What users are saying about
<a href='https://www.trustradius.com/static/about-trustradius-scoring#question3' target='_blank' rel='nofollow noopener'>Customer Verified: Read more.</a>
48 Ratings
Cisco 8540 Wireless Controller
<a href='https://www.trustradius.com/static/about-trustradius-scoring#question3' target='_blank' rel='nofollow noopener'>Customer Verified: Read more.</a>
48 Ratings
<a href='https://www.trustradius.com/static/about-trustradius-scoring' target='_blank' rel='nofollow noopener'>trScore algorithm: Learn more.</a>Score 8.8 out of 100
Based on 48 reviews and ratings
Cisco Wireless LAN Controllers
<a href='https://www.trustradius.com/static/about-trustradius-scoring#question3' target='_blank' rel='nofollow noopener'>Customer Verified: Read more.</a>
Top Rated
112 Ratings
<a href='https://www.trustradius.com/static/about-trustradius-scoring' target='_blank' rel='nofollow noopener'>trScore algorithm: Learn more.</a>Score 8.9 out of 100
Based on 112 reviews and ratings
Attribute Ratings
- Cisco 8540 Wireless Controller is rated higher in 2 areas: Usability, Support Rating
- Cisco Wireless LAN Controllers is rated higher in 1 area: Likelihood to Recommend
Likelihood to Recommend
8.7
Cisco 8540 Wireless Controller
87%
27 Ratings

8.8
Cisco Wireless LAN Controllers
88%
59 Ratings
Likelihood to Renew
Cisco 8540 Wireless Controller
N/A
0 Ratings

7.3
Cisco Wireless LAN Controllers
73%
1 Rating
Usability
8.2
Cisco 8540 Wireless Controller
82%
1 Rating

6.4
Cisco Wireless LAN Controllers
64%
2 Ratings
Availability
Cisco 8540 Wireless Controller
N/A
0 Ratings

8.2
Cisco Wireless LAN Controllers
82%
1 Rating
Performance
Cisco 8540 Wireless Controller
N/A
0 Ratings

8.2
Cisco Wireless LAN Controllers
82%
1 Rating
Support Rating
9.0
Cisco 8540 Wireless Controller
90%
2 Ratings

8.1
Cisco Wireless LAN Controllers
81%
7 Ratings
Implementation Rating
Cisco 8540 Wireless Controller
N/A
0 Ratings

7.3
Cisco Wireless LAN Controllers
73%
1 Rating
Product Scalability
Cisco 8540 Wireless Controller
N/A
0 Ratings

7.3
Cisco Wireless LAN Controllers
73%
1 Rating
Likelihood to Recommend
Cisco 8540 Wireless Controller
[Cisco 8540 Wireless Controller's] software quality has been shed in recent years. The only problem I have with it is its inability to work with older Cisco Access Points. However, that's to be expected for any deployment. While the controller's UI works well, some areas could be improved. API integrations lack flexibility. [I feel] it's time for policy redesign. It can be a little difficult to determine coding quality.
IT Specialist
Lamda I-TECHInformation Technology & Services, 11-50 employees
Cisco Wireless LAN Controllers
For a large (several hundred+) corporate environment, you will probably want a [Wireless LAN Controller] to be able to scale your AP footprint. Cisco [Wireless LAN Controllers] stand up to the task and, as mentioned, once you get it set up how you want, it really doesn't need to be messed with except for periodic updates. Just manage your APs from there.
Infrastructure, Network Administrator II
Dynamic AviationAviation & Aerospace, 501-1000 employees
Pros
Cisco 8540 Wireless Controller
- The GUI on the Cisco 8540 WLC is much better designed than other Cisco products. Its easy to navigate between the different settings to find what is needed.
- The AP groups allows touching multiple APs at one time.
- It also allows us to create standard SSIDs that can be used at all sites that connect back to it, this saves a lot of time instead of hitting each site with a local controller.
Senior Network Engineer
EatonMachinery, 10,001+ employees
Cisco Wireless LAN Controllers
- The WLC are very reliable. In the 10+ years the company has had them installed, we have not had any hardware or component failures.
- No need for reboots. The CISCO WLC is not like a router you may have at home which you may have to reboot every few weeks or months. It can run for months without needing a reboot.
- The Cisco WLC gives you a quick Network Summary when you first log into the system. This is very helpful to get a quick rundown on the status of your wireless network.

Verified User
Engineer in Information Technology
Utilities Company, 201-500 employeesCons
Cisco 8540 Wireless Controller
- Code quality is a bit hit and miss. This will be great for a while, then things will be bad for a while, then we'll do it again. The UI of the controller works, but could do with a refresh, and I would like to see some improvement on layout and organization.
- The constant code/firmware upgrades and the QA of new code could be better.
- Maybe the compatibility with old Cisco Access Points could be improved, but it's normal in all kinds of deployments.

Verified User
Analyst in Information Technology
Information Technology & Services Company, 51-200 employeesCisco Wireless LAN Controllers
- Configuring wireless settings is very confusing because various settings are scattered all over the interface in different tabs
- Lots of settings use Cisco's technical verbiage rather than common phrasing, so it's confusing what a lot of settings will do and requires researching the meaning before modifying the setting
- The interface could be easier to use to do simple tasks such as reboot an access point

Verified User
Professional in Information Technology
Consumer Goods Company, 51-200 employeesPricing Details
Cisco 8540 Wireless Controller
General
Free Trial
—Free/Freemium Version
—Premium Consulting/Integration Services
—Entry-level set up fee?
No
Starting Price
—Cisco Wireless LAN Controllers
General
Free Trial
—Free/Freemium Version
—Premium Consulting/Integration Services
—Entry-level set up fee?
No
Starting Price
—Likelihood to Renew
Cisco 8540 Wireless Controller
No score
No answers yet
No answers on this topic
Cisco Wireless LAN Controllers
Cisco Wireless LAN Controllers 7.3
Based on 1 answer
Although it is a very good product, support is easy and can manage by Level 1 support persons and downtime is too much less but still there is a cost factor matters which is consider by each organization. Furthermore, organizations also compare with other competitors so it is hard to pursue and defend the high prices.

Verified User
Administrator in Information Technology
Pharmaceuticals Company, 1001-5000 employeesUsability
Cisco 8540 Wireless Controller
Cisco 8540 Wireless Controller 8.2
Based on 1 answer
Very well made product. Very stable. We have had no issues administering the 8540.
Senior Network Engineer
EatonMachinery, 10,001+ employees
Cisco Wireless LAN Controllers
Cisco Wireless LAN Controllers 6.4
Based on 2 answers
As I said before, the only thing we miss in our old model is the fact that the management interface never received an improvement in design. It has the same look and feels since it was launched. It's not that it's hard to use. It's just the case of could be modernized.
IT Infrastructure Specialist
RANDON S.AAutomotive, 5001-10,000 employees
Reliability and Availability
Cisco 8540 Wireless Controller
No score
No answers yet
No answers on this topic
Cisco Wireless LAN Controllers
Cisco Wireless LAN Controllers 8.2
Based on 1 answer
Downtime fear is the first fear which IT persons look and want to eliminate as much as they can but eventually you have to face it as nothing is perfect. Cisco Wireless Lan controller are feasible to use and easy to manage and other than this their issue reported are pretty low so you can get the best up time. now it also depends on scenario as well as environment.

Verified User
Administrator in Information Technology
Pharmaceuticals Company, 1001-5000 employeesPerformance
Cisco 8540 Wireless Controller
No score
No answers yet
No answers on this topic
Cisco Wireless LAN Controllers
Cisco Wireless LAN Controllers 8.2
Based on 1 answer
Cisco Wireless Lan controller are feasible to use and easy to manage and other than this their issue reported are pretty low so you get the better uptime. if your get the uptime then it means its a stable product in your environment. Product performance also depends on the product management and Cisco Wireless Lan controller management is easy so you can get the great output.

Verified User
Administrator in Information Technology
Pharmaceuticals Company, 1001-5000 employeesSupport Rating
Cisco 8540 Wireless Controller
Cisco 8540 Wireless Controller 9.0
Based on 2 answers
It is a better product. The evolution is positive.
Gerente de Noc and support
EVCON GROUPComputer & Network Security, 51-200 employees
Cisco Wireless LAN Controllers
Cisco Wireless LAN Controllers 8.1
Based on 7 answers
As usual, the support from Cisco's TAC (Technical Assistance Center) is lacking. Granted, they always get the job done, but the amount of lead time on a non-emergency is enough to make you just handle it yourself. The good news is that if you ask for Cisco's assistance and forget about it, they'll jump on by the time you've forgotten where you were in troubleshooting it and have it fixed for you.

Verified User
Engineer in Information Technology
Government Administration Company, 1001-5000 employeesImplementation Rating
Cisco 8540 Wireless Controller
No score
No answers yet
No answers on this topic
Cisco Wireless LAN Controllers
Cisco Wireless LAN Controllers 7.3
Based on 1 answer
That was a great experience of having a new project and working on it. Although we got some hurdles and challenges but we overcome all the things and try to work efficiently for this. in this time Cisco support team also helps a lot an give pro tips which help us.

Verified User
Administrator in Information Technology
Pharmaceuticals Company, 1001-5000 employeesAlternatives Considered
Cisco 8540 Wireless Controller
We have [done] some work before with the Cisco 3504 product, but the more recent Cisco 8540 Wireless Controller provides a wider range of capabilities for managing the wireless network and each individual device [and] also being able to handle more users. Unfortunately, we didn't test and deploy equivalent products from other concurrent companies.
Researcher
Instituto de TelecomunicaçõesTelecommunications, 501-1000 employees
Cisco Wireless LAN Controllers
Depending on your client needs you may want to go with a Unify system or Aruba controller less system if they are a small to medium business. The reason why we use Cisco Wireless LAN Controllers, is due to how well they work in congested environments and have a wealth of configuration settings.
Senior Network Engineer
Arctic MSP, IncComputer & Network Security, 51-200 employees
Scalability
Cisco 8540 Wireless Controller
No score
No answers yet
No answers on this topic
Cisco Wireless LAN Controllers
Cisco Wireless LAN Controllers 7.3
Based on 1 answer
Cisco is a brand name and people trust on it. if any one thing about the networking then Cisco is among those brand which is count as trusted brand and people rely on it. Also it support is good so people can use it. Cisco Wireless Lan controller are easy to use and manage so it requires less effort.

Verified User
Administrator in Information Technology
Pharmaceuticals Company, 1001-5000 employeesReturn on Investment
Cisco 8540 Wireless Controller
- Network engineers find it easier to [manage] high-stress levels since they're more reliable and robust.
- Their initial cost is very high compared to other router providers, such as Juniper.
- Their hardware dependability can be a big drawback if you run on a budget.

Verified User
Engineer in Information Technology
Information Technology & Services Company, 1-10 employeesCisco Wireless LAN Controllers
- Frustration levels have gone way down after going to the wireless lan controller
- You could argue money has been saved as we can keep a single lineup of AP's and corresponding wireless lan controller
- Costs will have to go up when you start adding one of these into the mix

Verified User
Administrator in Information Technology
Government Administration Company, 501-1000 employees