Week 11. JunosV Wireless LAN Controller – Juniper Networks. The JunosV Wireless LAN Controller is a virtual WLAN controller that enables cost-effective, flexible, reliable wireless deployments that help address BYOD and provide seamless integration of wired and wireless networks.
It can be deployed as a physical appliance in a WLC Series controller or on a server device. It is location- and platform-agnostic for maximum deployment options on premise or in the private cloud. The JunosV Wireless LAN Controller capabilities are consistent with Juniper Networks WLC Series Wireless LAN Controllers. It simplifies the network, increases flexibility, and decreases costs with a pay-as-you-grow model. It is optimized for distributed enterprise campus environments.
What is a WLAN controller (part 1) According to the Oxford Dictionary, a “Controller” is defined as: Therefore, a wireless LAN controller is a device that directs or regulates traffic on the wireless network and is sold by WLAN controller vendors.
So why does this device exist on WLAN networks and not in a switch or router environment? Well, let’s take a step back for a second and figure out how we got here. If we travel alllll the way back to early 2000s, wireless LANs were just emerging in the enterprise. In fact, most people still worked on desktop computers and laptops were just starting to become the company-issued device of choice. As they did, people wanted to be able to use their fancy 802.11b wireless NICs to connect to Wi-Fi when they were away from their desks, such as during a meeting in a conference room. Fast forward a couple years to the arrival of Airespace. Fast forward again, and Airespace does so well that Cisco acquires them and starts adding to their line of existing autonomous APs. Virtual Wireless LAN. The vWLAN® solution offers companies in education, healthcare, hospitality, government and retail an excellent solution for wireless that is completely scalable to future technologies.
Provides seamless, cost-effective scaling:vWLAN separates the management and control plane from the data plane allowing for greater scaling and capacity. Adding more access points, users or locations does not require an additional investment in the control plane. Optimizes Performance:With vWLAN, system capacity is no longer determined by the backplane capacity of the controller. Rather, capacity is a function of the aggregate throughput of the APs. Enables Cloud-based Management and Control:Allows for cloud-based, centralized management and control of APs located anywhere in the networked world. Enforces network security at the edge:vWLAN takes advantage of intelligent access points, with built-in stateful firewall, that enforce policies at the edge. Virtual Wireless Controller Data Sheet. The Cisco® Virtual Wireless Controller is a virtual form-factor controller that enables flexible and cost-effective deployment for small and medium-sized deployments.
The controller allows IT managers to configure, manage, and troubleshoot up to 200 access points and 6000 clients. The Cisco Virtual Wireless Controller supports secure guest access, rogue detection for Payment Card Industry (PCI) compliance, and in-branch (locally switched) Wi-Fi voice and video. Features. LabMinutes# WL0001 - Cisco Virtual Wireless LAN Controller (vWLC) 7.3 VMware Installation. WL0001 - vWLC 7.3 VMware Installation. Build a $30 Wireless Lab. One of the recent project has quite a lot wireless LAN stuff.
So I feel the urge to build a home lab. To build a wireless LAN lab, you need at least two things - a WLC (Wireless LAN Controller) and some compatible APs (Access Points). WLC was easy since you may download the virtual WLC (vWLC) software from cisco.com and throw it on VMware. It's not that easy when it comes to AP. There are so many different models from Cisco. It looks like this: Two things to be aware of: 1) Make sure to order one with antennas. Luckily I still have my 3750G POE switch sitting around (from my CCIE voice lab). In case you don't know, in real-life enterprise WLAN, they usually use DHCP option 43 to deliver the WLC IP address to APs.
But my Linksys router doesn't have the capability to configure DHCP options. Here's my network design: My Linksys home router connects to 3750 switch VLAN 1. 3750 configuration: Cisco Virtual Wireless LAN Controller (vWLC) 7.3 Installation Caveats. Cisco has released a Virtual Wireless LAN Controller (vWLC), a VM version of a controller that has always been an appliance or hardware module, with 60-day evaluation at installation.
Your first thought might be less hardware cost and a WLC can take all the advantages of being a VM. For those of you who like to lab, like myself, but always have difficulty getting your hands on a WLC, this may seems like a great news that you can now have a WLC readily available for testing. Well, this is very true as long as you have thoroughly reviewed the vWLC Deployment Guide and understand all the requirements and limitations, otherwise, you may find out the hard way that things may not work the way you expected them to. In this article, we will point out two important caveats that you need to be aware of in order to have a vWLC setup and functioning correctly.
Virtual Wireless Controller Deployment Guide.