Restrictions For Configuring The Switch For Access Point Discovery; Information About Configuring The Switch For Access Point Discovery; Access Point Communication Protocols - Cisco IOS XE Release 3SE Configuration Manual

Restrictions for Configuring the Switch for Access Point Discovery

Restrictions for Configuring the Switch for Access Point
Discovery
• Ensure that the switchs are configured with the correct date and time. If the date and time configured
• During the discovery process, access points that are supported by the Cisco switch, such as the 1140,
Information About Configuring the Switch for Access Point
Discovery
In a CAPWAP environment, a lightweight access point discovers a switch by using CAPWAP discovery
mechanisms and then sends a CAPWAP join request to the switch. The switch sends a CAPWAP join response
to the access point that allows the access point to join the switch. When the access point joins the switch, the
switch manages its configuration, firmware, control transactions, and data transactions.

Access Point Communication Protocols

Cisco lightweight access points use the IETF standard CAPWAP to communicate with the switch and other
lightweight access points on the network.
CAPWAP, which is based on LWAPP, is a standard, interoperable protocol that enables a switch to manage
a collection of wireless access points. CAPWAP is implemented in switch for these reasons:
Lightweight Access Point Configuration Guide, Cisco IOS XE Release 3SE (Catalyst 3650 Switches)
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◦Layer 3 CAPWAP discovery—You can enable this feature on different subnets from the access
point. This feature uses IP addresses and UDP packets rather the MAC addresses used by Layer
2 discovery.
◦Locally stored switch IP address discovery—If the access point was previously associated to a
switch, the IP addresses of the primary, secondary, and tertiary switchs are stored in the access
point's nonvolatile memory. This process of storing switch IP addresses on an access point for
later deployment is called priming the access point.
◦DHCP server discovery—This feature uses DHCP option 43 to provide switch IP addresses to the
access points. Cisco switches support a DHCP server option that is typically used for this capability.
◦DNS discovery—The access point can discover switchs through your domain name server (DNS).
You must configure your DNS to return switch IP addresses in response to
CISCO-CAPWAP-CONTROLLER.localdomain, where localdomain is the access point domain
name. When an access point receives an IP address and DNS information from a DHCP server, it
contacts the DNS to resolve CISCO-CAPWAP-CONTROLLER.localdomain. When the DNS
sends a list of switch IP addresses, the access point sends discovery requests to the switchs.
on the switch precedes the creation and installation date of certificates on the access points, the access
point fails to join the switch.
1260, 3500, 1040,1600, 2600, or 3600 query only for Cisco switchs.
Configuring the Switch for Access Point Discovery
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