Likelihood to Recommend [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.
Read full review Any rollout is well suited for a FortiAP - from small office networks, to large warehouse deployments. Adding additional APs to your network is simple and easy. Monitoring is simple with Forticloud monitoring. Configuring the devices can be as complex or as simple as you need. Adding additional Fortinet devices (I have switches and firewalls) makes the network even more secure and easy to manage - all devices working in tandem make monitoring much easier
Read full review Pros 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. Read full review Built sturdy for harsh environments. They perform and/or surpass performance levels shown on their data sheets. Read full review Cons 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. Read full review Deploying your first AP is a little confusing - you need to register it with Fortinet, and then deploy it. I am a master now, but this took me call to support to understand how to roll these out. Adding them in to the correct folders on Forticloud took a little bit of figuring out, but again, once I had it it was simple. Read full review Likelihood to Renew This is an excellent product for an SMB - cost isn't outrageous and deploy is simple. I can monitor my network without breaking the bank.
Read full review Usability Very well made product. Very stable. We have had no issues administering the 8540.
Read full review Support Rating It is a better product. The evolution is positive.
Read full review Fortinet support is outstanding! They are second to none. They pay attention to details and the needs of the customer.
Read full review Alternatives Considered 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.
Read full review FortiAP does not fall short compared to other vendors. They have all the features other vendors offer at a much more competitive price-point, which makes purchasing FortiAP a lot more attractive.
Read full review Return on Investment The Cisco 8540 Wireless Controller allows you to reduce your hardware footprint of wireless controllers deployed in your environment. Instead of having a controller per site deployed, you can have a couple of 8540 controllers in your data center that can handle up 6000 Access Points. Some of the savings on hardware cost is offset by the cost of redundant WAN circuits. The access points will continue to function when connectivity to the Cisco 8540 Wireless Controller is unreachable, but it will not allow any new connections in that wireless environment. Read full review Increased overall coverage of wireless for my users - no more calls about dropped wireless (our cell service is very spotty). Easy to roll out - no issues here. Expensive - you are paying for a business, not a home use devices - sticker shock might happen initially. Read full review ScreenShots