Cisco Network Consultants

Cisco has developed an extensive catalog of wireless networking devices and software tools designed to enable continual access to information and resources and to facilitate collaboration among employees, associates, vendors, and clients. Cisco's wireless product families include Cisco's Small Business, Aironet and Meraki series of access points (APs), as well as Cisco's Wireless LAN Controller plug-ins and standalone devices. Progent's certified wireless consultants can help businesses of any size to deploy Cisco wireless solutions to support the new paradigm of Bring-Your-Own-Device computing by converging their tethered and untethered networks to benefit from simplified deployment, consistently high throughput, centralized management, uniform policy, high availability (HA), and across-the-board security.

Cisco's Unified Wireless Network solution can scale to up to 18,000 access points with Layer 3 mobility at central or remote venues such as enterprise headquarters, college lecture halls, branch offices, and telecommuter homes. Cisco's 802.11x wireless access points and wireless controllers are components of Cisco's Unified Wireless Network and are designed to support the same degree of security, throughput, and manageability for wireless LANs that companies expect in their wired networks. This technology incorporates integrated mobile services like VoIP, IP video, and secure guest connectivity. Cisco's Unified Wireless Network technology allows organizations to create Wi-Fi ecosystems that streamline the way they do business and enhance output via a mobile and connected employee base.

Progent's Cisco CCIE network infrastructure consulting services can provide remote or onsite expertise to help your organization to design, deploy, manage, upgrade, and repair converged wired and wireless network infrastructure of all sizes and for any venue. Also, Progent offers affordable online and on-premises wireless site surveys to help you to design and deploy a Wi-Fi network with customized wireless access point clustering optimized for your specific work area layout, building characteristics, and application workloads.

Small Business, Aironet and Meraki Access Points (APs)
Cisco's Small Business, Aironet and Meraki lines of access points allow you to integrate wired and wireless networks to deliver the accessibility, capacity, throughput, protection and ease of management needed to support virtually any environment. These APs start at entry-level, single-band 802.11b/g/n units with data rates of 300 Mb intended for small businesses or home offices to dual-radio 802.11ac wireless access points capable of handling 200 or more wireless clients on each AP and delivering sustained data rates as high as 1.9 Gigabits per second. Cisco's current selection of APs can be combined or clustered to provide the capacity to support environments crowded with clients and with high usage rates of video-intense applications.

Small Business 100, 300 and 500 Family of Wireless Access Points
Cisco's Small Business Family of APs are Linux-powered units designed as value-priced wireless solutions for small offices. Many models in Cisco's Small Business family of access points support Cisco's Single Point Setup technology, which makes it possible to configure, manage and repair a cluster of access points from one AP through an intuitive web browser interface. All of the models support Power over Ethernet (POE) and feature Quality of Service (QoS), rogue access point detection, and bridge mode for connecting to another network.

The Cisco Small Business WAP121 AP is a wallmount, single-band 2.4GHz device able to support 16 active 802.11n wireless clients, includes a 10/100 Ethernet interface, permits up to four AP devices and 40 active clients in a cluster, and can handle sustained throughput of 300 Mbps. Cisco's Small Business WAP131 is a desktop dual-radio 802.11n AP able to handle 16 active wireless clients on each radio for a total of up to 32 wireless clients, includes a 10/100/1000 Ethernet interface, and delivers sustained data rates of 300 Mbps for each radio. The WAP131 does not allow AP clustering. The Cisco WAP150 is an entry-level Wave 1 dual-radio AC/n wireless access point that features a 1xGE Power over Ethernet port and can support 16 clients from each radio with 867 Mbps performance for AC devices and 300 Mbps for 802.11n devices. The Cisco WAP1501 supports 4 APs per cluster.

Cisco's Small Business WAP321 model is a wallmount single-band (2.4 or 5 GHz) 802.11a/b/g/n device with support for up to 80 active clients sharing an 8-device cluster. The WAP321 includes a 10/100/1000 Ethernet port and can deliver a sustained data rate of 300 Mbps for the activated radio. The Cisco Small Business WAP351 is a dual-band 2.4/5 GHz 802.11n AP with a 5-port Gigabit Ethernet interface and can handle 32 wireless clients per radio for a total of up to 64 active clients, and support sustained throughput of 300 Mbps per radio. The WAP351 AP does not support clustering. The Cisco WAP361 is a dual-radio Wireless-AC/N wireless access point that includes a 5-port Gigabit Ethernet LAN switch, can support 32 active WLAN clients on each radio, and offers 867 Mbps throughput for 802.11ac devices and 300 Mbps performance for 802.11n clients. The Cisco WAP361 supports 8 access points for each cluster. Cisco's wall-mountable Small Business 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 Gigabit Ethernet interface, can handle as many as 32 wireless clients on each radio, and eight access points for each cluster.

The Cisco WAP561 Wireless-N Selectable Band wireless access point features a Gigabit Ethernet port and two radios (2.4 and 5.0 GHz) that offer 450 Mbps throughput per radio, can handle 64 devices for each radio, and allow up to 16 access points per cluster. Cisco's WAP551 is similar to the WAP 561 but features a single selectable band (2.4 or 5.0 GHz). The Cisco WAP571 and WAP571E (the weather-proof outside model) are dual-band 802.11ac Wave 1 wireless access points incorporating two Gb Ethernet LAN interfaces with link aggregation (LAG), 3x3 MIMO, and as high as 1.9 Gbps performance with 1300 Mbps over 11ac and 600 Mbps over 802.11n. Both access points support 32 clients per radio and 16 access points per cluster.

For details about Progent's support for current and legacy Cisco Small Business series of WiFi APs, see Cisco Small Business 100, 300 and 500 wireless APs planning and support.

Cisco's Aironet Family of Access Points
Cisco's Aironet line of indoor and outdoor wireless access points has for years been the leading AP product. Aironet APs range from value-priced entry-level devices to enterprise-class APs. Cisco's Aironet family cover several generations of devices supporting the continually improving 802 specification. The current line of Aironet APs support Cisco's Unified Wireless Network architecture and include 802.11ac technology, which delivers triple the throughput as well as superior range and user density in comparison to the previous generation of devices. The latest multi-band Aironet APs can handle 802.11n at 2.4 GHz for clients without 802.11ac capability.

The earliest Aironet access points are outdated units that have reached end-of-life status and are no longer supported by Cisco. Progent continues to support the entire Aironet family of wireless access points and can assist your company to manage and troubleshoot your current Aironet Wi-Fi system or upgrade smoothly to current Aironet technology. To find out more about Progent's consulting services for current and legacy Cisco Aironet wireless access points, refer to Aironet APs consulting.

Cisco's Meraki Access Points
Cisco's portfolio of Meraki 2.4/5 GHz indoor APs range from value-priced devices for general use to advanced products supporting as high as 2.5 Gbit/sec performance. Every Cisco Meraki indoor AP offers high-end features like self-configuring deployment, advanced security, BYOD support, built-in traffic analysis, zero-touch web-based firmware updates, and centralized cloud management via an intuitive dashboard. Each Cisco Meraki indoor access point also incorporates dual powerful radios with boosted receive sensitivity as well as a separate radio that offers intrusion detection and prevention system (WIDS/WIPS) security for RF analysis and deep packet inspection at line rate.

Cisco's Meraki outdoor wireless access points are IP67 certified, built to operate in harsh outdoor environments, and tested to withstand dust, shock and moisture. Cisco's Meraki outdoor wireless access points include a 1 x Gbit Ethernet port and deliver advanced features that include cloud-based management with multi-site visibility, 802.1X and native Active Directory integration, built-in antivirus scan, single-click secure guest access and guest isolation firewall, application-aware traffic shaping, plus self-configuring mesh with MIMO. To find out more about Progent's consulting services for Cisco's Meraki access points and management tools, refer to Meraki wireless access points consulting.

Cisco Wave 2 802.11ax WiFi Network Controllers
Cisco Wave 2 wireless controllers allow realtime communication, provisioning, control, analysis and debugging for Cisco Wi-Fi appliances and services. Cisco has developed both physical and virtual wireless controllers for centralized administration of WiFi environments, but networks with a large number of wireless APs are better served by physical Wi-Fi controllers. Wave 2 wireless controller appliances from Cisco offer major advantages in comparison to Wave 1 and earlier products including higher throughput, concurrent support for both 1G and 10G Ethernet, improved application visibility and control (AVC), and advanced, integrated protection.

Cisco's 3504 WiFi Controller is an entry-level device available in a desktop form factor and designed for small and medium-sized businesses. You can use the 3504 in a centralized WLAN environment such as in small branch and remote offices administered over the wide-area network via FlexConnect, or in mesh deployments where Ethernet cabling is sparse. The 3504 wireless controller supports up to 150 APs and 3,000 users, offers 4 Gbps performance, and supports up to 4,096 VLANs. The 3504 WiFi controller features a multi-gigabit Ethernet interface (up to 5 Gigabit Ethernet) and four 1-Gigabit Ethernet interfaces. Access points can be connected to the controller through two Power over Ethernet ports. The 3504 Wi-Fi controller offers subsecond failover for access points and users, which allows nonstop availability for applications. As with other current Wave 2 wireless controllers from Cisco, the 3504 model has the integrated ability to work with Cisco Prime Infrastructure, Cisco Mobility Services Engine, and Cisco 5520 and 8540 WLAN controllers.

Cisco's 5520 WiFi Controller, offered in a 1 rack unit package, is intended to support larger organizations and campus networks and can be used in centralized, distributed, and mesh architectures. The 5520 wireless controller can handle as many as 1,500 access points and 20,000 client users, delivers 20 Gbps performance, and supports up to 4,096 VLANs. The 5520 model controller features two 10 GE interfaces and features solid-state storage, backup fans, optional backup power supplies, and subsecond failover for high availability.

The Cisco 8540 Wireless Controller, available in a 2 rack unit package, is a high-end wireless controller intended to support enterprises, service providers, and large campus environments. The 8540 Wireless controller can be run in centralized, distributed, and mesh architectures and can handle up to 6,000 Wi-Fi access points and 64,000 clients. The 8540 Wireless controller offers throughput up to 40 Gbps and supports up to 4,096 VLANs. The 8340 comes with four 1-GB or 10GE interfaces and features solid-state storage, redundant power supplies, redundant fans, and subsecond failover.

Wave 1 Cisco Wireless Network Controllers
Cisco wireless LAN controllers reduce the time and cost needed to deploy, manage, and troubleshoot wireless networks by offering single-point control of critical functions like setting up wireless access points, applying consistent policies across converged wired and wireless LANs, supporting enterprise-wide QoS for voice and HD video, monitoring and troubleshooting network performance, activating security tools to guard against cyber break-ins and DDoS threats, and handling IPv6 clients. Cisco has developed wireless network controllers for businesses of any size and can provide standalone desktop controllers, modular add-on controllers for Cisco routers and Catalyst switches, and switches with integrated wireless controllers.

Cisco's Wave 1 WiFi controllers include Cisco CleanAir tools to minimize signal interference and create self-healing wireless LANs for top 802.11n and 802.11ac performance and protection. Integrated Apple Bonjour Gateways enable discovery and policy throughout WLAN, LAN and WAN for Apple-based applications. For high availability, Cisco wireless network controllers allow AP and client stateful failover by enabling a standby HA wireless controller to synch with a main wireless controller for AP license tabulation, CAPWAP state and roaming keys, and access point CAPWAP state. If the primary controller goes down, thousands of wireless access points and wireless clients can switchover immediately to the backup wireless controller.

Cisco's Wireless Controller Module for ISR G2 Routers with UCS-E offers entry-level 802.11n and 802.11ac support for Cisco 2900 and 3900 Series routers deployed by small to medium-sized organizations and branches. This affordable and expandable module can handle from five to 200 wireless access points and up to 6000 clients. (To learn concerning Progent's online and onsite consulting support for Cisco routers, see Cisco router deployment and management services.)

Cisco Catalyst 3650 Series are 1RU form-factor switches designed for SMBs and branches and come with an integrated wireless LAN controller with the capability to handle 40 Gb of wireless throughput for each switch and 25 wireless access points and 1000 clients per switch or stack. Cisco Catalyst 3850 Series are 1RU switches designed for mid-size businesses and large enterprises and feature a built-in wireless LAN controller with 40 Gb of wireless capacity per switch and support for 50 APs and up to 2000 clients. The Wireless Services Module2 (WiSM2) is a plug-in blade for Catalyst 6500 Series switches with an integrated wireless controller intended for mid-to-large size enterprises and able to deliver 20 Gbps throughput and able to handle 1000 access points and up to 15,000 clients. (To learn about Progent's online and onsite consulting support for Catalyst switches, refer to Catalyst switches configuration and management services.)

Cisco 2500 Series Wireless Controllers are entry-level desktop units that streamline the provisioning and management of Wi-Fi LANs for SMBs and branches. The 2500 Series wireless LAN controller can manage from five to 75 wireless access points and up to 1000 clients and offers sustained data rates of 1 Gbps.

Cisco's 5500 Wireless Controller is a scalable 1RU appliance intended for medium-sized to large organizations and campuses and can support up to 500 access points and 7,000 wireless clients while delivering 8 Gbps performance. Cisco's 5760 Series Wireless Controller is a 1RU appliance designed for mid-to-large campus environments with support for 1000 access points and 12,000 clients and delivering performance of 60 Gbps to accommodate high client densities and high usage of video-intensive mobile applications.

Cisco's Flex 7500 Series Wireless Controller is designed to manage thousands of wireless remote sites from a single location, avoiding the need for a Wi-Fi controller at every remote site. The 1RU rackmount Flex 7500 lets you create a private cloud to configure, monitor, maintain, and repair up to 6000 access points and 64,000 wireless clients while supporting 1 Gbps performance. Cisco's 8500 Wireless Controller is a 1RU rackmount appliance designed to monitor and control wireless networks for very large campuses or for service providers and can scale to support up to 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 APs, LAN Bridges and Wi-Fi Controllers Supported by Progent
The 802.11ac standard for wireless connectivity virtually rendered obsolete the prior generations of Wi-Fi products for many venues that support high densities of wireless clients and high usage of video-intensive applications. Even for organizations who do not currently need the bandwidth efficiency of 802.11ac, many of Cisco wireless products have arrived at end-of-life status, which can present significant service and regulatory compliance problems. Progent's Cisco-certified consultants offer online and onsite support for a wide array of older-generation Cisco wireless products. Progent can also assist companies to evaluate the financial justification for updating legacy wireless technology and can help in planning and executing cost-effective, non-disruptive upgrades. Below are a sample of Cisco older-generation wireless products that Progent's consultants continue to support.

Legacy Cisco Aironet Wireless Access Points
Aironet 1000 or 1130AG Series access points are ideal for conventional workplaces and similar venues which have minimal environmental variability. These access points have integrated antennas that offer dependable omnidirectional coverage profiles. The Aironet 1130G family product is available for restricted domains that do not allow 5GHz transmission.

Aironet 1230AG/1240AG Series wireless access points are ideal for more challenging radio frequency situations like factories and warehouses or above suspended ceilings which often require adjustable external antennas and rugged metal enclosures. The Cisco 1240G Series device is available for controlled locations that do not allow 5GHz operation.

Aironet 1500 family lightweight outdoor wireless mesh access points offer an affordable, expandable, protected outdoor Wi-Fi mechanism for enterprise campuses and for public sites that require access for mobile devices.

Legacy Cisco Aironet Wireless LAN Bridges
Cisco Aironet wireless LAN bridges offer a high-throughput and multi-featured solution for integrating multiple LANs in a metro area or public access environment. Cisco Aironet wireless LAN bridges provide a flexible, easy-to-use solution that meets the security demands of WAN specialists. These bridges handle both point-to-point and PTMP configurations with excellent range and the ability to handle traffic throughput as high as 54 Mbps.

Cisco Aironet wireless LAN bridges deliver throughput significantly higher than E1/T1 lines for much lower cost, avoiding the requirement for expensive leased lines when linking separate buildings. Because bridges carry no recurring costs, the expenses saved on leased-line services quickly pay for the initial equipment investment. Private lines and in some cases leased lines using copper or optical cable can require considerable initial costs in cases where they are separated by barriers such as freeways, railroads, or bodies of water. Cisco wireless bridges can be installed quickly with a fast return on investment.

Cisco Aironet 1300 family outdoor access points/bridges can be implemented as independent access points, bridges, or workgroup bridges. These devices have a tough cover and offer high-speed, cost-effective wireless interfaces between multiple fixed or mobile environments and users.

Cisco Aironet 1400 bridges offer high-speed, dependable outdoor bridging for LOS environments. They include an all-weather enclosure that can hold up to harsh outside environments and can operate in wide temperature ranges.

Legacy Cisco WLAN Controllers
Cisco Wireless Network Controllers provide single-point management of wireless networks by simplifying the handling of key functions including integrated IPS, real-time RF management, zero touch deployment, and N+1 redundancy. WLAN controllers work with small APs to offer superior throughput and advanced control capabilities.

WLAN Controllers (WLCs) offer the control, expandability, protection, and resilience that network managers need to create secure, enterprise-scale wireless environments, from satellite locations to small businesses to main campuses. Cisco's first-generation Wireless Network Controllers can be clustered to offer accommodation for as many as 2400 WAPs for each roaming domain.

Cisco's WLCM or WLCM-E Module for Integrated Services Routers offers small-to mid-size businesses (SMBs) and large corporations an affordable way to implement and manage secure WLANs at satellite offices. These wireless controllers manage as many as a dozen Cisco wireless access points and are supported on 2800/3800 IS Routers and 3700 Integrated Services Routers. (For information concerning Progent's online and on-premises support for Cisco routers, refer to Cisco router configuration and troubleshooting services.)

How Progent's Engineers Can Assist You with Cisco Wireless Products
Progent can provide access to a Cisco-certified CCIE consultant to help you to plan, deploy, maintain and repair a converged wired/wireless ecosystem incorporating a wide array of wireless technologies that provide the same protection, scalability, and manageability you expect from a wired network. Progent can assist you to maintain early-generation Wi-Fi products from Cisco or migrate efficiently to the latest 802.11ac Wi-Fi technology. Progent's CISA and ISSAP security specialists can advise you about how to design protection into your wireless network and into your business processes. Progent's disaster recovery planning consultants and business continuity planning consultants can help you to deploy the high availability technology incorporated into Cisco's wired/wireless technologies so your converged infrastructure delivers significant return on investment.

Progent’s Wi-Fi Site Survey helps you to plan and implement a robust wireless network customized for your facilities, providing a Wi-Fi solution that provides comprehensive coverage, high speed and density, QoS features to support IP video, enterprise-class security, and streamlined management. Progent's Wi-Fi Site Survey can be performed remotely to reduce time and costs, or on premises to deal with more complex situations.

For a further look at Progent's wireless integration capabilities, see Progent's Wireless Network Help.

For additional information concerning Progent's professional support for Cisco products, choose a topic:

• Introduction to Cisco Network Support
• Fast and Affordable Online Assistance from a Cisco Certified Internetwork Expert (CCIE) Engineer
• Cisco Firepower Series Firewalls: Integration and Troubleshooting Expertise
• ASA 5500-X Series Firewall with Firepower: Setup and Management Services
• Cisco ASA 5500 Firewalls Management Assistance
• Cisco PIX Firewall Maintenance Support
• Cisco Routers Consulting Services
• Aironet Wireless APs Deployment Support
• Cisco Small Business 100, 300 and 500 WiFi APs Engineering Support
• Cisco Wireless Controllers Support Services
• Cisco Meraki Wireless APs Engineering Services
• Cisco Unified Communications Manager (CUCM or Unified CM) and CallManager Consulting and Technical Support
• Cisco VoIP Phones and IP Video Desktop Phones Expertise and Wireless IP Phone Integration
• Cisco Jabber Configuration and Troubleshooting Expertise
• Catalyst Switches Engineering Expertise
• Nexus Switches Support and Troubleshooting Services
• Meraki MS Switches Deployment Services
• Cisco VPN and Security Integration Help
• SIP and CUBE Infrastructure Solutions: SIP PSTN Trunks and CUBE Integration Expertise
• Design and Support for Cisco-powered Data Centers
• Data Center Design Services for ISPs
• Streamlined Network Management Technologies for Cisco-powered Environments