Using the Setup Wizard on the WAP125 or WAP581

Step 2. The first time that you log into the Access Point or after it has been reset to the factory default settings, the Access Point Setup Wizard appears. Click Next to continue.

Note: If your WAP is already configured but you still want to access the Setup Wizard, navigate to Getting Started > Setup Wizard. The Access Point Setup Wizard window will appear.

Step 3. In the Firmware Upgrade window, click the Browse... button and select the firmware file that you want to upgrade to. Then press Upgrade to upgrade to that firmware. Once the firmware has been upgraded, the device will reboot automatically and direct to the login page. In this example, we will be clicking Skip as we have the firmware version we want.

Step 4. If you have previous configuration that you want to apply to the device, click the Browse... button in the Restore Configuration window and select the configuration file that you want to apply. Then click Save to apply the configuration file to the device. In this example, we will be clicking Skip.

Note: When the device applies the relevant configuration, it will reboot and direct you to the login page.

Step 5. In the Configure Device – IP Address window, select Dynamic IP Address (DHCP) (Recommended) to obtain an IP address from a Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) server, or click Static IP Address to configure the IP address manually. Then click Next to continue to the next section. DHCP provides configuration parameters to internet hosts. In this case, the DHCP assigns an IP address to a client for a limited period of time or until the client explicitly relinquishes the address.

In this example, we will be selecting Dynamic IP Address (DHCP) (Recommended).

Step 6. Single Point Setup provides a centralized method to administer and control wireless services across multiple devices. This will allow you to create a single group or cluster of your wireless devices which you can view, deploy, configure, and secure the wireless network as a single entity. Single Point Setup can help facilitates channel planning across your wireless service to reduce radio interference and maximize bandwidth on your wireless network.

To create a new Single Point Setup of the WAP device, click New Cluster Name and specify a new name. When you configure your devices with the same cluster name and enable the Single Point Setup mode on other WAP devices, they automatically join the group.

If you already have a cluster on your network, you can add this device to it by clicking Join an Existing Cluster, and then enter the Existing Cluster Name. The WAP configures the rest of the settings based on the cluster. Click Next and acknowledge the confirmation to join the cluster. Click Submit to join the cluster. After the configuration is complete, click Finish to exit the Setup Wizard.

Note: You can enter the Access Point location in the AP Location field to note the physical location of the WAP device.

If you do not want this device to participate in a Single Point Setup at this time, click Do not Enable Single Point Setup.

In this example, we will be selecting Do not Enable Single Point Setup. Then click Next to continue to the next section.

Step 7. In the Configure Device – Set System Date and Time window, choose your time zone, and then select whether you want your system time to automatically acquire the time setting from a Network Time Protocol (NTP) server or select Manual to manually configure the time settings. A system clock provides a network-synchronized time-stamping service for the message logs. The system clock can be configured manually or as a NTP client that obtains the click data from a server. Click Next to continue the Setup Wizard.

Step 8. Enter a new Username in the Username field, by default the username is cisco. Enter a New Password for the Username. Then enter in the New Password again in the Confirm Password field. You are able to uncheck Password Complexity to disable the password security rules. However, we strongly recommend keeping the password security rules enabled. The new password must conform to the following complexity settings:

• Is different from the username.
• Is different from the current password.
• Has a minimum length of eight characters.
• Contains characters from at least three character classes (uppercase letters, lowercase letters, numbers, and special characters available on a standard keyboard).

Then click Next to configure Radio 1.

Step 9. Enter a name for your wireless network in the Network Name (SSID). This will help identify your network so that wireless devices can find it. By default, ciscosb is used as the network name. Then click Next to continue to the next section.

Step 10. Click the radio button that corresponds with the network security you would like to apply to your wireless network. Then enter in the password for your network in the Security Key field. To see the password as you type, check the Show Key as Clear Text check box. Click Next to continue.

Note: If the network has a mix of clients, some of which support WPA2 and others which support only the original WPA, select both (WPA/WPA2). This lets both WPA and WPA2 client stations associate and authenticate, but uses the more robust WPA2 for client who support it. This WPA configuration allows more interoperability in place of some security.

• Best Security (Wi-Fi Protected Access 2 (WPA2) Personal – Advanced Encryption Standard (AES))
  • All client stations on the network support WPA2 and Advanced Encryption Standard encryption algorithm using Counter Mode with Cipher Block Chaining Message Authentication Code Protocol (AES-CCMP) cipher/security protocol. This provides the best security per IEEE 802.11i standard. As per the latest Wi-Fi Alliance requirement, the AP has to support this mode all the time.
• Better Security (WPA/WPA2 Personal – TKIP/AES)
  • WPA Personal is a Wi-Fi Alliance IEEE802.11i standard, which includes AES-CCMP and TKIP encryption. It provides security when there are older wireless devices that support the original WPA but does not support the newer WPA2.
• No Security (Not Recommended)
  • Wireless network does not require a password and can be accessed by anyone.

Step 11. In the VLAN ID field, enter the ID number of the VLAN that you would like the Radio 1 (5 GHz) to belong to. In this example, we will be leaving the VLAN ID as 1. Click Next to configure Radio 2 (2.4 GHz).

Note: We recommend that you assign a different VLAN ID from the default (1) to the wireless traffic, in order to segregate it from the management traffic on VLAN 1. Click here to learn more about Virtual Access Points (VAPs).

Step 12. Enter a new network name in the Network Name (SSID) field. By default ciscosb is used. Network name is known as an SSID, it identifies your network so that wireless devices can find it. In this example, ciscosb2.4 was used to differentiate the 5 GHz network name. Click Next to configure the wireless security for Radio 2 (2.4 GHz).

Step 13. Click the radio button that corresponds with the network security you would like to apply to your wireless network. Then enter in the password for your network in the Security Key field. To see the password as you type, check the Show Key as Clear Text check box. The Show Key as Clear Text is checked by default. Click Next to continue.

Note: If the network has a mix of clients, some of which support WPA2 and others which support only the original WPA, select both (WPA/WPA2). This lets both WPA and WPA2 client stations associate and authenticate, but uses the more robust WPA2 for clients who support it. This WPA configuration allows more interoperability in place of some security.

• Best Security (Wi-Fi Protected Access 2 (WPA2) Personal – Advanced Encryption Standard (AES))
  • All client stations on the network support WPA2 and Advanced Encryption Standard encryption algorithm using Counter Mode with Cipher Block Chaining Message Authentication Code Protocol (AES-CCMP) cipher/security protocol. This provides the best security per IEEE 802.11i standard. As per the latest Wi-Fi Alliance requirement, the AP has to support this mode all the time.
• Better Security (WPA/WPA2 Personal – TKIP/AES)
  • WPA Personal is a Wi-Fi Alliance IEEE802.11i standard, which includes AES-CCMP and TKIP encryption. It provides security when there are older wireless devices that support the original WPA but does not support the newer WPA2.
• No Security (Not Recommended)
  • Wireless network does not require a password and can be accessed by anyone.

Step 14. In the VLAN ID field, enter the ID number of the VLAN that you would like the Radio 1 (2.4 GHz) to belong to. In this example, we will be using the default value of 1 as our VLAN ID. Click Next to configure Captive Portal.

Note: We recommend that you assign a different VLAN ID from the default (1) to the wireless traffic, in order to segregate it from the management traffic on VLAN 1. Click here to learn more about Virtual Access Points (VAPs).

Step 15. (Optional) A guest network is not required. Click the Yes radio button if you would like to create a guest network. Click the No radio button if you do not want to create a guest network and skip to Step 20. Click the Next button to continue.

 

Step 16. (Optional) Select the radio button that corresponds with the Radio in which you would like to place the guest network. Then create a network name in the Guest Network name field. Click Next to configure the Wireless Security settings for the Guest Network.

In this example, we will be selecting Radio 1 (5 GHz) as our Radio and leaving the default network name as ciscosb-guest so your wireless guest users can find the network name.

Step 17. (Optional) Select the radio button that corresponds with the network security you would like to apply to your guest network. Then enter a password for the guest network in the Security Key field if applicable. To Show Key as Clear Text check the check box to show your security key as plaintext. This is enabled by default. Click Next to continue. The network security options are:

• Best Security (WPA2 Personal – AES) – Recommended for new wireless computers and devices that support this option.
• Better Security (WPA/WPA2 Personal – TKIP/AES) – Recommended for older wireless computers and devices that might not support WPA2.
• No Security (Not recommended) – This is the default selection.

Step 18. (Optional) Specify a VLAN ID for the guest network. The guest network VLAN ID should be different from the management VLAN ID. In this example, we used VLAN ID 10 as our VLAN ID for the guest network. Click Next to configure the Redirect URL for the guest network.

Step 19. (Optional) Check Enable Redirect URL check box to redirect new wireless users to an alternative startup page. Enter a Fully Qualified Domain Name (FQDN) or IP address in the Redirect URL field (including http:// or https://). Then click Next to continue to the Summary page.

Step 20. In the Summary – Confirm Your Settings page, review the settings that you configured. Click the Back button to reconfigure one or more settings. If you click Cancel, all settings are returned to the previous or default values. If your configurations are correct, click Submit. Your setup settings are saved and a confirmation window appears.

Step 21. Once your settings are configured, the Device Setup Complete page will appear to let you know that your Access Point has been successfully set up. Click Finish and you will be required to log in again with the new password.

Conclusion

You have now successfully configured your WAP using the Setup Wizard. You should see your SSIDs that you have just configured in your list of Wi-Fi networks. To configure other features on your WAP, you are required to log in again.