Cisco Certified Network Consulting

Cisco offers an extensive line of wireless networking products and technologies designed to provide anywhere, anytime access to information and resources and to facilitate collaboration among colleagues, partners, and clients. Cisco's wireless product portfolio includes the Small Business, Aironet and Meraki lines of wireless access points (APs) plus Cisco's standalone and modular Wireless LAN Controllers. Cisco's wireless solutions can help organizations of any size support the new paradigm of Bring-Your-Own-Device (BYOD) by converging their wired and wireless networks to achieve simplified deployment, uniformly high-performance, centralized management, consistent policy enforcement, and across-the-board security.

Cisco's Unified Wireless Network architecture can scale to as many as 18,000 access points with full Layer 3 mobility across central or remote locations such as enterprise campuses, college lecture halls, branch offices, and home offices. Cisco's Wi-Fi access points and wireless controllers are components of Cisco's Unified Wireless Network and are designed to support the same level of security, performance, and ease of management for wireless LANs that companies expect in their wired infrastructure. This includes integrated mobility services such as VoIP, HD IP video, and secure guest connectivity. Cisco's Unified Wireless Network technology allows companies to create wireless ecosystems that streamline the way they do business and improve productivity through a mobile and connected workforce.

Progent's Cisco-certified wireless networking consultants can provide online or onsite expertise to help you design, deploy, manage, expand, upgrade, and troubleshoot converged wired/wireless networks of any size and for any venue. Progent also offers affordable online and onsite wireless site surveys to help you design and install a Wi-Fi network with custom-designed access point clustering optimized for your specific office layout, building structure, and application workloads.

Cisco Small Business, Aironet, Meraki and Catalyst Wi-Fi Access Points
Cisco's Small Business, Aironet, Meraki and Catalyst families of wireless access points (APs) allow you to converge wired and wireless networks to provide the coverage, density, performance, security and manageability needed to support virtually any environment. These wireless access points range from entry-level, single-band 802.11b/g/n devices with data rates of 300 Mbps for very small businesses or home offices to dual-band 802.11a/b/g/n/ac APs capable of supporting 200 or more clients per access point and offering sustained data rates of up to 5.9 Gbps. Cisco's current line of APs can be clustered to provide the scale to support environments with high client density and high usage rates of HD video applications.

Cisco Small Business 100, 300 and 500 Series Wireless Access Points
Cisco's Small Business 100, 300 and 500 series wireless access points are Linux-based devices designed as entry-level 802.11n Wi-Fi solutions for small offices. Many models in the Cisco Small Business family of wireless access points support Cisco's Single Point Setup technology, which makes it possible to configure, manage and troubleshoot a cluster of access points from a single device via a simple browser-based interface. All models support Power over Ethernet (POE) and feature QoS, rogue access point detection, and bridge mode for wirelessly connecting to a second Ethernet network. For more information about Progent's consulting expertise for Cisco Small Business 100, 300 and 500 Series Wi-Fi access points, refer to Cisco Small Business 100/300/500 Series planning and integration consulting.

Cisco's Aironet Family of Wireless Access Points
Cisco's Aironet family of indoor and outdoor wireless access points has for years been the top-selling AP solution. Aironet APs range from value-priced entry-level models to enterprise-class APs. The Aironet line span several generations of devices supporting the evolving 802.11x Wi-Fi standard. The latest Aironet APs support Cisco's Unified Wireless Network software and incorporate 802.11ac Wi-Fi technology, which offers triple the performance as well as greater range and user density compared to the previous generation of devices. Cisco's current dual-band Aironet APs continue to support 802.11n at 2.4 GHz to accommodate clients not compatible with 802.11ac.

The oldest Aironet APs are legacy devices that have reached end of life status and are no longer fully supported by Cisco. Progent continues to support the entire Aironet family of wireless access points and can help you manage and troubleshoot your current Aironet Wi-Fi environment or upgrade efficiently to the latest Aironet technology. For details about Progent's support for both current and legacy Cisco Aironet wireless access points, see Cisco Aironet Access Point consulting services.

Cisco's Meraki Wireless Access Points
Cisco's family of Meraki dual-band 2.4/5 GHz indoor access points range from value-priced models for general use to enterprise-class devices that offer up to 5.9 Gbit/sec performance. All Meraki indoor access points feature next-generation capabilities such as self-configuring plug-and-play deployment, advanced security, BYOD support, built-in analytics, automatic over-the-web updates, and centralized cloud management for multiple sites. Each Meraki access point also includes two high-power client-serving radios with enhanced receive sensitivity plus a dedicated intrusion detection and prevention system (WIDS/WIPS) security radio that provides RF analysis and deep packet inspection at line rate.

Cisco's Meraki outdoor access points are IP67 rated, designed to operate in harsh outdoor environments, and tested for dust, shock, vibration and moisture. Meraki outdoor access points include a Gigabit Ethernet port and offer advanced features that include cloud management with network-wide visibility and control, 802.1X and native Active Directory integration, built-in antivirus scan (NAC), 1-click secure guest access and guest isolation firewall, application-aware traffic shaping, plus self-configuring mesh with MIMO and beamforming. For more information about Progent's consulting services for Cisco Meraki access points and management tools, refer to Cisco Meraki Access Point consulting services.

Catalyst 9100 Family of Wi-Fi 6 Access Points
Cisco's Catalyst 9100 family of Wi-Fi 6 access points are intended for environments ranging from home offices to high-density enterprise campuses. Catalyst 9100 access points are based on the 802.11ax specification, known as Wi-Fi 6, which in turn builds on the previous 802.11ac (Wi-Fi 5) specification. Unlike 802.11ac, Wi-Fi 6 is able to use both the 2.4-Ghz and 5-GHz bands. Important technologies incorporated in Cisco Catalyst 9100 Series APs include OFDMA scheduling for high density deployments, dual NAVs for better reliability, increased device sleep time for reduced power consumption in battery-powered endpoints, adaptive power thresholds for more efficient spectrum use, and dynamic fragmentation for reduced overhead. All Catalyst 9100 Series wireless APs support Cisco's Embedded Wireless Controller, accommodate as many as 200 clients per radio, and run on Cisco IOS XE Software. To find out more about Progent's consulting services for Catalyst 9100 Line of Wireless APs, see Wi-Fi 6 802.11ax APs system design, deployment, and debugging services.

Cisco 9800 Series 802.11ax Wi-Fi 6 Wireless Controllers
Cisco Catalyst 9800 family of Wi-Fi 6-compatible wireless controller appliances help you automate and manage advanced Wi-Fi environments that support 802.11ax APs. The 802.11ax standard, aka Wi-Fi 6, builds on prior generation 802.11ac (referred to as Wi-Fi 5) devices by delivering lower latency and more predictable performance, allowing higher client density, providing greater security, conserving energy for battery-powered handheld devices, and allowing more flexibility for handling the latest kinds of IoT endpoints. Catalyst 9800 Series Wi-Fi controllers include high availability with seamless software updates, hot patching, and the ability to connect additional access points with zero disruption of service. Enhanced cybersecurity technologies include Encrypted Traffic Analytics (ETA), secure boot, and Software-Defined Access (SD-Access). Streaming telemetry allows you to track and analyze network and client health.

All devices in the Catalyst 9800 line are powered by Cisco's IOS XE Software and work with Cisco's DNA Center or with Cisco Prime Infrastructure network management tools. Cisco's Catalyst 9800 Series wireless network controllers can support Cisco Aironet 802.11ac Wave 1 and Wave 2 Wi-Fi access points as well as Catalyst 9100 802.11ax APs. For details about Progent's consulting services for Cisco 9800 line of 802.11ax Wi-Fi 6 Wireless Controllers, see Cisco Catalyst 9800 line of Wi-Fi 6 wireless LAN controller appliances system design, deployment, and management consulting.

Cisco Wi-Fi 5 Wireless Network Controllers
Cisco Wave 2 Wi-Fi controllers allow realtime communication, provisioning, management, analysis and troubleshooting for Cisco wireless appliances and services. Cisco has developed both hardware and software-based wireless controllers for centralized management of wireless environments, but networks with many Wi-Fi access points typically require hardware-based Wi-Fi controllers. Current generation wireless controller appliances from Cisco offer significant advantages over Wave 1 and older models such as greater throughput, concurrent support for both 1G and 10G Ethernet, improved application visibility and control, and hardened, integrated security.

Cisco's 3504 WiFi Controller is a value-priced device with a desktop body and intended for smaller businesses. You can use the 3504 model in a centralized WLAN architecture such as in lean branch and home-based offices administered over the wide-area network via FlexConnect, or in mesh installations where Ethernet cabling is sparse. The 3504 wireless controller can handle as many as 150 APs and 3,000 client users, offers 4 Gbps performance, and supports up to 4,096 VLANs. The 3504 WiFi controller includes a Cisco Multigigabit port (up to 5 Gigabit Ethernet) and four 1-Gigabit Ethernet ports. APs can be attached to the controller via two Power over Ethernet (PoE) ports. The 3504 wireless controller features subsecond failover for APs and users, which provides high availability for apps. As with other current Wave 2 Wi-Fi controllers from Cisco, the 3504 device has the integrated ability to work with Cisco Prime Infrastructure, Cisco Mobility Services Engine, and Cisco 5520 and 8540 WiFi controllers.

The Cisco 5520 WiFi Controller, offered in a 1 rack unit package, is intended to support midsize to large enterprises and campus environments and can be used in centralized, distributed, and mesh architectures. The 5520 wireless controller can handle up to 1,500 access points and 20,000 users, offers 20 Gbps performance, and supports 4,096 VLANs. The 5520 WiFi controller features two 10 GE interfaces and incorporates SSD storage, redundant fans, optional redundant power supplies, and rapid failover for high availability.

The Cisco 8540 Wireless Controller, available in a 2 rack unit (RU) form factor, is a high-end WiFi controller designed to support enterprises, service providers, and large campuses. The 8540 WiFi controller can be run in centralized, distributed, and mesh deployments and supports as many as 6,000 Wi-Fi access points and 64,000 clients. The 8540 Wireless controller can deliver throughput as high as 40 Gbps and supports up to 4,096 VLANs. The 8340 includes four 1-GB or 10GE interfaces and features SSD storage, dual power supplies, backup fans, and subsecond failover.

Wave 1 Cisco WiFi LAN Controllers
Cisco wireless network controllers cut the time and cost required to deploy, manage, and operate wireless networks by offering single-point control of critical functions such as provisioning access points, enforcing consistent policies throughout converged wired/wireless LANs, supporting enterprise-wide Quality of Service for IP voice and HD video, monitoring and troubleshooting system performance, activating security tools to defend against unauthorized access and Distributed Denial of Service attacks, and managing IPv6 and dual-stack clients. Cisco has designed wireless network controllers for organizations of any size and can provide desktop or rackmount controllers, modular add-on wireless controllers for Cisco ISR routers and switches, and Catalyst switches with integrated wireless network controllers.

Cisco's Wave 1 WiFi network controllers incorporate Cisco CleanAir technology to minimize RF interference and produce self-healing wireless LANs for top 802.11n and 802.11ac throughput and protection. Built-in Apple Bonjour Gateways enable discovery throughout WLAN, LAN and WAN for Apple applications. For fault tolerance, Cisco wireless network controllers support wireless access point and client stateful failover by permitting a backup high-availability wireless controller to synch with a main controller for AP license count, CAPWAP keys, and AP CAPWAP state. In case the primary wireless controller fails, thousands of APs and wireless clients can failover immediately to the backup wireless network controller.

Cisco's Wireless Controller Module for ISR Routers with UCS-E provides entry-level 802.11n and 802.11ac support for 2900 and 3900 routers used by small to medium-sized businesses and branch offices. This affordable and scalable solution can support up to 200 APs and up to 6000 clients. (For information concerning Progent's remote and on-premises consulting support services for Cisco routers, see Cisco router deployment and troubleshooting support.)

Cisco Catalyst 3650 Series are 1RU switches designed for SMBs and satellite offices and come with a built-in wireless LAN controller with the capability to handle up to 40 Gb of wireless capacity for each switch and 25 APs and 1000 clients per switch. Cisco Catalyst 3850 Series are 1RU switches intended for midsize businesses and large enterprises and include an integrated wireless network controller supporting up to 40 Gb of wireless throughput on each switch and the ability to handle up to 50 APs and up to 2000 clients. The WiSM2 is a plug-in blade for Cisco Catalyst 6500 Series switches that include a built-in wireless network controller intended for mid-to-large size businesses and able to deliver 20 Gbps throughput and with support for up to 1000 wireless access points and as many as 15,000 clients. (To find out concerning Progent's support for Catalyst switches, see Cisco Catalyst switches deployment and troubleshooting consulting.)

Cisco 2500 Wireless Controllers are value-priced desktop appliances that streamline the deployment and management of wireless LANs for SMBs and branches. The 2500 Series wireless network controller can handle from five to 75 wireless access points and 1000 clients and offers sustained performance of up to 1 Gbps.

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

Cisco's Flex 7500 Series Wireless Controller is intended to enable centralized management of massive collections of wireless remote sites from one location, eliminating the requirement for a Wi-Fi controller at every branch. The 1RU Flex 7500 allows you to create a private cloud to configure, track, manage, and repair as many as 6000 access points and 64,000 clients while handling 1 Gbps performance. The Cisco 8500 Series Wireless Controller is a 1RU rackmount appliance engineered to monitor and manage wireless networks for large campuses or for service providers and can scale to handle 6000 APs and 64,000 wireless clients while offering 10 Gbps performance.

To learn more about Cisco WiFi controllers, go to Cisco wireless controllers consulting and integration.

Legacy Cisco Wireless Bridges and Controllers Supported by Progent
The introduction of the 802.11ac standard for Wi-Fi effectively obsolesced previous generations of Wi-Fi products for many environments that require high densities of clients and high usage of HD video applications. Even for organizations who do not require the bandwidth efficiency of 802.11ac, many Cisco wireless products have reached end-of-sale or end-of-support status, which can present serious maintenance and compliance issues. Progent's Cisco-certified consultants provide online and onsite support for a broad array of earlier-generation Cisco wireless products. Progent can also help organizations evaluate the business case for updating legacy wireless technology and can help plan and execute cost-effective, non-disruptive upgrades. Below are a sample of legacy wireless products from Cisco supported by Progent.

Legacy Cisco Aironet Wireless Bridges
Cisco wireless LAN bridges provide a high-speed and multi-featured technology for integrating numerous LANs in a metropolitan situation or public access environment. Cisco Aironet wireless LAN bridges provide a versatile, manageable technology that satisfies the security requirements of wide-area networking specialists. These devices support both PTP and P2MP configurations with excellent range and support for traffic throughput up to 54 Mbps.

Cisco Aironet wireless bridges deliver data rates substantially faster than E1/T1 connections for far less cost, doing away with the requirement for costly leased lines when linking different buildings. Since bridges carry no recurring costs, the expenses saved on connection services rapidly pay for the startup equipment costs. Self-installed private lines and even leased lines made of metal or fiber-optic cable often require considerable up-front costs if they are impeded by barriers like highways, train tracks, or lakes and rivers. Cisco wireless bridges can be deployed rapidly with a fast return on investment.

Aironet 1300 family outdoor access points/bridges can be deployed as independent wireless access points, wireless bridges, or wireless group bridges. These appliances have a ruggedized cover and provide high-speed, economical wireless interfaces between numerous fixed or mobile environments and users.

Cisco Aironet 1400 wireless bridges provide high-performance, reliable outdoor connections for LOS applications. These devices are housed in a durable cover that is optimized for harsh outside environments and function within extended temperature ranges.

Legacy Cisco Wireless LAN Controllers
Cisco's WLCM or WLCM-E Wireless LAN Controller Module for Integrated Services (IS) Routers offers small-to medium businesses and large corporations an affordable solution to implement and control secure WLANs at satellite offices. These devices manage as many as 12 Aironet lightweight access points and are installable in 2800/3800 Integrated Services Routers and 3700 Integrated Services Routers.

The Cisco 2106 Wireless LAN Controller operates together with Cisco Aironet lightweight access points and Cisco's Wireless Control System (WCS) to provide centralized wireless network functions. Cisco's 2106 Series WLC handles as many as six Cisco Aironet lightweight wireless access points, making it an affordable alternative for multi-controller architectures common for enterprise satellite office installations. The Cisco 2106 Series Wireless LAN Controller may also be used for single device solutions for small and midsize company environments. The Cisco 2106 WLC includes eight Ethernet ports, two of which can provide power directly to Aironet lightweight APs.

Cisco's 4400 Series WLC offers centralized wireless LAN features for mid-size to enterprise environments. The Cisco 4400 Series Wireless LAN Controller operates in conjunction with Aironet lightweight wireless access points, the Cisco Wireless Control System, and the Cisco Wireless Location Appliance to support business-critical wireless data, voice, and video applications. Cisco's 4400 WLC offers real-time communication between Cisco lightweight APs and other wireless controllers to deliver centralized security policies, intrusion prevention system functions, outstanding RF control, quality of service (QoS), and mobility.

How Progent's Consultants Can Help Your Company with Cisco Wireless Technology
Progent can provide a certified CCIE or Cisco Certified Network Professional to help you design, deploy, manage and troubleshoot a converged wired/wireless ecosystem that integrates a wide range of wireless products that offer the same security, scale, manageability and performance you demand from your wired technology. Progent can help you maintain legacy Wi-Fi solutions or upgrade efficiently to the latest 802.11ac Wi-Fi technology. Progent's CISA, CISM, CISSP, GIAC, and ISSAP security consultants can show you how to build protection into your wireless network and into your business processes. In addition, Progent's disaster recovery consultants and business continuity planners can help you configure the high availability (HA) technology incorporated into Cisco's wireless and wired products so your converged network provides non-stop business value.

Progent's Wi-Fi Site Survey helps you plan and deploy a robust WLAN customized for your facilities, providing a wireless solution that delivers seamless coverage, high performance and capacity, QoS features to support voice and video IP, enterprise-class security, and easy management. Progent's Wireless Site Survey services can be performed online to save time and cut costs, or on premises for more challenging environments.

For a further discussion of Progent's wireless integration and troubleshooting services, see Progent's Wireless Network Consulting.

Contact Progent about Consulting Services for Cisco Wireless Solutions
To get in touch with a Progent service representative about consulting support for Cisco wireless technology, call 1-800-993-9400 or visit Contact Progent.

For additional information about Progent's consulting support for Cisco technology, select a topic:

• Overview of Progent's Cisco Consulting Services
• Fast Remote Support from a CCIE Engineer
• Cisco Firepower NGFW Series Firewalls: Configuration and Troubleshooting Services
• Cisco ASA 5500-X Firewall with Cisco Firepower: Integration and Troubleshooting Expertise
• Cisco ASA 5500 Firewalls Management Services
• PIX Firewall Maintenance Services
• Cisco Routers Consulting Expertise
• Aironet APs Consulting Services
• Cisco Small Business 100, 300 and 500 Wireless Access Points System Design Help
• Cisco Catalyst 802.11ax Wi-Fi 6/6E Wireless APs Solution Design, Configuration and Troubleshooting Expertise
• Cisco Wireless Controllers Integration Consulting
• Meraki Wireless APs Design Help
• Cisco Unified Communications Manager (CUCM or Unified CM) and CallManager Consulting and Troubleshooting
• Cisco Voice over IP Phones and IP Video Phones Consulting and Wireless IP Phone Integration
• Cisco Jabber Integration Expertise
• Cisco Catalyst Switches Consulting and Support Expertise
• Cisco Nexus Switches Deployment Services
• Cisco Meraki MS Switches Deployment Expertise
• Cisco VPN and Security Consulting Assistance
• SIP and CUBE Infrastructure Solutions: SIP PSTN Trunks and CUBE Integration Expertise
• Cisco Duo MFA Two-factor Authentication Services for Remote Workers
• Design and Support for Cisco-based Datacenters and Colocation Centers
• Data Center Design Expertise for Service Providers
• Unified Cloud-based and Hybrid Management Techniques for Cisco-based Infrastructure