Converged Access: Solution Overview
Converged access
represents an architectural change in the way wired and wireless networks are
deployed. A converged access network allows policy decisions to be enforced at
the network edge, potentially minimizes unnecessary traffic backhaul, and
simplifies network management by allowing one policy to be used for both wired
and wireless traffic.
This chapter provides
step-by-step instructions to deploy a converged access network with the
commonly recommended features and configurations. This guide provides
information about how to deploy an operating converged access network.
The following figure
represents the converged access workflow. The items in white are the topics
covered in this guide. The items in dark gray are the work-in-progress topics
that will be added to the guide subsequently.
Figure 1. Converged
Access Roadmap
Supported Platforms
-
Cisco Catalyst
3650 Series Switches
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Cisco Catalyst
3850 Series Switches
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Cisco 5760
Wireless LAN Controller
-
Cisco Catalyst 4500E Supervisor Engine 8E
The Cisco Catalyst
3650 Series Switches and Cisco Catalyst 3850 Series Switches provide converged
wired and wireless network access for devices. Choose a specific switch based
on the number of ports and uplink type and capacity required, type of ports,
scalability requirement, and Power of Ethernet (PoE) capability needs of the
network. The choice of the network uplink module is optional and depends on
network requirements.
 Note |
On Cisco Catalyst 4500 Series Switches, the 7R-E chassis should be
hardware revision 2 or higher to house a Supervisor Engine 8E.
|
 Note |
Install boot is a prerequisite on Cisco Catalyst 4500 Series
Switches, to support wireless.
|
 Tip |
The following scale
requirements serve as a baseline guide when choosing the platform:
-
The Cisco
Catalyst 3850 Series Switches support up to 100 access points and 2000 wireless
clients on each switching entity (switch or stack).
-
The Cisco
Catalyst 3650 Series Switches support up to 50 access points and 1000 wireless
clients on each switching entity (switch or stack).
-
The Cisco Catalyst 4500E Supervisor Engine 8E supports up to 100 acess
points.
-
PoE-based
platforms should be used since wireless access points can be powered using
inline power. This simplifies network deployment.
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Recommended
Software
The recommended
software for Converged Access Deployment Guide is Cisco IOS XE Release 3.7.3 E.
 Note |
The support for
Supervisor Engine 8E on Cisco Catalyst 4500 Series Switches was added in Cisco
IOS XE Release 3.8 E.
On Cisco Catalyst
4500E, the 7R-E chassis should be hardware revision 2 or higher to house a
Supervisor Engine 8E.
|
The latest software
releases are available on the Cisco website at:
http://software.cisco.com/download/navigator.html.
We recommend that you
read the relevant Release Notes before upgrading to a given software release.
Prerequisites for
Converged Access Deployment Guide
CLI and Console
Access
-
Knowledge about
converged access as a deployment model is essential. For more information about
the overall solution and offering, see the following links:
-
Knowledge about converged access as a deployment model for
delivery of wired and wireless services.
-
The person
performing the deployment should be a Cisco Certified Network Associate (CCNA),
and possess knowledge about wired and wireless services.
Before you
configure a switch or controller for basic operations, you must connect it to a
PC that uses a VT-100 terminal emulator (such as, HyperTerminal, ProComm, or
Putty). A controller has both EIA and TIA-232 asynchronous (RJ-45), and USB
5-pin mini Type B, 2.0-compliant serial console ports. The default parameters
for the console ports are 9600 baud, 8 data bits, 1 stop bit, and no parity.
The console ports do not support hardware flow control. Choose a serial baud
rate of 9600 or 115200.
The GUI must be
used on a PC that is running Windows 8, Windows 7, or Windows 2000 SP4 (or
later releases).
The following is a
list of supported browser versions:
-
Chrome–Version
26.x and later
-
Mozilla–Version
20.x and later
-
IE–Version 8.x,
9.x, 10.x and later
 Tip |
Web
GUI is supported from Cisco IOS XE Release 3.2.2 onwards.
|
Concepts and
Definitions
This section provides you with brief descriptions of the key phrases
used in converged access deployment.
Mobility
Agent
Mobility Agent is
the default mobility mode that is configured on a Cisco Catalyst switch when it
is shipped from the factory. In this mode, the switch is capable of terminating
Control and Provisioning of Wireless Access Points (CAPWAP) tunnels from access
points, thereby providing connectivity to wireless clients. When operating as a
Mobility Agent, the switch maintains local wireless client databases, and
enforces security and quality of service (QoS) policies for wireless clients
and access points at the network edge. An IP Base license is required for the
Mobility Agent.
Mobility
Controller
When acting as a
Mobility Controller, a Cisco Catalyst switch can perform all the typical
Mobility Agent tasks, in addition to mobility coordination, radio resource
management, and Cisco CleanAir coordination within the associated mobility
subdomain. The minimum license level required to run a switch as mobility
controller is IP Base.
Switch Peer
Group
A switch peer group
is a logical entity comprising of multiple Mobility Agents acting as a group
under a Mobility Controller, within a mobility subdomain. Configuring a switch
peer group facilitates fast roaming between converged access switches within
the group, and reduces unnecessary roaming traffic across the rest of the
mobility subdomain. Mobility Agents within the same switch peer group form a
full–mesh topology of CAPWAP tunnels between peer Mobility Agents.
Mobility
Group
Mobility group is a
group of all the wireless LAN controllers in a network that share a mobility
group name. These controllers share mobility context, client state, and
controller-loading information. Additionally, controllers in the same mobility
group can forward data traffic to one another, which enables intercontroller
wireless LAN roaming and controller redundancy.
Converged Access
Topology Example
The following figure
shows a typical converged access deployment scenario. The Mobility Controller
is stacked for redundancy purposes. The Mobility Controller stack connects to
eight Mobility Agents, which service wireless clients. The eight Mobility
Agents are divided equally into two different switch peer groups (SPG). The
entire setup belongs to a single mobility subdomain.
 Note |
The access points
connect directly to mobility agents, thus terminating CAPWAP tunnels on the
Mobility Agents.
|
Figure 2. Converged
Access Deployment Scenario
Supported Platform
Product Identifiers
The following table
lists the supported platform product identifiers (PIDs), provides information
about the license level for a given PID, as well as a description of the
product.
Table 1 Product
Identifiers for Supported Platforms
Switch Model
|
Cisco IOS Image
|
Description
|
WS-C3850-24P-S
|
IP Base
|
Cisco
Catalyst 3850 Stackable 24 10/100/1000 Ethernet PoE+ ports, with 715-WAC power
supply 1 RU, and IP Base feature set
|
WS-C3850-48P-S
|
IP Base
|
Cisco
Catalyst 3850 Stackable 48 10/100/1000 Ethernet PoE+ ports, with 715-WAC power
supply 1 RU, IP Base feature set
|
WS-C3850-48F-S
|
IP Base
|
Cisco
Catalyst 3850 Stackable 48 10/100/1000 Ethernet PoE+ ports, with 1100-WAC power
supply 1 RU, and IP Base feature set
|
WS-C3850-24PW-S
|
IP Base
|
Cisco
Catalyst 3850 24-port PoE IP Base
|
WS-C3850-48PW-S
|
IP Base
|
Cisco
Catalyst 3850 48-port PoE IP Base
|
WS-C3850-24P-E
|
IP Services
|
Cisco
Catalyst 3850 Stackable 24 10/100/1000 Ethernet PoE+ ports, with 715-WAC power
supply 1 RU, and IP Services feature set
|
WS-C3850-48P-E
|
IP Services
|
Cisco
Catalyst 3850 Stackable 48 10/100/1000 Ethernet PoE+ ports, with 715-WAC power
supply 1 RU, and IP Services feature set
|
WS-C3850-48F-E
|
IP Services
|
Cisco
Catalyst 3850 Stackable 48 10/100/1000 Ethernet PoE+ ports, with 1100-WAC power
supply 1 RU, and IP Services feature set
|
WS-3850-24U-E
|
IP Services
|
Cisco
Catalyst 3850 Stackable 24 10/100/1000 Cisco Universal Power over Ethernet
(UPOE) ports,1 network module slot, and 1100-W power supply
|
WS-3850-48U-E
|
IP Services
|
Cisco
Catalyst 3850 Stackable 48 10/100/1000 Cisco UPOE ports,1 network module slot,
and 1100-W power supply
|
WS-X45-SUP8-E
|
IP Base
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Cisco Catalyst 4500E Series Unified Access Supervisor, 928 Gbps
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Supported Wireless
Access Point Models
The following table
lists the access point models that are supported with the converged access
solution. Access point models should be chosen based on the scale, wireless
client count, and features leveraged.
Table 2 Supported Wireless
Access Point Models
Product Family
|
AP Model
|
Cisco Aironet
3700 Series
|
-
AIR-CAP3702I
-
AIR-CAP3702E
|
Cisco Aironet
3600 Series
|
-
AIR-CAP3702I
-
AIR-CAP3702E
|
Cisco Aironet
3500 Series
|
-
AIR-CAP3501E
-
AIR-CAP3501I
-
AIR-CAP3502E
-
AIR-CAP3502I
|
Cisco Aironet
2700 Series
|
-
AIR-CAP2702I-x-K9
-
AIR-CAP2702E-x-K9
|
Cisco Aironet
2600 Series
|
-
AIR-CAP2602E
-
AIR-CAP2602I
|
Cisco Aironet
1700 Series
|
-
AIR-CAP1702I- x-K9
-
AIR-CAP1702I- xK910
|
Cisco Aironet
1600 Series
|
-
AIR-CAP1602E
-
AIR-CAP1602I
|
Cisco Aironet
1530 Series
|
-
AIR-CAP1532I-x-K9
-
AIR-CAP1532E-x-K9
|
Cisco Aironet
1260 Series
|
-
AIR-LAP1261N
-
AIR-LAP1262N
-
AIR-AP1261N
-
AIR-AP1262N
|
Cisco Aironet
1140 Series
|
-
AIR-AP1141N
-
AIR-AP1142N
-
AIR-LAP1141N
-
AIR-LAP1142N
|
Cisco Aironet
1040 Series
|
-
AIR-AP1041N
-
AIR-AP1042N
-
AIR-LAP1041N
-
AIR-LAP1042N
|
Cisco Aironet
700 Series
|
-
AIR-CAP702W-x-K9
-
AIR-CAP702I-x-K9
-
AIR-CAP702I-xK910
|