.11ax, also called Wi-Fi 6, improves on prior generation 802.11ac (referred to as Wi-Fi 5) appliances by delivering less latency and more reliable performance, allowing higher client user density, offering enhanced security, conserving energy for battery-dependent handheld devices, and offering more flexibility for handling the latest kinds of Internet-of-Things (IoT) endpoints. Cisco's Catalyst 9800 family Wi-Fi controllers feature always-on availability with seamless software upgrades, live fixes, and the ability to add wireless APs without downtime. Advanced security technologies include Encrypted Traffic Analytics (ETA), secure boot, and Cisco Software-Defined Access. Streaming telemetry allows you to track and understand infrastructure and client health.
All appliances in the Catalyst 9800 line are powered by Cisco's IOS XE Software and work with Cisco's DNA Center (DNAC) or Prime Infrastructure management tools. Cisco's Catalyst 9800 wireless network controllers can manage Cisco Aironet 802.11ac Wave 1 and Wave 2 APs as well as Cisco Catalyst 9100 Series 802.11ax wireless APs. To learn more about Progent's support for Cisco 9800 line of 802.11ax Wi-Fi 6 Wireless Controllers, see Cisco Catalyst 9800 family of Wi-Fi 6 wireless controllers solution design, deployment, and debugging consulting.
Cisco Wave 2 Wireless Network Controllers
Cisco Wave 2 Wi-Fi controllers allow fast data exchange, configuration, administration, analysis and debugging for Cisco Wi-Fi appliances and services. Cisco offers both hardware and software-based wireless controllers for centralized administration of wireless networks, but WLANs with many Wi-Fi access points typically require hardware-based Wi-Fi controllers. Wave 2 Wi-Fi controller devices from Cisco deliver significant advantages in comparison to Wave 1 and earlier products such as higher performance, concurrent support for both 1G and 10G interfaces, enhanced application visibility and control (AVC), and advanced, built-in security.
Cisco's 3504 WiFi Controller is an entry-level appliance available in a desktop form factor and intended for smaller organizations. You can install the 3504 model in a centralized network environment such as in lean branch and home-based offices administered across the WAN via FlexConnect, or in bridge deployments where wiring is limited. The 3504 wireless controller can handle up to 150 access points and 3,000 users, offers 4 Gbps performance, and supports up to 4,096 VLANs. Cisco's 3504 wireless controller features a multi-gigabit Ethernet interface and four 1-GB Ethernet ports. Access points can be connected to the controller via two Power over Ethernet ports. The 3504 Wi-Fi controller features fast failover for APs and clients, which provides uninterrupted availability for applications. As with other current Wave 2 Wi-Fi controllers available from Cisco, the 3504 device has the built-in ability to work with Cisco Prime Infrastructure, Cisco Mobility Services Engine, and Cisco 5520 and 8540 WLAN controllers.
The Cisco 5520 WiFi Controller, available in a 1 rack unit form factor, is designed for midsize to large organizations and campus environments and can be run in centralized, distributed, and mesh deployments. The 5520 Wi-Fi controller supports as many as 1,500 APs and 20,000 clients, delivers 20 Gbps performance, and supports up to 4,096 VLANs. The 5520 WiFi controller features two 10 GE ports and incorporates SSD storage, redundant fans, optional backup power supplies, and rapid failover for nonstop availability.
Cisco's 8540 Wireless Controller, available in a 2RU enclosure, is a top-of-the-line wireless controller intended to support large enterprises, service providers, and large campuses. The 8540 WiFi controller can be run in centralized, distributed, and mesh architectures and supports as many as 6,000 APs and 64,000 client users. The 8540 WiFi controller offers throughput up to 40 Gbps and supports up to 4,096 VLANs. The 8540 controller comes with four 1-GB or 10GE ports and features SSD storage, backup power supplies, backup fans, and subsecond failover.
Wave 1 Cisco Wireless Network Controllers
Cisco wireless controllers cut the time and expense needed to deploy, monitor, and troubleshoot Wi-Fi networks by centralizing control of tasks like provisioning APs, applying single-point policies throughout converged wired/wireless networks, supporting enterprise-wide Quality of Service (QoS) for voice and HD video, tracking and optimizing system performance, activating wireless intrusion prevention system (wIPS) capabilities to defend against cyber break-ins and DDoS attacks, and handling IPv6 clients. Cisco has developed wireless network controllers for organizations of any size and offers standalone desktop appliances, modular add-on wireless controllers for Cisco routers and Catalyst switches, and switches with built-in wireless LAN controllers.
Cisco's Wave 1 WiFi controllers include Cisco CleanAir tools to avoid signal interference and create self-healing wireless networks for top 802.11n and 802.11ac throughput and protection. Integrated Apple Bonjour Gateways allow discovery throughout WLAN, LAN and WAN for Apple applications. For fault tolerance, Cisco wireless LAN controllers support access point and client stateful failover by permitting a backup high-availability wireless controller to synch with a primary wireless controller for AP license count, CAPWAP keys, and AP CAPWAP state. If the main wireless controller stops working, thousands of APs and clients can switchover at subsecond speeds to the backup wireless controller.
Cisco's Wireless Module for ISR G2 Routers with UCS-E provides entry-level 802.11n and 802.11ac support for Cisco 2900 and 3900 routers used by small to medium-sized businesses and satellite offices. This affordable and scalable module can handle up to 200 wireless access points and as many as 6000 wireless clients. (To learn concerning Progent's online and onsite consulting and troubleshooting support services for Cisco routers, refer to Cisco router configuration and troubleshooting consulting.)
Catalyst 3650 Series are 1RU form-factor switches intended for SMBs and branches and features a built-in wireless controller with the capability to support up to 40 Gb of wireless throughput per switch and up to 25 APs and 1000 wireless clients per switch or stack. Catalyst 3850 Series are 1RU rackmount switches designed for mid-size and large organizations and feature an integrated wireless controller supporting 40 Gb of wireless capacity on each switch and support for 50 APs and 2000 clients. The Wireless Services Module2 (WiSM2) is an add-in blade for Cisco Catalyst 6500 Series switches with an integrated wireless controller designed for mid-to-large size businesses and able to deliver 20 Gbps performance and able to handle up to 1000 APs and 15,000 clients. (To find out concerning Progent's consulting services for Cisco Catalyst switches, refer to Cisco Catalyst switches configuration and troubleshooting consulting.)
Cisco 2500 Wireless Controllers are entry-level desktop units that simplify the provisioning and operation of Wi-Fi LANs for SMBs and branches. The Cisco 2500 wireless controller can handle from five to 75 access points and up to 1000 wireless clients and offers throughput of 1 Gbps.
Cisco's 5500 Series Wireless Controller is an expandable 1RU unit intended for medium-sized to large enterprises and campuses and can support up to 500 access points and 7,000 clients while delivering 8 Gbps performance. The Cisco 5760 Wireless Controller is a 1RU device intended for mid-to-large campus environments with support for up to 1000 wireless access points and 12,000 wireless clients and providing throughput of 60 Gbps to accommodate high wireless client densities and high amounts of video-intensive mobile applications.
Cisco's Flex 7500 Series Wireless Controller is designed to enable centralized management of thousands of wireless branches from a single location, avoiding the costs of a wireless controller at each remote site. The 1RU Flex 7500 allows you to establish a private cloud to configure, track, maintain, and troubleshoot as many as 6000 access points and up to 64,000 clients while handling 1 Gbps throughput. Cisco's 8500 Wireless Controller is a 1RU device engineered to manage wireless networks for large campuses or service providers and can scale to handle up to 6000 wireless points and up to 64,000 clients while offering 10 Gbps performance.
To learn more about Cisco wireless controllers, see Cisco Wi-Fi controllers consulting and integration.
Legacy Cisco Wireless Access Points, LAN Bridges and Controllers Supported by Progent
The 802.11ac standard for Wi-Fi largely made obsolete the previous generations of Wi-Fi devices for many environments that have high densities of wireless clients and high usage of video-intensive software applications. Even for organizations who do not need the bandwidth efficiency of 802.11ac, a large number of Cisco wireless products have arrived at end-of-life status, which can pose serious service and regulatory compliance issues. Progent's Cisco-certified consultants offer remote and on-premises support services for a wide range of earlier-generation Cisco wireless products. Progent can also assist companies to assess the potential ROI for upgrading legacy wireless infrastructure and can assist in designing and executing cost-effective, non-disruptive migrations. The following are a few of Cisco legacy Wi-Fi devices that Progent's consulting experts still support.
Legacy Cisco Aironet APs
Cisco Aironet 1000 or 1130AG family access points are ideal for offices and other locations which have little environmental variability. These devices have integrated antennas that offer predictable omnidirectional range patterns. The Cisco Aironet 1130G family product is available for regulated domains that do not allow 802.11a/5GHz operation.
Aironet 1230AG/1240AG Series access points are ideal for more difficult RF situations such as manufacturing plants or above suspended ceilings which typically require flexible protruding antennas and ruggedized enclosures. The Cisco 1240G family product is intended for regulatory domains that do not allow 802.11a transmission.
Aironet 1500 family lightweight outside wireless mesh LAN access points provide an economical, expandable, protected outdoor wireless network mechanism for campus areas and for public venues that require connectivity for mobile devices.
Legacy Cisco Aironet Wireless LAN Bridges
Cisco Aironet wireless LAN bridges offer a high-performance and feature-rich solution for connecting numerous local area networks in a metropolitan area or public wireless network. Cisco wireless LAN bridges provide a versatile, manageable technology that satisfies the protection demands of public networking professionals. They manage both P2P and point-to-multipoint deployments with excellent range and the ability to handle traffic rates as high as 54 Mbps.
Cisco Aironet wireless bridges deliver throughput several times faster than E1/T1 lines for a fraction of the expense, doing away with the need for expensive leased lines when connecting separate buildings. Since wireless bridges have no periodic costs, the expenses saved on connection services quickly cover the initial equipment costs. Self-installed private lines and in some cases leased lines made of metal or fiber-optic cable can require high up-front expenses in cases where they are separated by barriers such as highways, train tracks, or bodies of water. Cisco wireless LAN bridges can be deployed quickly with a fast return on investment.
Cisco Aironet 1300 outdoor wireless access points/bridges can be implemented as independent access points, bridges, or wireless group bridges. These devices have a tough cover and offer high-speed, affordable wireless connectivity between numerous fixed or mobile environments and clients.
Aironet 1400 family wireless bridges provide high-performance, reliable outside bridging for LOS environments. They include a durable cover that is optimized for harsh outside conditions and can operate within broad temperature ranges.
Legacy Cisco Wireless LAN Controllers
Cisco WLAN Controllers provide single-point management of WLANs by simplifying the handling of common functions including integrated IPS, real-time RF management, zero touch deployment, and full N+1 redundancy. Cisco Wireless controllers work with lightweight access points to deliver superior performance and high-end administration capabilities.
Wireless LAN Controllers provide the control, expandability, security, and fault tolerance that IT managers require to build safe, enterprise-scale wireless networks, from satellite locations to small companies to main campuses. Cisco's legacy WLCs can be configured together to provide accommodation for up to 2400 WAPs for each roaming domain.
The Cisco WLCM or WLCM-E Wireless LAN Controller Module for Integrated Services (IS) Routers offers small-to medium businesses and large corporations an affordable way to deploy and control protected wireless LANs at satellite offices. These products supervise up to twelve Aironet APs and are installable in 2800/3800 Series Routers and Cisco 3700 Series IS Routers. (To find out about Progent's remote and onsite support for Cisco routers, refer to Cisco router deployment and management consulting.)
How Progent Can Assist Your Business with Cisco Wireless Products
Progent can provide access to a Cisco-certified consultant to assist your business to design, deploy, maintain and troubleshoot a converged wired/wireless ecosystem incorporating a broad array of wireless technologies that offer the same security, extensibility, and ease of management you demand from a wired network. Progent can help you to support early-generation Wi-Fi products from Cisco or upgrade efficiently to current 802.11ax Wi-Fi 6 technology. Progent's CISM and CISSP security consultants can advise you about how to design security into your wireless network and into your business processes. Progent's disaster recovery consultants and business continuity consultants can help you to configure the HA features incorporated into Cisco's wired/wireless technologies so your converged network provides non-stop return on investment.
Progent's Wi-Fi Site Survey assists you to design and implement a state-of-the-art WLAN optimized for your environment, offering a Wi-Fi ecosystem that provides comprehensive coverage, high performance and capacity, QoS to support IP video, enterprise-class security, and streamlined management. Progent's Wireless Site Survey can be delivered online to cut time and expense, or on premises for more complex environments.
For a more in-depth discussion of Progent's wireless consulting services, visit Progent's Wireless Expertise.
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