Contents

Introduction

Prerequisites

Requirements

Components Used

Background Information

FlexConnect

FlexConnect Feature Matrix - Legacy and New Features in Release 7.0.116 and Later

Security - Client

Security - Infrastructure

Security

Voice & Video

Services

Infrastructure

Mobility / Roaming Scenarios

Related information

Introduction

This document describes the feature matrix for the FlexConnect feature on the Wireless LAN Controller (WLC).

Prerequisites

Requirements

Cisco recommends that you have knowledge of these topics:

- Control and Provisioning of Wireless Access Points (CAPWAP) protocol

- Configuration of lightweight Access Points (APs) and Cisco WLCs

Components Used

The information in this document is based on CUWN Releases 7.0.116.0 and later. This article has been updated with Release 8.8

The information in this document was created from the devices in a specific lab environment. All of the devices used in this document started with a cleared (default) configuration. If your network is live, ensure that you understand the potential impact of any command.

Background Information

FlexConnect

FlexConnect is a wireless solution for branch office and remote office deployments. It enables you to configure and control APs in a branch or remote office from the corporate office through a WAN link without the deployment of a controller in each office. The FlexConnect APs can switch client data traffic locally and perform client authentication locally. When they are connected to the controller, they can also send traffic back to the controller. FlexConnect is only supported on these components:

- 700, 1130AG, 1140, 1240AG, 1250, 1700, 1810, 1815, 1830, 1840, 1850,  AP801, 1600, 1700, 2600, 2700,2800, 3500I, 3500E, 3600, 3700, 3800, 1040, 1520, 1530, 1550, 1560,1570, and 1260 APs

- Cisco Flex 8500 and 7500, Cisco 5500, 3504,vWLC, and 2500 Series Controllers

- Catalyst 3750G Integrated WLC Switch

- Cisco WiSM and WiSM2

- Controller Network Module for Integrated Services Routers

FlexConnect local authentication is useful where you cannot maintain a remote office setup with a minimum bandwidth of 128 kb/s and a round-trip latency of no greater than 100 ms. The maximum tolerated latency for FlexConnect is 300 ms, regardless of the features that are used.

The next section outlines the FlexConnect Feature Matrix.

Note: Pre-802, 11n APs, such as 1130 or 1240, are still supported by later code. However, these APs do not receive new features as of Release 7.3. Therefore, these APs do not support FlexConnect features that appear after Release 7.3. Similarly, first generation 802.11n APs do not have any of the FlexConnect features of the 8.1 feature set even if they are able to join such a WLC. Refer to the release notes for more information.

Note: 802.11ac wave 2 APs and Catalyst APs are covered by this document which supersedes this matrix which focuses only on AireOS releases : https://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/td/docs/wireless/access_point/feature-matrix/ap-feature-matrix.html

FlexConnect Feature Matrix - Legacy and New Features in Release 7.0.116 and Later

Security - Client

Security support on FlexConnect varies with different modes and states. This table summarizes the security features that are supported:

WAN Up (Central Switching)

WAN Up (Local Switching)

WAN Up (Local Switching, Local Authentication)

WAN Down (Standalone)

Open/Static WEP

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes

WPA-PSK

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes

802.1x (WPA/WPA2)

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes

MAC filter Authentication

Yes

Yes

No

No

CCKM Fast Roaming

Yes

Yes

No

Yes, for connected clients. No, for new clients.

Security - Infrastructure

WAN Up (Central Switching)

WAN Up (Local Switching)

WAN Down (Standalone)

Data DTLS Encryption

Yes

N/A

N/A

Local EAP (7.0 to 7.4)

Yes (LEAP/EAP-FAST)

Yes (LEAP/EAP-FAST)

Yes (LEAP/EAP-FAST)

LocaL EAP (7.5 and later)

Yes (LEAP/EAP-FAST/PEAP/EAP-TLS)

Yes (LEAP/EAP-FAST/PEAP/EAP-TLS)

Yes (LEAP/EAP-FAST/PEAP/EAP-TLS)

Backup Radius

Yes (7.0.116)

Yes (7.0.116)

Yes

MIC

Yes

Yes

Not applicable

Security

Security support on FlexConnect varies with different modes and states. This table summarizes the legacy and new security features supported with WLC Release 7.0.116.0 and later:

WAN Up (Central Switching)

WAN Up (Local Switching)

WAN Up (Local Switching, Local Authentication)

WAN Down (Standalone)

Adaptive Wireless Intrusion Prevention (aWIPS)

Yes

Yes

Yes

No

Rogue, Intrusion Detection (IDS)

Yes

Yes

Yes

No

Management Frame Protection (MFP) (Client, Infrastructure)

Yes

Yes (no for wave 2 APS)

Yes (no for wave 2 APS)

No

802.11w "MFP"

Yes (7.5)

Yes (7.5)

Yes (7.5)

Yes (7.5)

802.11r Fast Transition

Yes

Yes

No

No

Self-Signed Certificate (SSC)

Yes

Yes

Yes

N/A

Rogue Location Discovery Protocol (RLDP)

can work, depends on hops, WAN speed

can work, depends on hops, WAN speed(no for wave 2 APS)

can work, depends on hops, WAN speed (no for wave 2 APS)

No

Opportunistic Key Caching (OKC) Fast Roam

Yes

Yes

Yes

No(1)

FlexConnect Local Auth

N/A

Yes

Yes

Yes

Ipv4 AAA Override

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes

Ipv6 AAA override

Yes

Yes(5)

Yes(5)

Yes(5)

AAA VLAN assignment per FlexGroup with VLAN name

N/A

Yes (8.1)

Yes (8.1)

Yes (8.1)

Static ACL

Yes

Yes(2)

No

Yes(2)

No

Yes(2)

No

Per-user radius ACL(4)

Yes (7.5)

Yes (7.5)

Yes (7.5)

No

L2 ACL

Yes (7.5)

Yes (7.5)

Yes (7.5)

Yes (7.5)

DNS ACL

Yes (7.6)

No

No

No

P2P Blocking

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes

Mesh LSC

N/A

N/A

N/A

N/A

Bring Your Own Device /ISE(BYOD)

Yes

Yes (7.2.110.0)

No

No

PCI Compliance for Neighbor Pkts

Yes

Yes

Yes

No

Russia DTLS Support

Yes

N/A

No

No

wIPS Enhanced Local Mode (ELM)

Yes

Yes

Yes

No

Limit Clients per WLAN

Yes

Yes(3)

Yes

No

Limit Clients per Radio

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes

Client Exclusion Policy

Yes

Yes(3)

Yes

No

Radius NAC

Yes

Yes

No

No

TrustSec SXP at AP level

Yes (8.4)

Yes (8.4)

Yes (8.4)

Yes (8.4)

TrustSec SXP at WLC

Yes (8.3)

Yes (8.3)

Yes (8.3)

Yes (8.3)

Identity PSK

Yes (8.5)

Yes(8.5)

No

Yes(8.5)

Identity PSK with P2P blocking

Yes (8.8)

Yes (8.8)

No

No

AAA-enforced Policy and quota management

Yes (8.8)

Yes (incl. Flex +Bridge) (8.8)

No

No

(1) Yes for clients that have association at Connected mode.

(2) FlexConnect Access Control Lists (ACLs) must be used. Note that flex ACLs are not supported on the AP native VLAN!

(3) Limits/exclusion done by WLC so client is deauthorized after a successful Association Response.

(4) Note that the per-user ACL on FlexConnect does not override a VLAN ACL on flex AP like it would override a WLAN ACL on local mode AP. If both per user-ACL is pushed and AAA-VLAN ACL configured on the flex group, both take effect.

(5)With FlexConnect local switching, Multicast is forwarded only for the VLAN that the SSID is mapped to and not to any overridden VLANs. Therefore, IPv6 does not work as expected because Multicast traffic is forwarded from the incorrect VLAN. Therefore vlan assignment is not supported on local switching with ipv6

Note: At any given point, an AP has a maximum of 16 VLANs. First, the VLANs are selected as per the AP configuration (WLAN-VLAN), and then the remaining VLANs are pushed from the FlexConnect group in the order that they are configured or displayed in the FlexConnect group. If the VLAN slots are full, an error message is displayed

Voice & Video

This table lists the legacy and new Voice & Video services supported with WLC Release 7.0.116.0 and later with FlexConnect:

WAN Up (Central Switching) 100 ms RTT

WAN Up (Local Switching) 100 ms RTT

WAN Down (Standalone)

Voice

Yes with RTT 100 ms

Yes with RTT 100 ms

Yes with RTT 100 ms

Yes with RTT 900 ms (with CCKM and OKC)

Yes with RTT 900 ms (with CCKM and OKC)

QoS Markings(1)

Yes

Yes

Yes

QoS Per-User Bandwidth Contract

Yes (7.4)

Yes (7.5)

No

UAPSD

Yes

Yes

Yes

Voice Diagnostics

Yes

Yes

No

Voice Metrics

Yes

Yes

No

TSPEC /Call Admission Control (CAC)

Yes - non CCX

Yes - non CCX

No

Yes - CCX(2)

Yes - CCX(2)

(1) Includes both DSCP/dot1p markings.

(2) CAC on WLC, deauthorization on roaming failure.

Services

This table lists the legacy and new services supported with WLC Release 7.0.116.0  and later with FlexConnect:

WAN Up (Central Switching)

WAN Up (Local Switching)

WAN Up (Local Switching, Local Authentication)

WAN Down (Standalone)

Internal Webauth

Yes

Yes

No

N/A

External Webauth

Yes (7.2.110.0)

Yes (7.2.110.0)

No

N/A

CleanAir (SI on 3500)

Yes

Yes

Yes

N/A

Multicast-Unicast (Videostream)

Yes (except on 7500, 8500 and vWLC)

Yes (8.0) (not on wave 2 APs)

Yes (8.0) (not on wave 2 APs)

Yes (8.0) (not on wave 2 APs)

Location

Yes with BW/Scale limitation

Yes with BW /Scale limitation

Yes with BW /Scale limitation

N/A

Radio Ressource Management

Yes

Yes

Yes

No

NG RRM - RF Static Grouping

Yes(1)

Yes(1)

Yes

No

SE Connect (Cleanair Update)

Yes

Yes

Yes

No(2)

S60 Enhancement

Yes

Yes

Yes

No

Profiling

Yes

Yes (if you enabled Central DHCP Processing)

Yes(if you enabled Central DHCP Processing)

No

AVC^3

Yes (7.4)

Yes (8.1)

Yes (8.1)

No

Bonjour Gateway

Yes

No

No

No

mDNS AP

Yes

No

No

No

LSS

Yes

No

No

No

Origin Based services

Yes

No

No

No

Priority MAC

Yes

No

No

No

Bonjour Browser

Yes

No

No

No

Flex+Bridge mode

Yes (8.0 but 8.8 for wave2)

Yes (8.0 but 8.8 for wave2)

Yes (8.0 but 8.8 for wave2)

Yes (8.0 but 8.8 for wave2)

(1) Any RRM-specific requirements apply (at least 4 APs for TPC).

(2) Yes for standalone after disconnection from WLC, but no for reboot.

(3) FlexConnect AVC supported on all WLCs (which include vWLC) except 2504.

Infrastructure

WAN Up (Central Switching)

WAN Up (Local Switching)

WAN Down (Standalone)

Passive Clients

No

Yes

Yes

Proxy ARP

Yes (8.0) (8.3mr1 for wave 2 APs)

Yes (8.0) (8.3mr1 for wave 2 APs)

Yes (8.0) (8.3mr1 for wave 2 APs)

Syslog

Yes

Yes

Yes

CDP

Yes

Yes

Yes

Client Link

Yes

Yes

Yes(2)

Load Balancing(3)

Yes (7.4)

Yes (7.4)

No

Band Select

Yes

Yes

No

AP Image PreDownload

Yes

Yes

No

FlexConnect Smart AP Image Upgrade

Yes

Yes

Yes(1)

AP Regularity Domain Updates (Chile)

Yes

Yes

Yes

VLAN Pooling/Mcast Optim.

Yes

N/A

N/A

Mesh - 24 backhaul

N/A

N/A

N/A

Cisco WGB Support

Yes

Yes (7.3) (no for wave 2 APS)

Yes (7.3) (no for wave 2 APS)

3rd party WGB Support

Yes

Yes

Yes

Web Auth Proxy

Yes

Yes

No

FlexConnect AP Group Increase

Yes

Yes

Yes

Client fault tolerance

N/A

Yes

N/A

DHCP Option 60

Yes

Yes

Yes

DFS/802.11h

Yes

Yes

Yes

AP Group VLANs

Yes

N/A

N/A

Vlan mappings through FlexGroups

Yes

Yes

Yes

vlan-based central switching

Yes (8.5 for wave2 APs, 7.3 for IOS APs)

Not applicable

Not applicable

AP LAG

Yes (8.8)

Yes (8.8)

Yes (8.8)

The passive client feature is not supported on Flex APs. However, the APs do not do proxy ARP by default on FlexConnect (and that is a part of the passive client feature). On the contrary, proxy ARP was added as a feature for FlexConnect APs with Release 8.0 and later.

(1) Provided if the Lead AP is already upgraded and member APs are updated with their Lead AP.

(2) Only on second generation 11n APs and later (1600, 2600, 3600, and so on).

(3) FlexConnect APs do not send (re)association responses with status 17 for load-balancing as do Local mode APs; instead, they first send (re)association responses with status 0 (success) and then deauth with reason 5. This occurs as the AP handles the association locally and load-balancing decisions are taken at the WLC.

Mobility / Roaming Scenarios

WLAN

Configuration

Local Switching

Central Switching

CCKM

PMK (OKC)

Others

CCKM

PMK (OKC)

Others

Mobility Between Same Flex Group

Fast Roam(1)

Fast Roam(1)

Full Auth(1)

Fast Roam

Fast Roam

Full Auth

Mobility Between Different Flex Group

Full Auth

Fast Roam

Full Auth

Full Auth

Fast Roam

Full Auth

Inter Controller Mobility

N/A

N/A

N/A

Full Auth

Fast Roam

Full Auth

(1) Provided WLAN is mapped to the same VLAN (same subnet). If WLAN is mapped to different subnets, no fast roaming can occur as the client has to obtain a new IP address.

Note: FT/802.11r fast roaming also requires APs to be in the same FlexGroup. Only WPA2 OKC, which happens at the WLC level, can tolerate APs to be in different FlexConnect groups for fast roaming.

Note: In order to support centralized access control through a centralized Authentication, Authorization, and Accounting (AAA) server, such as the Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE) or ACS, the IPv6 ACL can be provisioned on a per-client basis with the use of AAA Override attributes. In order to use this feature, the IPv6 ACL must be configured on the controller, and the WLAN must be configured with the AAA Override feature enabled. The AAA attribute for an IPv6 ACL is Airespace-IPv6-ACL-Name, similar to the Airespace-ACL-Name attribute used in order to provision an IPv4-based ACL. The AAA attribute-returned contents must be a string that is equal to the name of the IPv6 ACL, as configured on the controller.

Related information

- H-Reap Design and Deployment Guide

- Hybrid Remote Edge Access Point (H-REAP) Basic Troubleshooting

- Technical Support & Documentation - Cisco Systems