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[Cisco Wireless LAN Controllers]: A Set It [and] Forget It
July 18, 2021

[Cisco Wireless LAN Controllers]: A Set It [and] Forget It

Derek Benson | TrustRadius Reviewer
Score 9 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User

Software Version

5508 Wireless Controller

Overall Satisfaction with Cisco Wireless LAN Controllers

Our 5508 [Cisco Wireless LAN Controllers] support about 60 APs spread across our campus. It has been deployed in an HA pair on the anchor side for redundancy and hands off to a foreign controller of the same make/model in the DMZ to host our "web only" WLANs (such as for guests, BYOD, etc.) The WLC itself makes deployment of new APs as easy as connecting them to the LAN, allows for [the reasonable] setup of new WLANs, and for putting APs into groups to deploy WLANs to specific sets of APs. It also allows for decent monitoring of who is connected, to what, their signal strength, etc.
  • It's Cisco and like all our other Cisco products, chiefly switches, once you get it set up to your liking, it just runs itself after that. The reliability factor has been huge for us.
  • Ease in deploying new APs has been nice. We have a DNS record (and DHCP Option 43 as a fallback) that helps new AP find the WLC. The WLC takes it from there.
  • Good monitoring of connections, kicking people off, [and] blocking certain MACs are all useful features.
  • With the 5508, at least, the interface is very dated. The newer WLCs are streamlined in the Web UI and seem to be able to achieve the same results in fewer (and clearer) steps.
  • Steep learning curve right out of the box. Having a vendor assist that stands these up all the time will be very helpful.
  • High-availability
  • Monitoring clients
  • Ease in deploying new APs (time savings for the staff)
  • We have had our [Cisco Wireless LAN Controller] 5508s for a very long time now and although they are getting dated, they have earned us our money's worth with consistency, stability, and ease of use. Users have minimal wireless complaints and when they do seldom are they WLC-related.

Do you think Cisco Wireless LAN Controllers delivers good value for the price?

Yes

Are you happy with Cisco Wireless LAN Controllers's feature set?

Yes

Did Cisco Wireless LAN Controllers live up to sales and marketing promises?

I wasn't involved with the selection/purchase process

Did implementation of Cisco Wireless LAN Controllers go as expected?

Yes

Would you buy Cisco Wireless LAN Controllers again?

Yes

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.