or Cisco Aironet client devices for the Cisco Unified Wireless Network. With over 90 percent of client devices certified as Cisco Compatible, almost any client device that you select is likely to be certified. Cisco Compatible client devices interoperate with and support innovative and unique Cisco Unified Wireless Network features such as Fast Secure Roaming, integrated IPS, location services, and a variety of extensible authentication types.

Mobility platform: Cisco offers access points and bridges for the carpeted enterprise, rugged environments, and challenging environments, including the outdoors. Cisco Aironet lightweight access points are dynamically configured and managed through Lightweight Access Point Protocol (LWAPP). Cisco Aironet autonomous access points that have been converted to operate as lightweight access points running LWAPP are supported.

Network unification: The Cisco Unified Wireless Network leverages existing wired networks and the investment in Cisco products. This solution supports a seamless network infrastructure across a range of platforms. Wired and wireless unification occurs with the Cisco 4400 and 2000 Series Wireless LAN Controllers.

Excellent network management: Cisco delivers an excellent network management system (NMS) that visualizes and helps secure your air space. Cisco WCS supports WLAN planning and design, RF management, location tracking, IPS, and WLAN systems configuration, monitoring, and management. This platform easily manages multiple controllers and their associated lightweight access points.

Unified advanced services: Cisco provides unified support of leading-edge applications. Cisco’s advanced services are industry leading, innovative, and comprehensive. The Cisco Unified Wireless Network advanced services are delivered by wireless lightweight access points, Cisco Wireless Location Appliances, and wireless IP phones.

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Content 6.3 Managing WLANs 6.3.2 Cisco WLAN Implementation and Components Cisco offers two WLAN implementations as shown in Figure :

• Autonomous WLAN: The autonomous WLAN solution uses autonomous access points.
• Lightweight WLAN: The lightweight WLAN solution uses lightweight access points and wireless LAN controllers.

The available WLAN components are listed in Figure :

• Wireless clients connected to the network (for example, notebooks or IP phones).
• Access points build the WLAN infrastructure.
  • Autonomous access points are configured independently.
  • Lightweight access points are configured through LAN controllers.
• Radio monitoring and control is provided as follows:
  • Autonomous access points aggregate information through Wireless Domain Services (WDS) that in turn forward the information to a CiscoWorks Wireless LAN Solution Engine (WLSE).
  • Lightweight access points use LWAPP encapsulation to forward information independently to the access points’ respective WLAN controllers.
• WLAN management administers and monitors large deployments of WLANs as follows:
  • Autonomous access points use CiscoWorks WLSE management.
  • Lightweight access points use Cisco Wireless Control System (WCS) management.
• The network infrastructure includes switches and routers to connect access points, controllers, management, and servers.
• Network services such as DHCP, DNS, and AAA are required both for the wireless network and the user.
• Cisco Aironet bridges operate at the MAC address layer (data link layer).

Comparison of the WLAN Solutions
Figure compares autonomous and lightweight WLAN solutions by characteristics and advantages:

• Autonomous access points: Autonomous access points are configured per access point. Their Cisco IOS software operates independently. CiscoWorks WLSE performs centralized configuration, monitoring, and management. WDS facilitates radio monitoring and management communication between the autonomous access points and CiscoWorks WLSE. WDS is a feature that is enabled in any access point that forwards aggregated RF information from a grouping of access points to CiscoWorks WLSE.
• Lightweight access points: You configure lightweight access points by using the Cisco Wireless LAN Controller. The access points usually depend on the controller for control and data transmission. Only in Remote-Edge Access Point (REAP) mode does a lightweight access point not depend on the Cisco Wireless LAN Controller for data transmission. The controller implements monitoring and security. Centralized configuration, monitoring, and management can be performed through Cisco WCS. Cisco Wireless LAN Controllers can be installed with redundancy within wireless LAN controller groups.

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Content 6.3 Managing WLANs 6.3.3 CiscoWorks WLSE for the Autonomous WLAN Solution CiscoWorks WLSE is a systems-level solution for managing the entire Cisco Aironet WLAN infrastructure based on autonomous access points. The RF and device-management features of CiscoWorks WLSE simplify the everyday operation of WLANs, helping to ensure smooth deployment of security and network availability while reducing deployment and operating expense. CiscoWorks WLSE operates by gathering fault, performance, and configuration information about Cisco devices that CiscoWorks WLSE discovers in the network. You must configure the access points, WDS, switches, and routers with Cisco Discovery Protocol (CDP) and Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) to provide information to CiscoWorks WLSE for the access point discovery process. After WLSE discovers devices, you decide which devices to manage with CiscoWorks WLSE. CiscoWorks WLSE is a core component of the WLAN autonomous access-point solution. CiscoWorks WLSE has these major features, summarized in Figure :

• Configuration: Allows you to apply configuration changes to access points. Up to 2500 access points can be supported from a single CiscoWorks WLSE console. All Cisco Aironet access points are supported.
• Fault and policy monitoring: Monitors device fault and performance conditions, Lightweight Extensible Authentication Protocol (LEAP) server responses, and policy misconfigurations.
• Reporting: Allows you to track device, client, and security information. You can e-mail, print, and export reports.
• Firmware: Allows you to upgrade the firmware on access points and bridges.
• Radio management: Helps you manage your WLAN radio environment.
• CiscoWorks WLSE administration: Manages CiscoWorks WLSE software, including software upgrades, monitoring CiscoWorks WLSE, backing up data, and using two CiscoWorks WLSE devices as a redundant, highly available WLAN management solution. CiscoWorks WLSE supports warm-standby redundancy. A backup server can take over wireless management if there is a primary CiscoWorks WLSE failure.
• Deployment wizard: Configures and discovers access points that are used in a Cisco Unified Wireless Network.

CiscoWorks WLSE Key Benefits
Using CiscoWorks WLSE to manage autonomous access points provides many benefits. CiscoWorks WLSE provides centralized management and RF visibility for Cisco Aironet autonomous access points and bridges. This solution gives users many benefits as listed in Figure :

• Improved WLAN security: Wireless IDS for rogue access points, ad hoc networks, excess 802.11 management frames that signal denial-of-service (DoS) attacks and man-in-the-middle attacks
• Simplified access point deployment: Configuration policies that are created using Deployment Wizard are automatically applied to new access points
• RF visibility: RF coverage, received signal strength indicator (RSSI) displays, rogue access point location, and roaming boundaries
• Dynamic RF