Staggered AP Upgrade

Feature history for access point upgrade management enhancements

This table provides release and related information for the feature explained in this module.

This feature is also available in all the releases subsequent to the one in which they are introduced in, unless noted otherwise.

Table 1. Feature history for access point upgrade management enhancements

Release

Feature Information

Cisco IOS XE 17.18.1

Provides configurations for reduced AP batch size used during AP upgrades. These configurations aim to reduce disruption during the upgrade process by providing even greater control over AP upgrade batch sizes. Since the batch sizes can be greatly reduced, such configurations should not be used during maintenance windows as it would result in long upgrade time

The following commands are modified:

  • ap upgrade staggered

    . Two new keywords 1 and serial are introduced.

  • show ap upgrade

The YANG model changes include new options for AP upgrade configurations and marking the node stgrd-upgd-ap as obsolete to support 6000 APs. The new node comp-ap lists APs with successfully completed upgrade.

Access point upgrade configuration and behavior

New configurations and operational changes in controller software give you more control over access point (AP) upgrade processes.

Here are the enhancements:

  • You have more granular control with AP upgrade batch sizes, allowing minimum disruption of your network.

  • You can use serial and one percent per-iteration upgrade modes to perform in-service upgrades.


    Note

    These new configurations must be used strictly outside the maintenance windows. See Warning: Extended upgrade durations for serial and one percent batch modes.

  • The CLI and YANG models now support these options, so that you can manage upgrades more effectively.

These changes help you reduce service impact during AP upgrades and are particularly useful for large-scale or in-service environments.

Access point upgrade configurations

Access point upgrade configuration are controller software parameters that:

  • control the number of APs upgraded in each batch or iteration,

  • include several upgrade strategies (including new staggered and serial modes), and

  • are applicable across all upgrade scenarios such as In-Service Software Upgrade (ISSU), N+1 Hitless Rolling AP Upgrade, and Access Point Service Pack (APSP) or Access Point Device Package (APDP).

These configurations stagger AP updates, and provide more flexibility in large network environments.


Caution

Avoid using these configurations for wncd-config upgrades (such as Locally Significant Certificate [LSC] renewal).

Examples of upgrade

  • One percent per iteration: Only one percent of APs are upgraded at a time, minimizing disruption.

  • Serial: One AP is upgraded at a time, resulting in the least disruption but taking much longer.

Staggered and serial AP upgrade concepts

A staggered and serial AP upgrade concept is a network upgrade methodology that:

  • sequentially updates subsets of access points (APs) to minimize client impact,

  • allows configuration of different batch sizes, including single AP upgrades, and

  • provides options for client steering and de-authentication controls to optimize network continuity during in-service upgrades.

When the AP batch size is small, the rollout process may be slower. However, because very few APs are affected in each iteration, clients have many options to retain connectivity, and large networks benefit from improved network performance.

Staggered upgrades distribute the process across multiple iterations. Serial upgrades process one AP per iteration. Use these approaches when service continuity is critical during in-service upgrades

Controller CLI enhancements for AP upgrade management

Controller CLI enhancements for AP upgrade management are:

  • New keywords serial and 1 added to the ap upgrade staggered command specifying serial mode and upgrade batch sizes.

  • Warnings are issued for configurations that may lead to extended upgrade durations.

  • The output of show ap upgrade now reflects the new upgrade processes.

These changes help you configure and monitor upgrades more precisely and with greater awareness of possible service impacts.

For more information about these commands, see ap upgrade staggered and show ap upgrade

Warning: Extended upgrade durations for serial and one percent batch modes

If you choose serial or one percent per iteration upgrades, the process can take a long time. For example, 6000 APs at three minutes takes over 12 days). Use these modes only when minimizing disruption is more important than upgrade speed.

CLI and GUI options for upgrading APs

The table lists CLI and GUI options for upgrading APs.

Table 2. CLI and GUI options for upgrading APs
Command Option Description
1 1% of APs per iteration
5 5% of APs per iteration
15 15% of APs per iteration
25 25% of APs per iteration
client-deauth Enable or disable client de-authentication
client-steering Enable or disable client steering
iteration Configure iteration accounting parameters
one-shot Upgrade all APs in a single iteration
serial Upgrade one AP at a time

Configure staggered or serial AP upgrades

Configure the wireless controller to upgrade access points in staggered batches or one at a time, minimizing client disruption.

Use this task to perform upgrades in large, production, or in-service environments where minimizing service impact is crucial.

Follow these steps to configure staggered or serial AP upgrades:

You can also configure these options through the GUI. See Configure AP certificate auto-renewal (LSC) via GUI

Before you begin

  • Review network size and upgrade impact to select an appropriate mode.

Procedure

Step 1

Enter global configuration mode.

Step 2

Use the ap upgrade staggered command to view available options and select a batch size:

  • Enter 1 for one percent per iteration (minimal disruption, slowest).

  • Enter serial for one AP at a time (least disruption, longest duration).

  • Enter 5, 15, or 25 for other batch percentages as needed.

Step 3

(Optional) Configure client de-authentication or steering.

The controller displays a warning if serial or 1% mode is selected.

Step 4

Exit the global configuration mode.

After you complete these steps, the controller staggers AP upgrades based on your configuration.

YANG Model Update

The YANG oper model for ap-upgrade status with stgrd-upgd-ap is obsolete starting with Cisco IOS XE Release 17.18.x.

A new xpath with comp-ap is introduced to support newer APs. The list includes all the APs that have completed the upgrade operation.

Old XPATH

xpath /access-point-oper-data/stgrd-upg-report/stgrd-upgd-ap

NEW XPATH

xpath /access-point-oper-data/stgrd-upg-report/comp-ap

Node properties of comp-ap


Name            comp-ap
nodetype        list
description     List of APs with successfully completed upgrades. This is the new list for upgraded APs, with support for serial AP upgrades.
module          Cisco-IOS-XE-wireless-access-point-oper
revision        2025-07-01
xpath           /access-point-oper-data/stgrd-upg-report/comp-ap
prefix          wireless-access-point-oper
namespace       http://cisco.com/ns/yang/Cisco-IOS-XE-wireless-access-point-oper
schema node id  /access-point-oper-data/stgrd-upg-report/comp-ap
Keys            "iter-number""radio-mac“
access          read-only
operations      "get"