Cisco 526 Wireless Express Mobility Controller
High Performance Wireless Access Points
| Cisco Access Points | ||
|---|---|---|
| Cisco 526 Wireless Express Mobility Controller | ||
| Cisco 526 Wireless Express Mobility Controller | #AIR-WLC526-K9 List Price: $1,799.00 Our Price: $1,159.00 |
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Cisco 526 Wireless Express Mobility Controller:
The Cisco® 526 Wireless Express Mobility Controller is a network appliance that automatically optimizes the basic wireless network and supports advanced mobility services on top of that network. The Cisco Mobility Express solution brings together the Cisco 526 controller and the Cisco 521 Wireless Express Access Point as a flexible, cost-effective wireless solution specifically designed to meet the needs of small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs).
As your business needs grow, the Cisco Mobility Express solution offers the versatility to evolve and scale from a solid mobile foundation delivering business-grade wireless features to a sophisticated yet cost-effective wireless network capable of supporting leading mobility services and applications. Mobility Express is part of the Cisco Smart Business Communications System - a complete unified communications solution for SMBs that provides voice, data, video, security, and wireless capabilities while integrating with existing desktop applications like calendar, e-mail, and customer relationship management (CRM).
Cisco 526 Wireless Express Mobility Controller
The Cisco 526 Wireless Express Mobility Controller
harnesses the power of Cisco Lightweight Access Point
Protocol (LWAPP) technology, best-in-class automatic
radio optimization, mobility performance, and multi-access-point
management. On top of the basic transport layer, the
controller supports Cisco Secure Guest Access and Voice-over-WLAN
advanced mobility services. As part of the Smart Business
Communications System, this controller is managed by
the Cisco Configuration Assistant, easing deployment
and decreasing the cost of ongoing maintenance. A single
Cisco 526 controller supports up to six Cisco 521 access
points and up to two controllers can be deployed per
network, delivering the capacity, simplicity, and price
point appropriate for the SMB.
Easy Configuration of Secure Guest Access
Features and Benefits:
| Features and Benefits of the Cisco 526 Wireless Express Mobility Controller | |
|---|---|
| Secure network access for guest users | With Secure Guest Access, organizations can easily create and manage a virtual guest network with a Web login portal page for users such as customers, vendors, and contractors. Visitors can have Internet access while safely partitioned from the sensitive corporate LAN. |
| Support for Cisco voice-over-WLAN optimization | Voice-over-WLAN optimization is a package of features that deliver quality of service, call admission control, and fast, secure inter-access-point handoff to improve the quality of a wireless voice infrastructure. |
| Easy management tool | Includes Cisco Configuration Assistant, GUI-based management software that automatically discovers and dynamically configures Cisco 521 access points in order to simplify and accelerate wireless network setup |
| Support for Cisco Lightweight Access Point Protocol (LWAPP) | Uses Cisco LWAPP for communication between Cisco 521 access points and 526 controllers to simplify deployment and management, and to automate functions required for a pervasive WLAN end-user experience. |
| Support for up to 6 access points per controller and up to 2 controllers per network for a total of 12 access points | The wireless network easily expands as business requirements for additional wireless coverage and mobility services increase. |
| Multi-access-point Radio Resource Management (RRM) | RRM automatically optimizes radio coverage and capacity while working around potential points of interference. This real-time radio coordination simplifies deploying multiple access points. |
| Secure authentication mechanism support | Support for a wide range of authentication mechanisms to enable scalable security architectures and minimize security interoperability issues (WEP, MAC Filtering, WPA, WPA2, WebAuth, 802.1X, and EAP). |
| Wired/wireless network virtualization | Supports the use of up to 8 SSID/VLANs so that one physical WLAN infrastructure can be safely shared by different users, applications, or organizations as virtual wired/wireless networks. |
| Wireless component of the Cisco Smart Business Communications System | Part of a portfolio of switching, routing, security, wireless, and voice products designed to work both individually and together as a system to maximize the value of each product in the network. |
WLAN Architectural Feature Comparison:
With Cisco 521 Wireless Express Access Points, the Cisco Mobility Express solution is an ideal fit for the ironment. Table 2 highlights the main architectural feature differences between consumer-grade, business-grade, and enterprise-grade WLAN solutions.
| WLAN Architectural Feature Comparison | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Features | Consumer-Grade Access Points | Cisco 500 Wireless Express Access Point (Standalone Mode) | Cisco 500 Wireless Express Access Point (Controller Mode) | Cisco Enterprise Unified WLAN Architecture |
| Part of the Cisco Smart Business Communications System |  |
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| Simplifies multi-access-point networks | |
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| Cisco Configuration Assistant management tool* | |
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| Support for Cisco Lightweight Access Point Protocol (LWAPP)** | |
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| Multi-access-point Radio Resource Management (RRM) | |
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| Support for a range of secure authentication mechanisms | |
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| Wired/wireless network virtualization | |
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| Advanced-mobility-services-ready: Cisco Secure Guest Access | |
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| Advanced-mobility-services-ready: Voice-over-WLAN optimization | |
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*The Cisco Unified Wireless Network Architecture uses Cisco Wireless Control System (WCS) Software or the command-line interface instead of the Cisco Configuration Assistant.
**Cisco 500 Series Wireless Express Access Points can use LWAPP technology for a controller-based deployment but these access points can not be used in a Cisco Unified Wireless Network.
Technical Specifications:
| Product Specifications for the Cisco 526 Wireless Express Mobility Controller | |
|---|---|
| Item | Specification |
| Physical interfaces | 2 10/100 Ethernet ports for uplink and management 2 USB console ports (future expansion) 1 RJ-45 serial port for direct console access |
| Wired/switching/routing | IEEE 802.3 10BASE-T, IEEE 802.3u 100BASE-TX specification, and IEEE 802.1Q VLAN tagging |
| Management options | Cisco Configuration Assistant software (recommended) Embedded Web-based device manager Command-line interface for troubleshooting (SHO/DEBUG only) using Telnet, SSH, or console port access |
| System logs | Message logs for critical failures, software errors, unexpected software events, and significant system events |
| Security/authentication standards | None/Open, WEP/Open, MAC Filtering, WPA/Open
with EAP, WPA/Network EAP, WPA-PSK/Open
with EAP, WPA-PSK/Network EAP, WPA-TKIP,
WPA2/AES CCMP Web-Auth with Open, WPA-PSK, WPA2-PSK, WEP Supported EAP types include PEAP, LEAP, EAP-FAST, EAP-TLS, EAP-GTC, and EAP-SIM |
| RADIUS authentication | IEEE 802.1X RADIUS authentication; external RADIUS server required |
| Multiple Service Set Identifiers (SSIDs) | Identifiers (SSIDs) 8 SSIDs supported (each
access point may support multiple SSIDs) 1 SSID broadcast in SSID beacon |
| Support for Cisco Secure Guest Access | Allows for creation of guest SSID/VLAN through Cisco Configuration Assistant, and creation of guest user accounts and configuration of Web login page using Cisco Configuration Assistant |
| Support for voice-over- WLAN optimization | Delivers quality of service, call admission control, fast inter-access-point handoff, and other optimization features to improve the quality of a wireless voice infrastructure |
| Warranty | 1 year |
| Physical and Environmental |
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| Regulatory Compliance |
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| Physical and Environmental |
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Cisco Mobility Express Solution:
A business-grade, affordable mobility solution for small and medium-sized businesses with up to 250 employees.
Executive Summary
This document presents the Cisco® Mobility Express Solution, including its components and how it integrates with the Cisco Smart Business Communications System. A description of the solution's features and associated benefits will help readers choose a mobility solution that fits their needs.
Challenge
With the business pace accelerating, small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) should now more than ever take advantage of advances in technology to stay competitive and rapidly navigate market changes. Deploying a wireless network increases customer responsiveness, as well as collaboration within the company and with business partners; in other words, it improves a company's business agility.
Figure 1. Mobility for SMBs
The Cisco Mobility Express Solution delivers best-in-class wireless capabilities that until recently had been reserved for enterprises. The solution is sold at a premium accessible to SMB customers seeking to gain a competitive edge without having to compromise between price and sophistication. SMBs now have an alternative to consumer-grade products and can benefit from the latest enterprise-class services available over Wi-Fi.
The Cisco Mobility Express Solution smoothly integrates with a wired infrastructure. Its Radio Resource Management feature delivers self-configuration, self-optimization, and self- healing, minimizing manual management. Businesses can offer wireless guest access and use voice over Wi-Fi without the need for RF expertise or additional IT resources.
Using Smart Business Communications System management tools, the Cisco Mobility Express Solution offers a friendly user interface for configuration. As customers upgrade or evolve their networks, the introduction of new routing, switching, security or unified communications solutions will be greatly simplified.
Why should you deploy wireless?
Business tools and usage patterns have dramatically changed over the past two decades. Multitask devices are now common, and offer more memory and processing power to run real-time applications such as e-mail or instant messaging. Employees, business partners, and customers expect instant answers. While businesses need to provide services 24/7, they are also expected to offer more flexibility to their employees when it comes to working hours. In addition, the complexity of tasks requires a broader set of skills than in the past. Working in teams, sometimes virtual ones, is increasingly necessary.
Mobility solutions help companies to better navigate this complex and fast-moving environment by empowering users with the right device or application at the right time and at the right place, and by facilitating collaboration and business interactions. Companies are now considering deploying wireless technologies as part of their business strategy. Today, more than 50 percent of companies use mobility-enabling technologies such as WLANs, and the sales of laptops outpaced desktop sales in 2005.
Figure 2 shows the evolution in business tools and usage patterns over the past decades.
Figure 2. Evolution in Business Tools and Usage
Patterns
Responsiveness and agility
Unlike large global companies, the competitive advantage
of an SMB is often being local. SMBs can offer unmatched
service to their customers or deliver unique customized
products, while collaborating with business partners
to better share each others' competitive advantage.
Delivering such quality is time-consuming and has a high cost. A shift in market demand or a misalignment with business partners can quickly have significant financial consequences and can affect customer loyalty. Deploying a wireless network in a business environment enables the workforce to have real-time access to business-critical information, such as inventory or e-mail. Access to timely information empowers employees, allowing them to make faster and better decisions. It also means being more responsive to customers and turning over more deals in a shorter period of time.
A wireless network also increases business advantages; for example, reducing the cost of a company's cell phone bills by supporting voice over Wi-Fi, or increasing the satisfaction and efficiency of business partners or customers visiting your facilities by providing Internet access without compromising network integrity or requiring IT support.
Retain and attract talent
Studies show that in skilled and semi-skilled jobs,
the full cost of replacing a worker is typically 1.5
to 2.5 times the worker's annual salary. Because of
company size, SMBs must use their resources-especially
their human resources-in the most efficient way; their
employees are the foundation of the company's success.
The new workforce generation is more tech-savvy than the previous generations. They are highly familiar with wireless access and expect it from their employers. Loyalty from these workers is also more difficult to gain; offering them the flexibility to work when and where they want is key to their satisfaction.
Set the stage for new opportunities
Deploying a mobility solution gives SMBs the opportunity
to be more proactive developing innovative ways to serve
their customers and create value. For instance, the
way of taking or placing orders can be streamlined to
reduce cost, but also to allow employees to spend more
time developing new revenues streams, increasing the
customer market base, or recruiting new business partners.
Benefits of the Cisco Mobility Express Solution
Ease of use
The Cisco Mobility Express Solution is easy to deploy,
use, and maintain. The friendly interface offered by
the Cisco Configuration Assistant and the automated
Radio Resources Management tool makes it comparable
to having an "RF-expert-in-a-box". No additional IT
staff or RF expertise is required. The network configures
the access points automatically to avoid interferences
or coverage gaps while maximizing the bandwidth available.
If it detects an access point failure or a point of
interference, it will immediately take action tuning
the radio power or frequency of surrounding access points
to compensate and maintain business continuity without
impacting the devices connected to the wireless network.
Cost-effectiveness and investment protection
The Cisco Mobility Express Solution is ideal for SMBs
that do not want to compromise between sophistication
and price. It offers affordable, business-class features
such as security, scalability, and reliability. The
solution also offers the assurance that, unlike consumer-grade
products, your wireless network will evolve with your
needs over time, by being capable of adding more mobile
applications and benefiting from the latest innovations.
Figure 3 shows the staged approach that the Cisco Mobility Express Solution offers to evolve with the company needs
Figure 3. Staged Approach of the Cisco Mobility
Express Solution
Security
Protecting customer information is crucial for SMBs,
where reputation and customer retention is directly
associated with future revenues and stable growth. But
aligning increasingly stringent regulations is costly,
and noncompliance can sometimes result in the closure
of a business. The Cisco Mobility Express Solution helps
SMBs proactively avoid these risks. It supports a wide
range of security architectures by including all the
latest Wi-Fi standards and many identity-based authentication
options. The security infrastructure allows for advanced
secure guest access, providing business partners such
as customers, contractors, or suppliers with wireless
access to the Internet while safely segregating their
traffic from the corporate intranet.
Scalability
Unlike most consumer-grade products, the centralized
management of the Cisco Mobility Express Solution and
its self-configuration, self-optimization, and self-healing
features allow you to expand your network in total simplicity
and with minimum business disruption. Instead of manually
configuring access points one by one, a simple change
in the Cisco Configuration Assistant will update your
network policies; adding another access point is "plug
and play".
Reliability
The Cisco Mobility Express Solution delivers reliability
through multiple means. Radio Resource Management optimizes
the radio settings of each access point in real time
to present maximum bandwidth and coverage of the entire
WLAN. If an access point goes down, a source of interference
comes up, or traffic density shifts over the course
of the day, the Cisco Mobility Express Solution re-works
the radio plan in real time to compensate. Mobility
Management enables a voice over Wi-Fi call or a wireless
connection to be maintained while roaming from one access
point to another, without the need to re-authenticate
or re-launch the applications. The network can be designed
to allow a high level of redundancy when needed. Finally,
the advanced Cisco testing and validation that the solution
has to comply with is a proven label of quality.
Integration with the Smart Business Communications
System
The Cisco Smart Business Communications System is a
suite of Cisco products designed for SMBs and managed
by a common user-friendly tool.
Customers that have non-wireless Smart Business Communications System solutions, such as switching, or unified communications, can quickly and easily add the Cisco Mobility Express Solution to help ensure a complete integration between the wired and wireless networks.
For customers that start with the Cisco Mobility Express Solution, other elements can be added over time as needed. Using the same interface reduces the need for IT staff training and helps avoid the time-consuming maintenance of separate wired and wireless networks.
Solution
Figure 4. The Cisco Mobility Express Solution
The Cisco Mobility Express solution comprises access points, mobility controllers, and a configuration assistant:
- The Cisco Wireless Express Access Point: The
access points can be deployed in two modes: standalone
or controller-based.
- Standalone mode: Up to 3 access points can be deployed to provide wireless connectivity between the devices and the rest of the network. In this configuration, the access points have to be managed individually through the Cisco Configuration Assistant.
- Controller-based mode: Up to 12 access points (6 per wireless LAN controller) can be deployed and become multifunctional. In addition to offering connectivity, the access points now monitor all wireless activities and report them to the controllers. In this configuration, they can all be managed simultaneously through the Cisco Configuration Assistant.
- The Cisco Wireless Express Mobility Controller: The mobility controller is the "RF expert" of the system. It has a complete view of the wireless network. Based on the information received from the access points, the mobility controller can automatically and dynamically manage the access points to reduce interferences, avoid coverage gaps, and more.
- The Cisco Configuration Assistant: To simplify management, the Cisco Configuration Assistant is used to configure the entire Smart Business Communications System portfolio, including Cisco Wireless Express Mobility Controllers and Access Points.
The Cisco Mobility Express Solution is designed to evolve with customer needs over time. For a cost-effective first solution, customers can start by deploying access points in standalone mode, and reap the benefits of wireless connectivity. As their business grows and the need for a larger coverage arises, or as they want simpler management for an optimized radio network, the controller-based architecture can be deployed. Finally, as wireless becomes an integral part of the business strategy with mobility services such as voice over Wi-Fi or guest access, an application-based architecture can be implemented to run more sophisticated mobile applications.
Figure 5 shows the Cisco Mobility Express Solution architectures associated with the different needs of businesses.
Figure 5. Cisco Mobility Express Solution Architectures
Why Cisco?
Cisco is the worldwide leader in networking technologies, with a 20-year track record supporting customers of all sizes, around the globe. By working with the established industry leader, municipalities and businesses can benefit from:
- More than two decades of experience building large-scale routing and RF networks
- Proven performance, reliability, and security with more than 3 million access points deployed and more than 128,000 customers worldwide
- A broad range of technical experts and engineers who understand the unique requirements of business customers
- Award-winning customer support services that help companies get the most out of their investments and extend the life of their network assets
- Ongoing investments in R&D initiatives
- Sustained value with upgradeable, standards-based solutions
- A phased approach to support the integration of new technologies or respond to new government mandates or regulations
- A global partnership with 200,000 worldwide partners, 4000 specialization badges, and best practices sharing
Documentation:
Download the Cisco 526 Wireless Express Mobility Controller Datasheet (PDF).
| Cisco Access Points | ||
|---|---|---|
| Cisco 526 Wireless Express Mobility Controller | ||
| Cisco 526 Wireless Express Mobility Controller | #AIR-WLC526-K9 List Price: $1,799.00 Our Price: $1,159.00 |
|