Problem to boot an AP1815I

[Luc_Aptys]

Hello,

I'm  having troubles when booting an AP1815 controller/AP : it first blinks in green, then the green light stay on for some seconds then it go to the red / orange / green cycling for a very long time. I didn't measure that time but it was somethng like 10 minutes the last time, before it finally became online, the WiFi being on and the contoller responding to ping. It was my fifth try, the third was also good after a long time (I went to do something else), on the second one it goes back to it previous IP address and on the two others tries I finally power-off the box after something like 10 minutes trying to connect on differents IP address.

What have I done today :

- change the controller's IP address (we change the LAN range of this network) through the CLI

- save the config

- the AP was in DHCP mode so I didn't touch it

- change the default DHCP config for the management network (the DHCP is disabled but I want it to be clean)

- save the config again

The WLAN has the "admin state" option enabled (I don't know what it is for), the SSID is not broadcasted, we are using Mac filtering and WPA2 passphrase.

The sotware version : 8.4.100.0

This delay between the power-up and the availability of the wifi network doesn't seems to be right, any idea to correct it ?

[Scott Fella]

Are you trying to join this ap to a Mobility Express controller or another controller?  The 1815 does not support being a controller just as subordinate which is an ap that can join a mobility express controller.  This link also explains the LED status.  

Cisco Mobility Express Deployment Guide - Product Overview [Cisco 5500 Series Wireless Controllers] - Cisco

Keep in mind that if a capwap access point doesn't not find a suitable controller, the ap will reboot in order to try to obrtain a dhcp and find a controller.  Console into the ap and review the output.

[Luc_Aptys]

Hi Scott,

This 1815 is an AP and also the controller. 

There is no other AP for now but I will have to add one later.

It's an old infrastructure that we are working on to change the IP range.

When we add the WiFi to this building, we specificaly chosse the 1815 for being AP and controller as we need only two AP to work together and we need a low cost way to do it on three diffferent buildings.

[Scott Fella]

Are you sure that model is supported as a Mobility Express controller?  This documentation states that it is not, only the 1850 and 1830 for the 18x0 model.

Cisco Mobility Express Deployment Guide - Product Overview [Cisco 5500 Series Wireless Controllers] - Cisco

[Luc_Aptys]

I must admit that the technical documentation on the 1815 never mention how to configure the controller, making it hard to maintain.

But, this commercial page explicitly mention ME as being part of the 1815 AP.

https://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/products/collateral/wireless/aironet-1815-series-access-points/datasheet-c78-738243.html

[Scott Fella]

Well if it is supported, then just go over the configuration guide.  The guide will explain how to make sure the ap has the correct image, how to upload a new image if needed and the initial configuration.  

Cisco Mobility Express User Guide, Cisco Wireless Release 8.4 - About Cisco Mobility Express [Cisco Mobility Express for Aironet Access Points] - Cisco

I would probably upgrade to 8.5.

[Rich R]

There is ME software for 1815i so it must be supported: https://software.cisco.com/download/home/286306794/type/286289839/release/8.10.162.0

but 8.4.100.0 is a very early/old ME release - now more than 4 years old, unsupported and deferred due to critical defect(s) so should not be used!

https://software.cisco.com/download/home/286306794/type/286289839/release/8.4.100.0?releaseIndicator=DEFERRED

https://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/td/docs/wireless/deferral/Deferral_Notice_8_4_100_0.html

I'd highly recommend upgrading to a current supported release (8.5 or 8.10) before trying to do anything else.

It's not clear from your message whether or not you have DHCP working.  By default the AP will always need DHCP even if you assign a static IP to the WLC. (so 2 IPs - one for WLC and one for AP even though they're on the same hardware).

If you want to use a static IP for WLC and AP then read https://community.cisco.com/t5/wireless/how-to-ignore-dhcp-server-in-mobility-express/m-p/4484202#M234313

[Scott Fella]

Provide more information like what controller model, if there are any other ap's joined, if this is a new install or not and how everything is connected. This will help use better understand your setup and what you are doing.