Move multiple APs from one primary controller to secondary

[jbc-ktm]

Hello.

We have an environment consisting of 2 Cisco 9800 WLC. One primary and the other secondary.

In addition, we have approximately 800 Access Points. All 800 use the primary controller. I just upgraded the secondary controller and now the primary needs to be upgraded. Therefore I need to move all the APs from the primary to the secondary.

I do this one AP at a time under the High Availability tab, where I write the IP address of the secondary. It works fine. But the question is, is there an easier way to do it? For example, can I move a whole group of APs at a time?

The APs are divided into groups under their locations. For example "Building 1" and "Building 2".

Thanks in advance

[Scott Fella]

If your setup is N+1, then you are on track.  You upgrade the secondary and then validate that the controller is on the code after the reboot.  Now you would go to the primary and you will have options to upgrade in one shot or there is N+1 where you can choose the percentage of the upgrade.  You can then also select the site.  Take a look at the hitless upgrade:
https://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/td/docs/wireless/controller/9800/config-guide/b_wl_16_10_cg/n-1-hitless-rolling-ap-upgrade.html

[Scott Fella · Accepted solution]

You might want to look at this also.

Site-Based Rolling AP Upgrade in N+1 Networks

https://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/td/docs/wireless/controller/9800/17-10/config-guide/b_wl_17_10_cg/m_site_ap_upgr_nplus1.html

If you don't want to do this, then your best bet is to generate some CLI commands or script that will change the primary/secondatry configuration.  You might be better off just removing the primary configuration so that the ap's move to the secondary and once you are done, you just add the primary back.

[jbc-ktm]

Hi there

Thanks for your reply.
It worked really well.

Have a nice day

[lostinspace]

Hello Scott, i think that the question is not being understood exactly, In prime you had the ability to create a template and then grab AP's from an existing controller, filled out the corresponding parameters for High Availability with both the primary and secondary controller information and then select the APs to move.  this task has now been moved under workflows. my question is which flow is this found under exactly, thanks.

[Scott Fella]

Do you have the same setup with 9800's?  Are you trying to move ap's to a specific controller and also just want to use Prime or some other automation?

[mhexy0022]

In a Cisco 9800 Wireless LAN Controller (WLC) setup, you can indeed move a group of Access Points (APs) from the primary controller to the secondary controller more efficiently than doing it one AP at a time. You can achieve this by leveraging AP Groups and FlexConnect Groups. Here's a step-by-step guide on how to do it on Inshot For PC:

Create an AP Group:

• Log in to the primary controller's web interface.
• Navigate to "Wireless" > "Access Points" and click on the "Global Configuration" tab.
• Create an AP Group for the APs you want to move. Give the group a meaningful name (e.g., "Building 1 APs").
• Assign the secondary controller as the primary controller for this AP Group. To do this, under the "General" tab of the AP Group configuration, set the "Primary Controller" field to the IP address or hostname of the secondary controller.

[Scott Fella]

Oh okay.... didn't know if you were asking a question or stating a fact.  Anyway's you can always script that so you can make changes to hundreds of ap's if you want.  Just depends on what a person is comfortable with and their current configurations and dependencies.

[lostinspace]

It was a question of comparison of process, I think I was able to work it out, thanks