02-07-2020 03:21 AM - edited 07-05-2021 11:39 AM
Hi all,
New to the forum and looking for some help setting up and configuring a Cisco AP.
So, I bought a AIR-AP2802E-E-K9C, well it says that on the outer box but the sticker on the AP actually says its a AIR-AP2802E-E-K9 model.
So i watched a few youtube video's on youtube which suggest that when the AP powers up it's supposed to show a "CiscoAirProvisioning" SSID, but mine show no SSID and the status light just jumps between Red & Green as if it's waiting to talk to an upstream controller.
So i read a different forum post which suggest it was a potential POE issue, but i've tried connecting it to a 30w POE injector and connecting directly to a Cisco 2960x but it does the same thing.
So what am i missing here, as the AP came with no instruction and i've struggled to find a quick start guide online.
When booting i did notice that the firmware states that it's using Barbados firmware image, which i expected it to say something about mobility express.
I've tried manually configuring it with a static IP form the CLI, which said it saved but after reboot the console just says "Waiting for Preferred uplink IP configuration" and seems to have lost the Static ip i configured and the SSID i configured.
Can someone please help as i need to get this setup urgently.
I've attached the console output from boot in a text file.
Cheers,
Rich.
Solved! Go to Solution.
02-10-2020 06:04 AM
02-07-2020 03:45 AM
I think AP is in CAPWAP mode, means you need to convert to mobility express AP is waiting for IP address.
try using the command
CAPWAP AP <IP><Mask><Gateway>
then you need to download Mobility express image from cisco and use this post to convert it:
https://www.semfionetworks.com/blog/convert-a-cisco-capwap-ap-to-a-mobility-express-ap
Regards
Dont forget to rate helpful posts
02-07-2020 03:50 AM
Hi,
Many thanks for the the quick reply. The device is supposed to be the C model with the mobility express installed direct from the factory. This is the reason i bought the C model, so i didn't need to do any conversions.
Is there anyway of telling from the text file i uploaded which firmware it's actually running before i attempt the conversion process
Kind Regards,
Richard.
02-07-2020 07:17 AM
02-07-2020 07:53 AM
I managed to get the AP configured through the CLI but i noted a few issues.
1) I can confirm it is in Mobility Express mode, but no matter how many times i factory reset the Access point it will not show the provisioning SSID
2) After a restore to factory default, and reconfiguration with a static IP the AP continues to be stuck in a loop and will not boot properly until it sees a DHCP server (e.g. stays at the Green / Red alternating LED)
3) Once it's booted after being connected to dhcp server, it is pingable by it's static IP address but it takes the AP approx 20+ mins to boot and provide wifi access.
It's working, but i'm not happy about the strange behaviour above. don't think I could ever recommend Cisco AP's after the nightmare i've faced with this one. I've deployed many other brands of AP's an none of them were ever a hassle like this cisco one.
02-07-2020 08:18 AM
02-10-2020 12:31 AM
Does anyone have a link to a quick start guide that actually relates to the product. I had a google and i couldn't find any documentation that wasn't 99% waffle, i.e. looking for a step by step setup guide.
Luckily i did figure that one out as i brought in a router from home to temporarily act as a DHCP Server, but what i want to know is why Cisco are making it as hard as possible for users to configure these device. I mean why should anyone need a DHCP server to setup and access point ? Why just not assign the device a static IP out of the box for setup purposes. Luckily i had a cisco console cable to hand so managed to configure it from CLI.
For me it was a pain, as on our site we have a highly automated plant where DHCP servers are not permitted and everything is statically assigned.
Anyway enough ranting from me - Does anyone know why after 4 attempts of performing a factory restore, even when connected to a DHCP server the device does not display a provisioning SSID ?
Cheers,
Rich.
02-10-2020 12:55 AM
02-10-2020 02:51 AM
Many thanks for sharing the link to the guide, this is a lot clearer than the other guides i found.
Unfortunately it does present me with further challenges in regards to the DHCP side of things, which i'll need to create another post as i will need to look need to understand how i can use the controller as a DHCP server and only hand out IP's for specific device types i.e. Cisco Wireless boxes or to lock it down by Mac address.
Looks like i have a bit of research to do.
02-10-2020 03:18 AM
02-10-2020 03:31 AM
Hi Scott,
I understand what you are saying about putting the AP's in their own management VLan for the purposes of provisioning which makes sense, then create a DHCP scope for the AP's with MAC Address filtering.
I suppose i could then Tag other vlans that i may want Wifi access for and also create additional DHCP Scopes & Mac filtering for each specific Vlan.
I just need to understand why my mac address filtering isn't working, as i created a test scope about 10 mins ago and created a local Mac white list filter - But for some reason it's allowing devices to connect that are not white listed, so need to look into that a bit further.
02-10-2020 03:37 AM
02-10-2020 03:41 AM
Hi Scott Thanks for the quick response and your help.
I can't see anywhere you define an exclusion, the only other option i can see is to create a blacklist. Where do i find the exclusion settings ?
02-10-2020 04:01 AM
Hi Scott,
When you say create an exclusion - Are you assuming that i'm using a Windows / linux based DHCP server, as currently i'm just using the built in DHCP server on the AP controller.
It's a long story but on our plant IT side of things, everything uses static ip's and DHCP servers are not permitted, so trying to avoid having to spin up a Windows DHCP Server, hence trying to sneak in the DHCP via the AP and struggling to find any exclusion options.
cheers,
Rich.
02-10-2020 06:12 AM
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