Mesh Extender and Ethernet Bridging

[KevinPFleming]

I've got a pair of 240ACs working perfectly, serving 4 SSIDs in one building. Their Ethernet ports are connected to 'trunk' ports on the switch, with the ports carrying VLAN 1 (untagged) and VLANs 60-63 (tagged).

I need to extend the network to another building where I cannot run a cabled connection, so I've purchased a 143ACM. I want to provide the same four SSIDs in that building, and I also want to bridge two additional VLANs from the main building.

As I understand it, in the standard configuration where Ethernet Bridging is enabled and VLAN Transparent mode is also enabled, I should be able to add VLANs 65 and 66 on the switch ports for the 240ACs, and then on the 143ACM's Ethernet (downlink) port I should be able to access all seven VLANS (1, 60-63, and 65-66).

Is this correct?

[balaji.bandi · Accepted solution]

Not looked at teh deep 240AC, if this supported external 

here is high-level information for your requirement how that works :

https://community.cisco.com/t5/wireless-mobility-documents/understanding-mesh-ethernet-bridging/ta-p/3111392

[Martin Aleksandrov]

Hello Kevin,

Yes, that is correct. Once you switch to "Mesh" mode Ethernet Bridging is enabled by default. So every wired client connected to the CBW143ACM mesh extender LAN port can have access to all VLANs. To do that you have to enable the VLAN transparency and set the VLAN mapping to Trunk so that you can configure the native VLAN on that port and as well other accessible VLANs. For reference, you can visit the CBW administration guide (section Mesh Network Components on page 63): https://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/td/docs/wireless/access_point/csbap/CBW_Admin/Admin/en_US/b_Cisco_AP_Admin_Guide.pdf

Regards,

Martin

[KevinPFleming]

Thanks to both of you for your quick replies!

I now have the VLANs being bridged properly, as one of the wired nodes on the far end of the link is able to communicate with the rest of the network. I'm having some difficulty establishing a high-quality backhaul link, but that's a different issue entirely