Stopped IOS upgrade after 900+ minutes

[Wendy_Hudson]

Good Morning,

I don't really know what I am doing and have had no Cisco training, so I apologize in advance for my ignorance and the situation I am in.

I have an Aironet 1250 Access Point.  I was asked to upgrade the software on the access point so I downloaded c1250-k9w8-tar.124-23c.JA5.tar and tried to upgrade it from IE9 browser window.  I allowed the upgrade to run overnight.  It ran for 900+ minutes before I unplugged the router.  I know it said not to interrupt the upgrade, but it seemed like something was wrong.

So, I have the access point conntected to my computer with a blue cable and it is also connected to the network.  I tried running Hyperterminal hoping that I could set the ip address or otherwise connect to it.

The Hyperterminal printout gives me this:

APc89c.1dfd.189a#
*Aug 22 20:10:03.523: %CAPWAP-3-DHCP_RENEW: Could not discover WLC using DHCP IP
. Renewing DHCP IP.
Not in Bound state.
*Aug 22 20:10:12.027: %CAPWAP-3-ERRORLOG: Invalid event 38 & state 2 combination
.
*Aug 22 20:10:12.095: %DHCP-6-ADDRESS_ASSIGN: Interface GigabitEthernet0 assigne
d DHCP address 159.169.59.114, mask 255.255.255.0, hostname APc89c.1dfd.189a

Translating "CISCO-CAPWAP-CONTROLLER"...domain server (159.169.59.39) (159.169.5
9.25)

Translating "CISCO-LWAPP-CONTROLLER"...domain server (159.169.59.39) (159.169.59
.25)

Is it possible to get this access point working again?  How would I get it working again?

Thank you for all your help.

[Peter Paluch · Accepted solution]

Hello Wendy,

It seems to me that you have uploaded a different firmware onto the AP - if you accessed the AP directly via a browser, then it must have been an autonomous AP. However, the IOS you have downloaded is for so-called lightweight APs that are controlled by a central device (the "WLC" - Wireless LAN Controller that your AP is currently trying to contact desperately). That is the reason the AP does not appear to even talk to you - because the only device it wants to talk to now is the WLC.

You will need to convert your AP back from LWAP to autonomous AP. First of all, you need to download an autonomous AP IOS from here:

http://www.cisco.com/cisco/software/release.html?mdfid=281235915&catid=278875243&softwareid=284180979&release=12.4.21a-JY&relind=AVAILABLE&rellifecycle=ED&reltype=latest

The file name you're interested in is c1250-k9w7-tar.124-21a.JY.tar

Then, you will need to set up a TFTP server and use it to convert your AP back to autonomous operation. The exact steps are described in this document:

http://www.cisco.com/en/US/docs/wireless/access_point/conversion/lwapp/upgrade/guide/lwapnote.html#wp160918

Specifically see the section "Using a TFTP Server to Return to a Previous Release". Are you familiar with setting up a TFTP server?

Best regards,

Peter

[Wendy_Hudson]

Peter,

You are my hero.  I have not set up a TFTP server.  I'll read over your links now and let you know how it goes.

Wendy

[Wendy_Hudson]

OK

I have downloaded 250-k9w7-tar.124-21a.JY.tar and saved it to my PC.

I have installed SolarWinds TFTP Server and the service is started.  The timeout has been set to 30 seconds.

I have a question. 

Step 1 The static IP address of the PC on which your TFTP server software runs should be between 10.0.0.2 and 10.0.0.30.

Does this mean that I change my PC's ip address from it's DHCP assigned address to a static one between 10.0.0.2 and 10.0.0.30?  I realize this may be a stupid question, but I want to be sure.  Should I also take the PC off of the domain?

After Step 1, the directions look straight forward, so I think I can handle it from there.

Thank you.

[Peter Paluch]

Hi Wendy,

Does this mean that I change my PC's ip address from it's DHCP assigned address to a static one between 10.0.0.2 and 10.0.0.30?

Yes, correct. You simply disconnect your PC from whatever network it is in, connect it to the 1250 via Ethernet, and assign a static IP address of 10.0.0.2/255.255.255.0 to your PC. Do not configure a DNS or a default gateway.

Should I also take the PC off of the domain?

No, I don't think so - it shouldn't be necessary.

Please keep me informed. Thank you!

Best regards,

Peter

[Wendy_Hudson]

I think we are almost there.  After the access point reboots, I get this:

IOS Bootloader - Starting system.
Xmodem file system is available.
flashfs[0]: 10 files, 2 directories
flashfs[0]: 0 orphaned files, 0 orphaned directories
flashfs[0]: Total bytes: 31868928
flashfs[0]: Bytes used: 5627392
flashfs[0]: Bytes available: 26241536
flashfs[0]: flashfs fsck took 17 seconds.
Reading cookie from flash parameter block...done.
Base Ethernet MAC address: c8:9c:1d:fd:18:9a
button is pressed, wait for button to be released...
button pressed for 20 seconds
process_config_recovery: set IP address and config to default 10.0.0.1
process_config_recovery: image recovery
image_recovery: Download default IOS tar image tftp://255.255.255.255/c1250-k9w7
-tar.default

examining image...
%Error opening tftp://255.255.255.255/c1250-k9w7-tar.default (no such file or di
rectory)
ap:

The file is located on my PC at: C:\Program Files\SolarWinds\TFTP Server.  I also tried copying the file to C:\Program Files\SolarWinds\ and got the same message.

I'm not sure how to proceed.

Thank you for your patience.

[Peter Paluch]

Hi Wendy,

What happens so far is completely okay. However, can you see anywhere in the SolarWinds that it recived a file request? I am trying to find out if the SolarWinds TFTP server is receiving the requests sent by the AP. Make sure that all firewalls on your PC are explicitly deactivated (they may be enforced as part of group policies from the Active Directory).

The default working directory of the SolarWinds TFTP server is C:\TFTP-Root. You should store the file there, or alternatively, try to find out where the settings of the SolarWinds are and modify the working directory appropriately.

Best regards,

Peter

[Peter Paluch]

Hi Wendy,

Any news on this?

Best regards,

Peter

[Wendy_Hudson]

Hi Peter,

I can't see anywhere that SolarWinds received a file request. 

I moved the default file to C:\TFTP-Root, but I am getting the same error message.  Bummer!

My Windows Firewall is disabled and so is my virus scan enginge.

Thanks,

Wendy

[Peter Paluch]

Hello Wendy,

Let's make an experiment. Install the Wireshark software on your PC (get it from http://www.wireshark.org ) - obviously you will need to reconnect to internet back for a while.

Then connect your PC back to the AP, set your PC to 10.0.0.2/255.255.255.0, start the Wireshark, let it capture the packets and observe if any packets addressed to 255.255.255.255 arrive at your PC. I am slightly suspecting Windows to be incapable of processing packets addressed to 255.255.255.255.

Oh, and one more thing. Restart the SolarWinds TFTP Server (or the service) after modifying the IP address of your PC.

Best regards,

Peter

P.S.: Just in case - do you have any Cisco router with two Ethernet interfaces handy?

[Wendy_Hudson]

Give me a few minutes.

[Wendy_Hudson]

Hi Peter,

Success!  I downloaded the 3Com Daemon TFTP software and made sure the configurations were correct.  Just like magic, the files are uploading to the access point.

Thank you very much for your help today and for sticking with me!

Sincerely,

Wendy

[Peter Paluch]

Hi Wendy,

Awesome! So the 3Com TFTP server is fine with 255.255.255.255?

Anyway, when the file gets downloaded and the AP restarts, let me know if it returned back to the "normal" state. However, its configuration may be erased as part of the recovery procedure so you will have to recreate it from scratch.

Best regards,

Petr

[Wendy_Hudson]

Hi Peter,

Awesome! So the 3Com TFTP server is fine with 255.255.255.255?

I have no idea what that means.  

I just know the 3Com TFTP server worked without giving me an error message.

After reboot, everything looks normal.  I'll just have to reconfigure it.

Thanks again,

Wendy