Catalyst 9124D deployed with the wrong country code

[steve.blunt]

We have a customer located in the UK with Cat 9800 running both -ROW and -E domain APs. -ROW is the correct domain/country code. They have several C9124AXD deployed, purchased with the -E ETSI domain country code. Now I know this is not technically permitted, but as the UK did fall within -E and the APs are 2.4/5 GHz is it possible to create a specific policy to govern their channel plans and Tx power to fall within -ROW compliance?  The Cat9800 is currently running version 17.09.04a code, if an upgrade is performed will the -E APs cease to be supported i.e. will be removed from the controller?

Thanks

[Mark Elsen]

  - Actually -ROW is not a domain or country code but a feature that they can adapt to according to the country code configured on the controller (for AP models supporting -ROW) . As far as the '-E only' APs is concerned in the 9800 terms and configuring settings presumably you could create a separate rf profile for those if  needed. Always checkout all configurations (or attempts) on the 9800 controller with
the CLI command show tech wireless and feed the output from that into Wireless Config Analyzer
    So for -ROW capable APs you would need to do nothing , and leave the controller -E domain configured as it is.

   As far as future support for specific AP or older  models is concerned always look at :
                         https://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/td/docs/wireless/compatibility/matrix/compatibility-matrix.html
                

 M.

[Mark Elsen]

  - Adding : ref https://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/support/docs/wireless/catalyst-9800-series-wireless-controllers/217734-connect-and-join-a-row-domain-access-po.html
   >...The -ROW APs maintain a power table of all countries under the -ROW domain and apply the right channel and power settings when they join a 9800 WLC and when they receive a country code, assigned by the 9800 configuration.

   Ref : https://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/td/docs/wireless/controller/9800/17-12/config-guide/b_wl_17_12_cg/m_country_codes.html#task_p2b_jxn_kz
        Look at Table 1 and Table 3 for 'channel correspondence'

 M.
   

[Rich R]

Yes you could manually create an RF profile to attempt to replicate the country specific power and channel table but RF profiles do not have enough granularity to necessarily do that accurately.
You'd have to configure a -E country for those to operate under.
1.  This is probably illegal.
2. This is not supported by Cisco.

Regulatory domains can change at any time so you should always check https://www.cisco.com/c/dam/assets/prod/wireless/wireless-compliance-tool/index.html before ordering APs.

That said, Cisco does seem to be moving towards the Meraki model where APs can be flexibly reconfigured rather than having a hardware model per regulatory domain.  -ROW is already a partial move towards that.

[steve.blunt]

Thanks, the next generation Catalyst Wi-Fi7 APs (yet to ship) I believe will leverage software defined country codes as per Meraki

[Rich R]

Correct.