Adding AP 1815 to existing Mobility Express

[SonusFaber]

I Have some Cisco 1815i installed years ago in my house... years passed and I do not remember what I did at that time...

Now i got 2 additional 1815i from used market and wish to add them to the existing setup, increasing the AP density at home ( 300 square meters).

These 1815i need to be reset to factory default, I imagine... and I am looking to the procedure to do the job, some kind of step-by-step... macro steps.

Help, please.

Thanks

[SonusFaber]

My subscription ended time ago, so I can not download https://software.cisco.com/download/home/286306794/type/286288051/release/15.3.3-JK9

Before it expired, I downloaded 
AIR-AP1815-K9-ME-8-10-185-0.zip and
AIR-AP1815-K9-ME-8-10-190-0.zip
and installed the 185 release on my AP

Any way to use such packages?

[Rich R]

> Any way to use such packages?
Use the ap1g5 file from the AIR-AP1815-K9-ME-8-10-185-0.zip bundle (unzip on TFTP server).

[SonusFaber]

I already tried and this is the error I get:

Image donwloaded
Writing to Flash...
do PREDOWNLOAD, part2 is active part
upgrade.sh: Error: image not found

I am able to download

Cisco 1815 Series Mobility Express Release 8.10 Software,to be used for conversion from Lightweight Access Points only.

AIR-AP1815-K9-ME-8-10-185-0.tar

Same error as the above.

[Flavio Miranda]

Do you have the TFTP server properly configured on yout PC? The error message seems to say the it can not find the image.

[Rich R]

We need to see complete logs but I think it managed to download the file:
Image donwloaded
Writing to Flash...

[Rich R]

First: did you make sure the AP was in CAPWAP mode before trying to upgrade?

This is why I recommended using a standard CAPWAP image, because ME upgrades are notoriously unreliable.
I think you're going to have to find any fairly recent CAPWAP image to upgrade it to before trying to install the correct ME version.
Try searching for any ap1g5-k9w8-tar.153-3.JK<9/10/11>.tar file.

Another approach you can try to get the software directly from Cisco TAC ...
Find a recent security advisory and find the section which says "Customers without Service Contracts" then contact TAC quoting the URL of the advisory, the paragraph just mentioned and the version and URL https://software.cisco.com/download/home/286306794/type/286288051/release/15.3.3-JK9 for the software you want to download and serial number of your AP.  You'll have to mention which platform you need it for (1815i).  Then TAC should publish it to you directly.

This advisory should be suitable: Cisco Wireless LAN Controller AireOS Software FIPS Mode Denial of Service Vulnerability because CSCwa40778 : Bug Search Tool (cisco.com) is fixed in 8.10.185.0.

"Customers Without Service Contracts

Customers who purchase directly from Cisco but do not hold a Cisco service contract and customers who make purchases through third-party vendors but are unsuccessful in obtaining fixed software through their point of sale should obtain upgrades by contacting the Cisco TAC: https://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/support/web/tsd-cisco-worldwide-contacts.html

Customers should have the product serial number available and be prepared to provide the URL of this advisory as evidence of entitlement to a free upgrade."

[SonusFaber]

I am unable to download the file you suggested:
https://software.cisco.com/download/home/286306794/type/286288051/release/15.3.3-JK9

But (do not why...) I can download this one:
https://software.cisco.com/download/home/286306794/type/286288051/release/17.16.1

Is it anyway good for the job? Do not want to try something that will brick my AP....

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[SonusFaber]

I tried another 1815i, also this one is used, and the behaviour is the very same.

I can not find any way to upgrade this AP.

[SonusFaber · Accepted solution]

BINGO!!! JOB DONE

In these days I tried in every way to upgrade the new AP without any success,,, regardless the version pushed by the TFTP server, no success. The image was pre-downloaded to the AP, but then failed with different errors.

So... my existing setup at home was 8.10.185, the new AP was 8.4.100 (very old) and no way to upgrade using the CLI.
Step-by-step:
1) log into the existing ME web GUI
2) in the SW UPDATE menu I configured here the TFTP server (the same used in the past days)
3) copied the 8.10.185 SW version TAR file in the root directory of the TFTP server, the same version installed in the existing AP's
4) plugged the new AP with 8.4.100 version in the same vlan as the others as usual
5) once the AP completed the boot process...
6) it appeared in the ME web GUI (like it did in the past) but...
7) suddenly and automatically pre-downloaded the 8.10.185 SW TAR file from the TFTP and the progress was in the SW UPDATE menu in the ME web GUI
after some minutes the AP upgraded correctly and automatically to the same version of the existing ones and start participating with all the others.

Forgot to mention #1: since AP's have two image loaded, primary and backup, with two different version, I had to load both the .tar file for both versions in the TFTP server and the ME controller will push them in 2 steps

Forgot to mention #2: the image must be in the .tar format, not single files uncompressend... in this way it does not work.

[Rich R]

Glad to hear you got there in the end <smile>

[SonusFaber]

Can not understand why these AP can not be updated without the ME, just manually loading the SW image...