Cisco offers a comprehensive portfolio of wireless networking devices and technologies intended to enable anywhere, anytime access to information and other resources and to promote collaboration among employees, associates, suppliers, and clients. Cisco's wireless offerings include the Small Business, Aironet and Meraki series of access points, as well as Cisco's Wireless Network Controller modules and standalone devices. Progent's Cisco-certified wireless consulting experts can help businesses of any size to utilize Cisco wireless products to support the current model of Bring-Your-Own-Device computing by converging their tethered and untethered ecosystems to benefit from easy configuration, consistent and fast performance, single-point management, uniform policy, fault tolerance, and across-the-board security.
Cisco's Unified Wireless Network architecture can scale to as many as 18,000 APs with Layer 3 connectivity at local or offsite venues such as business campuses, college auditoriums, branch offices, and home offices. Cisco's Wi-Fi access points and wireless controllers are part of Cisco's Unified Wireless Network and are designed to support the identical degree of security, throughput, and ease of management for WLANs that companies expect in their wired ecosystem. This architecture includes integrated mobile services like IP voice, IP video, and safe guest connectivity. Cisco's Unified Wireless architecture enables organizations to build Wi-Fi ecosystems that streamline the way they do business and enhance productivity via a mobile and collaborative workforce.
Progent's Cisco CCIE network infrastructure consulting services can provide remote or on-premises support to help your organization to design, configure, manage, expand, and troubleshoot converged wired/wireless networks of any size and for any environment. In addition, Progent offers value-priced remote and on-premises wireless site surveys to assist you to plan and deploy a wireless LAN with custom-designed access point clusters optimized for your specific work area layout, building structure, and application workloads.
Small Business, Aironet, Meraki and Catalyst Wireless Access Points
Cisco's Small Business, Aironet, Meraki and Catalyst families of wireless access points enable you to integrate wired/wireless networks to deliver the accessibility, capacity, throughput, security compliance and manageability needed to support practically any environment. These access points start at entry-level, single-band 802.11b/g/n devices with data rates of 300 Mb designed for small businesses or telecommuters to 802.11ax (Wi-Fi 6) APs suitable for handling hundreds of clients per access point and offering sustained throughput of more than 5 Gbps. Cisco's current line of wireless access points can be combined or clustered to deliver the scale to handle environments with high client density and with a high incidence of HD video application software.
Cisco Small Business Series of Access Points
Cisco's Small Business Series of wireless access points are Linux-powered units engineered as entry-level Wi-Fi APs for light workloads. Most versions in the Cisco Small Business line of wireless access points work with Cisco's Single Point Setup system, which allows you to configure, manage and troubleshoot a cluster of wireless access points from a single AP through a simple web browser interface. All of the models include POE and provide QoS, rogue AP awareness, and bridging for wirelessly connecting to another Ethernet LAN.
Cisco's Small Business WAP121 Wireless-N Access Point is a wall-mountable, single-radio 2.4GHz unit that can handle 16 active 802.11b/g/n wireless clients, includes a Fast Ethernet port, permits up to 4 access pointss and 40 wireless clients in a cluster, and supports sustained throughput of up to 300 Mbps. The Cisco Small Business WAP131 is a desktop dual-radio 802.11a/b/g/n AP that can support 16 active clients on each radio for a total of up to 32 clients, features a Gigabit Ethernet LAN interface, and can support throughput of up to 300 Mbps per radio. The WAP131 does not allow AP clustering. The Cisco WAP150 is a general-purpose Wave 1 dual-radio 802.11ac/n wireless access point that features a 1xGE Power over Ethernet port and can handle up to 16 clients per radio with 867 Mbps performance for AC devices and 300 Mbps for 802.11n clients. The Cisco WAP1501 supports four access points for each cluster.
The Cisco Small Business WAP321 AP is a wallmount selectable-band (either 2.4 GHz or 5 GHz) 802.11a/b/g/n device with support for 80 active wireless clients in an 8-device cluster. The WAP321 features a 10/100/1000 Ethernet interface and can deliver sustained throughput of 300 Mbps for the selected radio. The Cisco WAP351 is a dual-band 2.4/5 GHz 802.11n access point with a 5-port Gigabit Ethernet switch and can support 32 active wireless clients per radio for up to 64 clients, and deliver throughput of 300 Mbps for each radio. The WAP351 does not allow clustering. The Cisco Small Business WAP361 is a dual-band Wireless-AC/N access point that includes a 5-port Gigabit Ethernet switch, allows 32 active WLAN clients per radio, and offers 867 Mbps performance for wireless AC devices and 300 Mbps for 802.11n clients. The Cisco Small Business WAP361 supports eight WAP361 access points per cluster. Cisco's wallmount WAP371 Wireless-AC/N is a dual-radio AP that supports 802.11n as well as the new 802.11ac Wi-Fi standard. The WAP371 includes a GE interface, can support as many as 32 wireless clients on each radio, and eight access points for each cluster.
Cisco's WAP561 Wireless-N Dual Radio Selectable Band AP features one GE interface and dual radios (2.4 and 5.0 GHz) that offer 450 Mbps performance per radio, can handle 64 devices per radio, and allow 16 wireless access points for each cluster. The Cisco WAP551 is like the WAP 561 but has a single selectable band. Cisco's Small Business WAP571 and WAP571E (the ruggedized outdoor version) are dual-band 802.11ac APs that feature two Gb Ethernet LAN interfaces with link aggregation (LAG), and up to 1.9 Gbps performance with 1300 Mbps over 802.11ac and 600 Mbps on 802.11n. Both units support 32 active WAN clients per radio and 16 wireless access points on each cluster.
Cisco's WAP581 Wireless-AC Wave 2 Access Point complies with the 802.11ac Wi-Fi 5 specification and features 4x4 and 3x3 MU-MIMO to deliver 2.8 Gbps data rates on the 5.0-Ghz radio and 0.6 Gbps at 2.4 GHz for a total max throughput of 2.4 Gbps. The WAP581 includes a fixed 2.5G Ethernet interface and a 10/100/1000 Ethernet interface with 802.3at Power over Ethernet. Cisco's WAP581 Wave 2 Wi-Fi 5 AP supports as many as 200 connective users, up to 50 active users per radio, 16 APs for each cluster, and 960 active client users for each cluster.
To learn more about Progent's consulting services for both current and legacy Cisco Small Business series of WiFi access points, refer to Cisco Small Business wireless APs configuration and troubleshooting.
The Aironet Line of Access Points
The Aironet family of wireless access points has consistently been the top-selling AP product. Aironet access points run the gamut from entry-level devices to advanced units. Cisco's Aironet series cover several generations of devices supporting the continually improving 802 specification. The current line of Aironet wireless access points work with Cisco's Unified Wireless Network architecture and incorporate 802.11ac Wi-Fi technology, which offers three times the performance plus greater range and density than the prior generation of APs. The current dual-frequency Aironet APs can handle 802.11n at 2.4 GHz for clients that do not have 802.11ac radios.
The oldest Aironet APs are now outdated devices that have come to end-of-sale status and are no longer fully supported by Cisco. Progent continues to provide technical support for the complete Aironet line of wireless access points and can assist your company to manage and troubleshoot your current Aironet Wi-Fi environment or move cost effectively to the latest Aironet products. For more information about Progent's consulting services for current and legacy Aironet wireless access points, refer to Aironet access points planning and support.
Cisco's Meraki Access Points
Cisco's family of Meraki dual-band indoor APs include budget-friendly models for general use to advanced units that offer up to 5.9 Gigabit per second performance. Every Meraki indoor AP offers next-generation features like self-configuring plug-and-play installation, in-depth protection, Bring-Your-Own-Device support, extensive traffic analysis, automatic web-based firmware updates, and unified cloud management for multiple sites. Every Cisco Meraki indoor access point also includes two powerful radios with enhanced receive sensitivity as well as a dedicated radio that provides (WIDS/WIPS) security for RF analysis and deep packet inspection.
Meraki outdoor wireless access points are IP67 rated, designed to operate in harsh outdoor conditions, and able to resist dust, vibration and humidity. Cisco's Meraki outdoor APs include a 1 x Gbit Ethernet port and offer advanced features that include cloud-based management with multi-site control, 802.1X integration, built-in antivirus scan (NAC), single-click secure guest access and guest isolation firewall, application-aware traffic shaping, plus auto-configuring mesh with MIMO. For more information about Progent's support for Cisco's Meraki access points and management tools, refer to Cisco's Meraki access points consulting services.
Catalyst 9100 Series Wi-Fi 6 and W-Fi 6E Access Points
Cisco's Catalyst 9100 Series Wi-Fi 6/6E access points are designed for environments ranging from telecommuter homes to crowded convention centers. Cisco Catalyst 9100 APs are based on the 802.11ax standard, referred to as Wi-Fi 6, which in turn builds on the preceding 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 incorporated in Cisco Catalyst 9100 Series APs include OFDMA scheduling for high density deployments, dual NAVs for improved reliability, Target Wake Time for conserving power usage in battery-powered endpoints, adaptive power and sensitivity thresholds for more efficient spectrum use, and dynamic fragmentation for reduced overhead. Cisco Catalyst 9100 wireless access points can run Cisco's EWC, accommodate as many as 400 clients per Wi-Fi radio, and are powered by Cisco IOS XE Software.
Cisco's Catalyst 9160 Series Wi-Fi 6E APs are the first Cisco APs with the capability of being monitored and managed on-premises via Cisco DNA Center platform or from the cloud using Meraki management utilities. This permits businesses to move to cloud-centric or hybrid management environments at their own pace. All Cisco's Catalyst 916x access points comply with the a/b/g/n/ac/ax and 6E Wi-Fi specifications and fully support the new 6-GHz band. Each AP includes 5 radios and supports a maximum of 400 clients per radio. Each AP model also comes with a dedicated radio for Cisco CleanAir Pro for mitigating interference, includes a USB 2.0 port, and offers Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE). Cisco's entry-level Catalyst 9162 Series access point is designed for small businesses, incorporates three 2x2 radios, and provides 1x 100M/1000M/2.5G mGig Ethernet connectivity.
The Catalyst 9163E Wi-Fi 6E AP is built to withstand tough outside venues such as campuses or stadiums. The 9163E comes with three client serving 2x2 radios, an 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 a GPS/GNSS antenna connector. The AP supports Omnidirectional Dipole Self-Identifying Antennas. The Catalyst 9164 Series access point is designed for small and mid-size enterprises, includes one 2x2 radio and two 4x4 radios, and provides 1x 100M/1000M/2.5G mGig Ethernet. The Catalyst 9166 Series AP is intended for large and mid-sized enterprises, includes three 4x4 radios, and provides 1x 100M/1000M/2.5G/5G mGig Ethernet support. The 9166 also includes environmental sensors that detect air quality, temperature, and humidity. For details about Progent's support for Catalyst 9100 Family of Wi-Fi 6/6E 802.11ax APs, see Wireless access points system planning, configuration, and management services.
Cisco 9800 Series Wi-Fi 6 Wireless Controllers
Catalyst 9800 Series Wi-Fi 6-compatible wireless controller appliances help you automate and manage advanced Wi-Fi networks that support 802.11ax APs. 802.11ax, aka Wi-Fi 6, improves on previous generation 802.11ac (referred to as Wi-Fi 5) appliances by providing less latency and more predictable performance, allowing higher client density, offering enhanced security, saving energy for battery-dependent handheld devices, and offering more versatility for supporting the latest types of Internet-of-Things (IoT) endpoints. Catalyst 9800 line wireless controllers feature high availability with seamless software upgrades, live fixes, and the ability to connect additional wireless APs with zero disruption of service. Enhanced security technologies include Cisco Wireless Intrusion Prevention System (WIPS), secure boot, and Cisco Software-Defined Access (SD-Access). Streaming telemetry allows you to track and understand network and client health.
All appliances in the Catalyst 9800 line are based on Cisco's IOS XE Software and work with Cisco's DNA Center or with Prime Infrastructure network management tools. Cisco's Catalyst 9800 wireless network controllers can manage Cisco Aironet Wi-Fi 5 Wave 1 and Wave 2 Wi-Fi access points concurrently with Catalyst 9100 Series 802.11ax APs. For details about Progent's consulting services for Cisco 9800 Series 802.11ax Wi-Fi 6 Wireless Controllers, see Cisco Catalyst 9800 Series Wi-Fi 6 wireless LAN controllers solution planning, configuration, and debugging consulting.
Cisco Wi-Fi 5 Wireless LAN Controllers
Cisco Wave 2 Wi-Fi controllers allow fast data exchange, configuration, administration, analysis and debugging for Cisco Wi-Fi devices and services. Cisco offers both physical and software-based wireless controllers for centralized administration of WiFi networks, but WLANs with a large number of Wi-Fi access points typically require hardware-based wireless controllers. New wireless controller appliances from Cisco offer significant advantages in comparison to Wave 1 and older models such as greater throughput, concurrent support for both 1G and 10G interfaces, enhanced application visibility and control, and advanced, integrated security.
Cisco's 3504 WiFi Controller is a value-priced appliance available in a desktop enclosure and intended for small and medium-sized organizations. You can use the 3504 in a centralized network architecture such as in small branch and remote offices administered over the WAN with FlexConnect, or in bridge installations where Ethernet cabling is limited. The 3504 wireless controller can handle up to 150 access points and 3,000 users, delivers 4 Gbps performance, and supports up to 4,096 VLANs. Cisco's 3504 wireless controller includes a multi-gigabit Ethernet interface (up to 5 Gigabit Ethernet) and four 1-GB Ethernet connections. APs can be connected directly to the controller via two PoE ports. The 3504 Wi-Fi controller offers fast failover for APs and users, which allows uninterrupted availability for applications. Like other Wave 2 wireless controllers available from Cisco, the 3504 model has the integrated ability to work with Cisco Prime Infrastructure, Cisco Mobility Services, and Cisco 5520 and 8540 wireless controllers.
The Cisco 5520 Wireless Controller, offered in a 1 rack unit (RU) package, is designed to support larger organizations and campus networks and can be used in centralized, distributed, and mesh deployments. The 5520 Wi-Fi controller supports up to 1,500 Wi-Fi access points and 20,000 users, offers 20 Gbps throughput, and supports 4,096 VLANs. The 5520 wireless controller features two 10 GE ports and features SSD storage, backup fans, optional backup power supplies, and rapid failover for high availability.
The Cisco 8540 Wireless Controller, offered in a 2 rack unit (RU) form factor, is a top-of-the-line wireless controller designed to support enterprises, service providers, and large campuses. The 8540 Wireless controller can be run in centralized, distributed, and mesh deployments and supports as many as 6,000 Wi-Fi access points and 64,000 client users. The 8540 Wireless controller offers throughput up to 40 Gbps and supports up to 4,096 VLANs. The 8540 controller comes with four 1-GB or 10GE interfaces and features SSD storage, backup power supplies, backup fans, and subsecond failover.
Wave 1 Cisco Wireless LAN Controllers
Cisco wireless LAN controllers cut the time and cost required to deploy, manage, and troubleshoot wireless networks by offering single-point control of critical tasks such as provisioning APs, enforcing consistent policies across wired/wireless LANs, supporting enterprise-wide Quality of Service for IP voice and video, monitoring and optimizing network performance, implementing wireless intrusion prevention system (wIPS) tools to defend against cyber break-ins and DDoS threats, and managing IPv6 clients. Cisco has designed wireless LAN controllers for businesses of any size and can provide desktop or rackmount appliances, modular add-on controllers for Cisco routers and Catalyst switches, and Catalyst switches with built-in wireless controllers.
Cisco's Wave 1 wireless controllers incorporate Cisco CleanAir technology to avoid RF interference and create self-healing wireless networks for top 802.11n and 802.11ac performance and security. Integrated Bonjour Gateways permit discovery and policy throughout WLAN, LAN and WAN for Apple applications. For fault tolerance, Cisco wireless network controllers support wireless access point and client stateful failover by enabling a backup high-availability wireless controller to synchronize with a primary controller for access point license count, CAPWAP state and roaming keys, and access point CAPWAP state. If the main controller goes down, thousands of APs and wireless clients can switchover at subsecond speeds to the secondary wireless controller.
Cisco's Wireless Controller Module for ISR Routers with UCS-E offers basic 802.11n and 802.11ac support for Cisco 2900 and 3900 Series routers deployed by smaller businesses and satellite offices. This value-priced and scalable solution can handle from five to 200 APs and as many as 6000 wireless clients. (To learn concerning Progent's online and onsite consulting and troubleshooting services for Cisco routers, see Cisco router deployment and management services.)
Catalyst 3650 Series are 1RU switches intended for small to mid-size businesses and satellite offices and features a built-in wireless controller with the ability to handle up to 40 Gb of wireless capacity for each switch and 25 access points and 1000 clients per switch or stack. Catalyst 3850 Series are 1RU rackmount switches designed for midsize businesses and large enterprises and include an integrated wireless controller supporting 40 Gb of wireless throughput per switch and the ability to handle 50 access points and 2000 wireless clients. The Wireless Services Module2 (WiSM2) is an add-in blade for Cisco Catalyst 6500 Series switches with a built-in wireless controller designed for mid-to-large size businesses and capable of 20 Gbps throughput and able to handle 1000 wireless access points and up to 15,000 clients. (To find out concerning Progent's consulting services for Catalyst switches, refer to Catalyst switches configuration and troubleshooting support.)
Cisco 2500 Series Wireless Controllers are economical desktop devices that streamline the deployment and operation of Wi-Fi networks for small to medium-sized enterprises and satellite offices. The Cisco 2500 Series wireless LAN controller can handle 5 to 75 access points and up to 1000 clients and can deliver sustained performance of up to 1 Gbps.
Cisco's 5500 Wireless Controller is a scalable 1RU unit designed for mid-to-large sized businesses and campus environments and can support up to 500 APs and 7,000 clients while providing 8 Gbps throughput. Cisco's 5760 Wireless Controller is a 1RU appliance intended for mid-to-large campuses with support for 1000 APs and 12,000 wireless clients and providing throughput of 60 Gbps to accommodate high wireless client densities and high usage of video-intensive applications.
The Cisco Flex 7500 Series Wireless Controller is intended to enable centralized management of thousands of wireless remote sites from one location, eliminating the costs of a Wi-Fi controller at each remote site. The 1RU Flex 7500 lets you establish a private cloud to deploy, track, manage, and repair up to 6000 access points and 64,000 clients while handling 1 Gbps performance. The Cisco 8500 Series Wireless Controller is a 1RU appliance designed to monitor and control Wi-Fi environments for very large campuses or for service providers and can scale to support 6000 wireless points and up to 64,000 wireless clients while offering 10 Gbps performance.
To find out more about Cisco wireless controllers, go to Cisco wireless controllers consulting services.
Legacy Cisco Wireless Access Points, Bridges and Wireless Controllers Supported by Progent
The IEEE 802.11ac standard for wireless connectivity virtually rendered obsolete the prior releases of Wi-Fi devices for venues that have high densities of clients and high incidence of video-intensive software applications. Even for businesses who do not currently require the bandwidth efficiency of 802.11ac Wi-Fi, a large number of Cisco wireless products have reached end-of-life status, which can pose significant service and regulatory compliance problems. Progent's Cisco-certified consulting experts offer online and onsite support services for a wide array of earlier-generation Cisco wireless products. Progent can also assist organizations to assess the financial justification for updating legacy wireless infrastructure and can help in designing and executing affordable, seamless migrations. Below are a few of Cisco older-generation Wi-Fi devices that Progent's consulting experts continue to support.
Legacy Cisco Aironet Wireless Access Points
Aironet 1000/1130AG Series access points are intended for conventional workplaces and other locations which have little environmental instability. These devices include integrated antennas that offer predictable radio coverage profiles. The 1130G Series WAP is designed for restricted domains that do not allow 802.11a/5GHz transmission.
Cisco Aironet 1230AG/1240AG Series wireless access points are ideal for more challenging radio frequency situations like factories and warehouses or above ceiling structures which tend to require adjustable external antennas and rugged metal cases. The Aironet 1240G Series product is intended for restricted domains that do not allow 802.11a operation.
Aironet 1500 lightweight outside wireless mesh LAN access points offer a cost-effective, scalable, secure outdoor wireless network mechanism for campus areas and for public venues that require connectivity for portable devices.
Legacy Cisco Wireless LAN Bridges
Cisco wireless LAN bridges offer a high-speed and feature-rich solution for connecting numerous LANs in a metropolitan situation or public access environment. Cisco wireless LAN bridges offer a flexible, easy-to-use technology that meets the security demands of WAN specialists. These bridges handle both point-to-point and point-to-multipoint configurations with good coverage and the ability to handle traffic throughput as high as 54 Mbps.
Cisco Aironet wireless LAN bridges offer throughput dramatically higher than E1/T1 connections for far less cost, doing away with the need for expensive leased lines when connecting separate buildings. Since bridges require no ongoing costs, savings on leased-line bills rapidly cover the startup equipment costs. Self-installed private lines and even leased lines using copper or optical cable often result in high initial expenses if they are separated by obstacles like freeways, train tracks, or lakes and rivers. Cisco wireless LAN bridges can be installed quickly with a fast return on investment.
Aironet 1300 family outside access points/bridges can be deployed as stand-alone access points, wireless bridges, or wireless group bridges. These products have a tough cover and provide high-speed, affordable wireless connectivity between numerous stationary or mobile networks and clients.
Cisco 1400 Series bridges offer high-performance, reliable outside wireless bridging for line-of-sight environments. These devices include a ruggedized cover that is optimized for harsh outside conditions and operate in broad temperature ranges.
Legacy Cisco WLAN Controllers
Cisco WLAN Controllers centralize the management of wireless LANs by streamlining the handling of key technologies including integrated IPS, fast RF management, automatic deployment, and full N+1 redundancy. Cisco WLAN controllers work with lightweight wireless access points to offer superior throughput and high-end management capabilities.
Cisco Wireless LAN Controllers (WLCs) provide the manageability, scalability, security, and fault tolerance that network managers require to create safe, enterprise-scale wireless environments, from satellite locations to small companies to headquarter campuses. Cisco's first-generation Wireless Network Controllers can be clustered to provide support for as many as 2400 WAPs per roaming domain.
Cisco's WLCM or WLCM-E Wireless LAN Controller Module for Integrated Services Routers offers small-to mid-size businesses and large corporations an economical solution to deploy and manage protected WLANs at satellite offices. These controllers supervise up to a dozen Cisco APs and are supported on Cisco 2800/3800 Series IS Routers and Cisco 3700 Series Routers. (For information concerning Progent's remote and on-premises consulting services for Cisco routers, see Cisco router configuration and troubleshooting services.)
How Progent Can Help You with Cisco Wireless Devices
Progent can provide a Cisco-certified consultant to assist you to design, deploy, maintain and repair a converged wired/wireless environment incorporating a broad array of wireless devices that provide the same security, expandability, and manageability you expect from a wired network. Progent can help you to maintain legacy wireless products from Cisco or upgrade seamlessly to the latest 802.11ax-compatible products. Progent's CISM, CISSP, and ISSAP security professionals can advise you about how to design protection into your wireless network and your company's operations. Progent's disaster recovery planning consultants and business continuity consultants can show you how to deploy the HA features incorporated into Cisco's wired/wireless products so your converged network delivers continuing return on investment.
Progent's Wi-Fi Site Survey helps you to design and implement a state-of-the-art wireless network customized for your facilities, offering a wireless ecosystem that provides comprehensive coverage, high performance and density, QoS features to support IP video, enterprise-class security, and simplified management. Progent's Wireless Site Survey can be performed remotely to reduce time and costs, or onsite for more challenging environments.
For a more in-depth discussion of Progent's wireless integration services, see Progent's Wireless LAN Support Services.
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