MESH AP : Local ethernet switching

[jeremyabalain]

Hello,

I have 2 AP on a remote site, both in bridge mode : a RAP and a MAP.

The RAP is connected to a switch with other wired clients.

They are controlled through a 5508 WLC.

Wifi set up is OK, I can get access to the broadcasted SSID, but I can't get any local switching : both vlan gateway and wired clients cannot be joined.

Is there a way to achieve this without tunneling MESH traffic to the controller?

Regards

Jeremy

Edit : correction on MAP/RAP

[Vengatesa Prasath]

Hi, 

Please check for Flex + bridge section: 

https://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/td/docs/wireless/controller/8-2/config-guide/b_cg82/b_cg82_chapter_010010101.html#d58319e2986a1635

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[Flavio Miranda]

Hi @jeremyabalain

  The AP that connects to the Switch is actually the RAP and not the MAP. And an alternative for this depends on the possibility or not to change you topology.

 We use MESH when we have a WIRED device that needs to be connected to a network but for some limitation we are not able to do that directly. That´s when MESH network comes to the scene. MESH is somehow an extension of WIRED network using a segment of WIRELESS link.

 Make sure you have the proper VLANs configured on the mesh RAP. 

 Some APs mode allows you to connect WIRED device via auxiliary port thus avoid the complexity of mesh network but this have limitation. You can refer to:

https://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/td/docs/wireless/technology/apdeploy/8-0/Cisco_Aironet_3700AP.html#pgfId-124333

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[jeremyabalain]

Thanks for your replies.

That is correct, this is the RAP is the wired and not the other way around.

I already tried to put the AP in flex+bridge :

I gain L2 connectivity through the RAP, not through the MAP

I wasn't aware that MESH WiFi is a way to bridge ethernet over the air to remote wired stations and actually not extend WiFi coverage to wireless clients.

[Flavio Miranda]

Actually you can also benefit from wireless extension if you connect clients to MAP AP wirelessly. Although you you have low performance. 

 About you setup, can you give a picture about what you are trying to do? 

You said: "Wifi set up is OK, I can get access to the broadcasted SSID, but I can't get any local switching : both vlan gateway and wired clients cannot be joined."

 You mean, they can't join to the MAP AP? 

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[jeremyabalain]

Thanks for your help Flavio

Attached is the schematics of our deployment.

What I meant by "Wifi set up is OK, I can get access to the broadcasted SSID, but I can't get any local switching : both vlan gateway and wired clients cannot be joined."is that a wireless client can connect to both RAP or MAP (in bridge mode) but cannot acces underlying connectivity

[Flavio Miranda]

You probably are facing some issue with vlan mapping.

 Does the RAP is in trunk mode, if so, do you have a native vlan on it?

 How does vlans is organized on the switch?

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[jeremyabalain]

regarding vlan, it is very simple : only one DATA vlan in acces mode on the RAP

[Flavio Miranda]

What about DHCP. Who is providing it?

[jeremyabalain]

DHCP relay enabled on the wired vlan gateway.

With the same LAN configuration, for a wireless client :

- In bridge mode : no DHCP lease obtained via the RAP

- In flex+bridge mode : DHCP lease obtained via the RAP

- In bridge mode : DHCP lease obtained via the AP

[jeremyabalain]

So, there is no hope for my deployment configuration?

[Flavio Miranda]

Sure it is. This is a quite common scenario. I just did not understand one thing:

- In bridge mode : no DHCP lease obtained via the RAP

- In flex+bridge mode : DHCP lease obtained via the RAP

- In bridge mode : DHCP lease obtained via the AP

Where DHCP should come ?  Where you DHCP server is ? I understand that it should come from RAP and give your clients an IP address on the wired network range so that they can access the internet and intranet. Does your clients is getting DNS and Gateway properly?

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[jeremyabalain]

The DHCP Server is on the wired side.

If it is confusing : if I set a static IP adress on wireless clients, they can comunicate with the gateway on the wired side only when the AP is in flexconnect mode, not in bridge mode.

[Flavio Miranda]

Well, flexconnect is an option with you want to send the client traffic locally, I mean, you don't want the client traffic to go to the WLC.  That´s why you can ping the gateway as the traffic is being dropped locally. 

 But, the proper way should be bridge mode if your goad is extend the Wireless coverage. But, this way the traffic will be sent to the WLC.

Which version is your WLC, does it has Flex + Bridge mode? This mode started on version 8.0 and 

looks closer of what you are trying to accomplish.

Take a look on this link and this might help you:

https://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/td/docs/wireless/controller/8-2/config-guide/b_cg82/b_cg82_chapter_010010101.html#concept_61FDD35A8F394244B5CAA21CC906F748

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