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

PDF

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

Client steering enhancements

Updated: April 10, 2026

Want to summarize with AI?

Log in

Introduces client steering enhancements that optimize client management during staggered AP upgrades, minimize unnecessary disconnections, and provide greater control over steering behavior for both new and existing clients.

Client steering enhancements are configuration options that

  • improve how clients are managed during staggered access point (AP) upgrades,

  • help maintain client connectivity by avoiding unnecessary disconnections, and

  • offer more control over steering behavior for both new and existing clients.

Client deauthentication

This topic aims to provide a comprehensive understanding of client deauthentication during staggered upgrades of access points in a wireless network.

When access points (APs) of a wireless network are upgraded in a staggered manner, the clients connected to those APs are moved to other APs. During this period, clients that are unaware of an ongoing upgrade may try to reassociate with the same AP. Similarly, new clients may also try to join the AP. To avoid this scenario, Cisco IOS XE Dublin 17.11.1 introduces the option to not deauthenticate clients connected to the APs that are selected for the upgrade. Using the `no ap upgrade staggered client-deauth` command, you can stop deauthenticating clients before the AP performs an upgrade.

Client deauthentication affects both the 802.11v clients and non-802.11v clients. When client steering is enabled, 802.11v clients receive Basic Set Service (BSS) transition frames that guide them to roam. If client steering is disabled and deauthentication is enabled, even 802.11v clients receive deauthentication messages, which may result in dropped connections.

Best practice for preserving client connectivity during upgrade

Ensure that client deauthentication is disabled on APs selected for upgrade. This minimizes disruption and maintains better client experience, especially in high-availability wireless environments.

Deauthenticate clients

This task allows you to manage client connections by deauthenticating clients associated with the access point (AP) before performing an image upgrade.

Procedure

1.

Enter global configuration mode.

Example:

Device# configure terminal
2.

Stop deauthentication of the clients associated with the AP before the AP starts to upgrade.

Example:

Device(config)# no ap upgrade staggered client-deauth
3.

Return to privileged EXEC mode

Example:

Device(config)# end

Successful execution of this task ensures that clients are not unexpectedly disconnected during an AP image upgrade.