How to configure a C9130-AXI to report locally administered MACs

[david101011]

I have a lab set up with a C9130-AXI AP joined to a C9800 WLC.  I am trying to use NETCONF or RESTCONF to fetch device probes of the wireless network.  I can get them just fine using RESTCONF, as long as the device does not have a randomized MAC address.  When I turn on "Randomized MAC" on my mobile device, I disappear.  

I assume the locally administered MACs are being filtered out by either the C9800 WLC or the AP itself.  Does anyone have a clue which one it might be?  And where that setting might be changed?  

[Leo Laohoo]

Unless some genius configured EEM, I do not believe this is even possible.  

I have several 9800-80 on 17.6.4 and 17.9.3 and I see wireless clients with Random MAC address enabled all the time. 

[david101011]

Wireless clients?  Or probe requests?  I'm interested in the latter.

[Leo Laohoo]

Hmmmm ... Probe requests or beacons? 

If this is beacons, then it could be CSCwe91371.  

(NOTE:  We are not the ones who have stumbled upon CSCwe91371 but we have created a TAC case asking for more information about CSCwe91371.  Unfortunately, TAC is not helpful and is unwilling to provide more information other than "subscribe to the Bug ID".)

[Rich R]

CSCwe91371 is a problem with the AP sending beacons.
@david101011 is referring to probes received from clients.

Make sure you don't have random MAC address clients disabled:
https://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/td/docs/wireless/controller/9800/17-9/config-guide/b_wl_17_9_cg/m_knob_disable_random_mac_clients.html

Which variables are you using to look at those probes @david101011 ?
Looking at https://github.com/YangModels/yang/blob/main/vendor/cisco/xe/1791/Cisco-IOS-XE-wireless-client-oper.yang we have: is-locally-administered-mac "Is client's MAC address locally administered" implying it should recognise public or private MACs.
https://github.com/YangModels/yang/blob/main/vendor/cisco/xe/1791/Cisco-IOS-XE-wireless-location-oper.yang 
grouping client-lrad-key {
description
"Indicates which AP has heard from a specific client";
leaf client-mac-addr {
type yang:mac-address;
description
"Wireless client MAC address";
Doesn't specify any restrictions on client MAC so shouldn't matter but it wouldn't surprise me if a developer decided that tracking of random MAC locations on probes was pointless because we know that many devices now use constantly changing random MACs for probing.

[Leo Laohoo]

Ok, maybe something like CSCwe15338?

[david101011 · Accepted solution]

FOUND IT!

@Rich R 's solution wasn't exactly a fix, since I had no trouble _connecting_ using a randomized mac, I only had trouble seeing the probe requests.  But this did point me in the right direction.

Turns out it IS a WLC setting:

WLC#config terminal
WLC(config)#wireless probe ?
filter                    Configure filtering of probe requests from AP.
limit                     Configure number of probe requests received per client per AP slot in a given interval.
locally-administered-mac  Enable the reporting of probes from clients having locally administered MAC address.

Turn on `locally-administered-mac` setting and viola!  You are now seeing randomized MAC probe requests via the YANG model referenced above.  Thank you very much!

[Rich R]

Thanks for the update.
Ironically that command is not documented at all in the 9800 WLC config guide but is in the EWC config guide!
https://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/td/docs/wireless/controller/ewc/17-9/config-guide/ewc_cg_17_9/network_mobility_services_protocol.html#id_86064
I'll submit some feedback for the WLC guide and maybe they'll eventually update it...

[Leo Laohoo]

Thanks, I've never heard of this command before.

[Rich R]

Probably not because when the queue gets stuck that will drop all probes not just private MACs.
I think more likely something in the code is simply filtering out the private MAC probes from the data.