unable to disable tri Radio Mode in Cisco WLC 1852

[GRPDATACOM]

Hello team ,

we have a setup of C1852 as WLC and joined CAPWAP AP 9130

usually the default mode for 9130 is dual mode with means slot 0 for 2.4 and slot 1 for 5 GHZ

i found that it operates in Tri mode which means it has slot 0 for 2.4 and slot 1 and slot 2 for 5 GHZ

this is causing random disconnections as a client will try to roam from a slot to slot 2 after Rssi check even if the different is 1

after i disable the dual mode for 5ghz for 9130 , it reverts back to enabled ? any clue

i contacted support and they did the below

1- disable USB Mode

2- disable FRA

3- changed 802.11a and 802.11b  interval to 8 hours instead of 10 minutes

still the issue persists

any clue for this

[marce1000]

   - For the mobility express  based access point , make sure to use https://software.cisco.com/download/home/286285803/type/286289839/release/8.10.196.0
      being the last release available ; especially when using the those models , already targeted for the
     9800 based platforms. Check if that can help , 

 M.

[marce1000]

                      >....this is causing random disconnections as a client 
    - You may then need to perform client debugging according to https://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/support/docs/wireless/wireless-lan-controller-software/213258-collect-debugs-from-wireless-lan-control.html
       which can be analyzed with Wireless Debug Analyzer

      + Also note also parameters related to fast roaming (enabled or not) , can influence this behavior.
         Even so the need for having client wifi drivers that are up to date       

       Have a look at ; https://www.cisco.com/c/dam/en/us/td/docs/wireless/controller/9800/17-3/deployment-guide/c9130-ap-dg.pdf  and start reading from Configuring the Cisco Catalyst 9130 Series tri-radio  and tweak settings according to your needs
       The menu's could be 9800 gui-interface based and could look a bit different on the mobility express controller

      + You can also have an overall checkup of the mobility express based controller using 
         WirelessAnalyzer input (procedure) for AireOs controllers and feed the output from that into Wireless Config Analyzer

     + And as mentioned before : anything that is aireos or aireos-based these days should use the last
                                                 software version for the platform involved , 

 M.

[GRPDATACOM]

thanks Marcee for your response,

actually we have a different setup

fast Roaming is already enabled and roaming should be seamless even between slots in the same band, but we faces a problem before and connection was dropped as the client decides to roam even if the signal difference is 1

we have 1852 as WLC and 9130 CAPWAP AP

the problem here when i access the AP to disabled dual radio mode for the specific 9130 AP , it gets back to enabled mode

and we have two slots for 5 GHZ slot 1 and slot 2

also there is something weird when i try to change the channel / power , it pop up windows Radio is not in manual mode

as per attached

[marce1000]

  - Probably you need to look into https://community.cisco.com/t5/wireless/ap2802e-custom-channel-power-not-allowed/m-p/3180336#M107597
          to be able to do what you want afterwards , 

 M.

[JPavonM]

It could be something related to compatibility of the eWLC setup with that feature.

I would recommend you to ask Cisco TAC about this, as most features are not supported, but you can configure them, and then is up to you if they introduce issues or not.

[Rich R]

AireOS (and therefore Mobility Express) is end of life so it has only got critical bug fixes and security vulnerability updates since May 2023. After Jan 2025 even those will end.  If you can't get it working on ME latest version then your only option is to migrate to a 9800 series solution - either 91xx AP running EWC (similar to ME) or you could consider 9800-CL virtual controller.
https://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/products/collateral/wireless/8500-series-wireless-controllers/wireless-software-8-10-pb.html

[GRPDATACOM · Accepted solution]

thanks all for your support

i got this from TAC and it works :

to disable the dual radio mode:

(Cisco Controller) >config 802.11a dualradio ap <ap-name> manual disable

The command above is to disable the dual radio per AP.

(Cisco Controller) >config 802.11a dualradio global manual disable

This is to disable the dual radio globally.