8821 EAP-TLS Setup?

[Toivo Voll]

I'm trying to find documentation or instructions on how to set up a 8821 wireless handset for EAP-TLS authentication. I have the certificate, but I can't seem to find a documented way to get the certificate onto the phone.

The "Cisco Wireless IP Phone 8821 and 8821-EX Administration Guide for Cisco Unified Communications Manager" guide offers the phone's web admin page and SCEP as options -- and it mentions direct USB connection is an option to reach this web page, but doesn't explain how. It also mentions USB Ethernet dongle, and I'm not sure what that means -- is there an Ethernet dongle available for the 8821?

I can't find a USB driver for the phone, and it wasn't detected on my Windows 10 or MacOS computers. The 7925 USB driver that was last updated in 2013 from CCO will not install on Windows 10. Otherwise it seems the phone needs to be on the network before I can get the certificate it needs to get on the network on it, which is a bit of a catch-22.

How are others handling this?

[Toivo Voll]

(While trying to figure this out, I also ran into some interesting bugs, CSCuy70197 and CSCuw85598, worth looking at for others who are trying to get this to work.)

[Michael Combs · Accepted solution]

Hi Toivo,

Best resource for this will be the 8821 Wireless LAN Deployment Guide, which will clarify most of these points. Including the use of a docking cradle and compatible USB-to-Ethernet adapter for auto-provisioning, as further detailed on page 140:

http://www.cisco.com/c/dam/en/us/td/docs/voice_ip_comm/cuipph/8821/english/Deployment/8821_wlandg.pdf

If you have CUCM 11.0 and later, you can use the Wireless LAN Profiles on CUCM (as 11.0 added support for EAP-TLS).

[Toivo Voll]

Thank you for the reply -- that guide was indeed helpful!