Chapter 1 Overview - Motorola Solutions WiNG 5.2.6 Reference Manual

CHAPTER 1 OVERVIEW

Motorola Solutions' family of WING 5 supported access points enable high performance with secure and resilient wireless
voice and data services to remote locations with the scalability required to meet the needs of large distributed enterprises.
AP-6511, AP-6521, AP-6532, AP-7131, AP-7161 and AP-8132 model access points can use WING 5 software as its onboard
operating system. The access point's unique WING 5 software enables the access point to function as a Standalone
"thick" access point, or a Virtual Controller AP capable of adopting and managing up to 24 access points of the same
model.
When deploying an access point as a pure Virtual Controller AP, with no RFS Series controllers available anywhere on the
network, the access point itself is a controller supporting other access points of the same model. The Virtual Controller AP
can:
• Provide firmware upgrades for connected access points
• Aggregate statistics for the group of access points the Virtual Controller is managing
• Be the single point of configuration for that deployment location
The WiNG 5 architecture is a solution designed for 802.11n networking. It leverages the best aspects of independent and
dependent architectures to create a smart network that meets the connectivity, quality and security needs of each user
and their applications, based on the availability of network resources including wired networks. By distributing
intelligence and control amongst access points, a WiNG 5 network can route directly via the best path, as determined by
factors including the user, location, the application and available wireless and wired resources. WiNG 5 extends the
differentiation Motorola Solutions access points offer to the next level, by making available services and security at every
point in the network. Access point managed traffic flow is optimized to prevent wired congestion and wireless congestion.
Traffic flows dynamically, based on user and application, and finds alternate routes to work around network choke points.
NOTE: The recommended way to administer a network populated by numerous access
points is to configure them directly from the Virtual Controller AP. If a single access point
configuration requires an update from the Virtual Controller AP's assigned profile
configuration, the administrator should apply a Device Override to change just that
access point's configuration. For more information on applying an override to an access
point's Virtual Controller AP assigned configuration and profile, see
page 5-123.
Profile Overrides on