2500 WLC, attach AP?

[mkoch]

Hi,

i was checking the documentation on the 2500 WLAN controller... it states "The Power over Ethernet (PoE) ports on the Cisco 2500 Series Wireless Controller will not support directly attached APs." ... if that is true, what are those PoE ports good for?????

i have a scenario with just two APs (for now) the 2500 would be perfect IF i could plug the APs directly into the WLC... any plans to support that? Or is just an error in the documentation?

Regards,

Michael

[Rob Huffman]

Hi Michael,

We don't use any 2500 series WLC's so I can't test this for you,

but this doc does indicate a different scenario than the one you saw

Cisco 2500 Series Controller

The Cisco 2500 Series Wireless Controller works in conjunction with Cisco lightweight access points and the Cisco Wireless Control System (WCS) to provide system-wide wireless LAN functions. As a component of the Cisco Unified Wireless Network (CUWN), the Cisco 2500 Series controller provides real-time communication between a wireless access points and other devices to deliver centralized security policies, guest access, wireless intrusion prevention system (wIPS), context-aware (location), RF management, quality of services for mobility services such as voice and video, and OEAP support for the teleworker solution.

Cisco 2500 Series Wireless Controllers support up to 50 lightweight access points in increments of 5 and 25 access points with a minimum of 5 access points. The Cisco 2504 Wireless Controller comes with four 4 Giga bit Ethernet ports, two of which can provide power directly to Cisco lightweight access points.

http://www.cisco.com/en/US/docs/wireless/controller/7.0MR1/configuration/guide/cg_overview.html#wp1169709

Cheers!

Rob

[pcroak]

Hi Michael, Rob,

Directly connected APs are not supported on the 2500 platform. Please see the 2500 deployment guide:

http://www.cisco.com/en/US/partner/products/ps11630/products_tech_note09186a0080b8450c.shtml#hardware

"The Power over Ethernet (PoE) ports on the Cisco 2500 Series Wireless Controller will not support directly attached APs."

Regarding the configuration guide link that you found Rob, this is a documentation error and I will submit a documentation bug to resolve it. In the bullet list below that section, we do see the correct statement:

• Does not support access points in direct connect mode

-Patrick Croak

Wireless TAC

[mkoch]

Thanks for your answers guys!

i think the whole documentation needs some work... the getting started guide states

"

3 & 4 POE

GigE Power-over-Ethernet (POE) ports

The Gigabit POE ports are RJ-45 connector form-factor. They provide a  I2C communications channel between the PSE controller and host CPU TWSI  bus #1. This interface supports the proper voltage isolation as defined  by 802.3. The POE controller is configured to I2C address 0x40/41 (0100  000r/w). The POE controller reset is driven from system reset. If software needs to reset the POE controller, it can do so over I2C. Note Ports  3 and 4 are PoE only ports; do not connect access point devices to  these ports. The ports can be used for infra-switch connection using  multiple an AP-Manager or data interface.

"

HUH?

anyway: is this "no directly attached APs" a temporary issue and will be enabled later on? If yes, when can we expect this?

If not i don't see the point of the PoE ports...  and i don't really know how to tell the customer "yeah, the controller has PoE ports but you cannot use them and you still need to buy a PoE switch, even if you just connect two APs"...

Michael

[nesko3000]

Hi, after reading this discussion and some other, Im still not clear with setup for directly connected APs.

I have one 2504 v8 WLC and two AP series 2700. Also I need to configure multicast for Apple and Chromecast.

In attachment you can see my plan to implement configuration.

Does any one have some better idea or some advice?

Thanks!