Cisco Catalyst 9800 Series Wireless Controller Software Configuration Guide, Cisco IOS XE 26.1.x

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Cisco Catalyst 9800 Series Wireless Controller Software Configuration Guide, Cisco IOS XE 26.1.x

EDCA parameters

Updated: April 10, 2026

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Introduces EDCA parameters and their role in prioritizing wireless traffic, detailing how to customize channel access for QoS using controller GUI or CLI interfaces.

An Enhanced Distributed Channel Access (EDCA) parameter is a wireless channel access configuration that

  • assigns preferential access to voice, video, and other quality of service (QoS) traffic

  • differentiates wireless traffic priority through distinct parameter settings, and

  • enables customization of wireless performance using controller GUI or CLI interfaces.

Configure EDCA parameters (GUI)

Set global EDCA parameters to optimize channel access for voice, video, and quality-of-service traffic on your wireless networks using GUI.

Procedure

1.

Choose Configuration > Radio Configurations > Parameters. On this window, you can configure global parameters for 802.11a/n/ac (5 GHz) and 802.11b/g/n (2.4 GHz) radios.

Note

You cannot configure or modify parameters, if the radio network is enabled. Disable the network status in the Configuration > Radio Configurations > Network window before proceeding. To apply the EDCA settings to the WLANs, disable and then re-enable the WLANs.
2.

In the EDCA Parameters section, select an EDCA profile from the EDCA Profile drop-down list. Enhanced Distributed Channel Access (EDCA) parameters provide preferential wireless channel access for voice, video, and other QoS traffic.
3.

For 802.11a/n/ac (5 GHZ) radios, in the (DFS 802.11h) section, enter the local power constraint. You cannot configure power constraint if the DTPC Support check box on the Configure > Radio Configurations > Network page is checked. The valid range is 0 dBm to 30 dBm.
4.

Check the Channel Switch Announcement Mode check box, if you want the AP to announce when it is switching to a new channel and the new channel number. The default value is disabled.
5.

Check the Smart DFS check box to enable Dynamic Frequency Selection (DFS) and avoid radar signal interference.
6.

Click Apply.

Configure EDCA parameters (CLI)

Set EDCA parameters on a wireless controller to optimize Quality of Service (QoS) for different traffic profiles and improve network performance using commands.

Procedure

1.

Enter the global configuration mode.

Example:

Device# configure terminal
2.

Disable the radio network.

Example:

Device(config)# ap dot11 {5ghz | 24ghz | 6ghz} shutdown
3.

Enable specific EDCA parameters for the 802.11a, 802.11b/g, or 802.11 6-GHz network.

Example:

Device(config)# ap dot11 {5ghz | 24ghz | 6ghz} edca-parameters {client-load-based | custom-voice | fastlane | optimized-video-voice | optimized-voice | svp-voice | wmm-default}
Note

The custom-voice option is not supported for Cisco Catalyst 9800 Series Wireless Controller .

  • client-load-based: Enables client load based EDCA configuration.

  • custom-voice: Enables custom voice parameters for the 802.11a or 802.11b/g network.

  • fastlane: Enables the fastlane parameters for the 802.11a or 802.11b/g network.

  • optimized-video-voice: Enables EDCA voice-optimized and video-optimized parameters for the 802.11a or 802.11b/g network. Choose this option when both voice and video services are deployed on your network.

  • optimized-voice: Enables non-SpectraLink voice-optimized profile parameters for the 802.11a or 802.11b/g network. Choose this option when voice services other than SpectraLink are deployed on your network.

  • svp-voice: Enables SpectraLink voice-priority parameters for the 802.11a or 802.11b/g network. Choose this option if SpectraLink phones are deployed on your network to improve the quality of calls.

  • wmm-default: Enables the Wi-Fi Multimedia (WMM) default parameters for the 802.11a or 802.11b/g network. This is the default option. Choose this option when voice or video services are not deployed on your network.
4.

Enable the radio network and return to the privileged EXEC mode.

Example:

Device(config)# no ap dot11 {5ghz | 24ghz | 6ghz} shutdown
Device(config)# end
5.

Display the current status of MAC optimization for voice.

Example:

Device# show ap dot11 {5ghz | 24ghz | 6ghz} network