FAQ

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Cisco Catalyst 9100

Frequently Asked Questions
Wireless data traffic is growing at a phenomenal rate. As more Investment protection with multigigabit
data is generated and more devices connect to the network,
wireless access points are critical in providing a great user The Cisco Catalyst 9100 access points support NBase-T
experience. and IEEE 802.3bz Ethernet compatibility to seamlessly
offload network traffic without bottlenecks. With multigigabit
Cisco Catalyst 9100 access points are built to take care of technology, you can use your Cat 5e or Cat 6 cable to achieve
that demand. Supporting the Wi-Fi 6 standard, also known speeds up to 10 Gbps. This scalable solution provides
as 802.11ax, the Catalyst 9100 addresses current and future higher throughputs and saves money by minimizing cabling
network needs. investments.
Better power efficiency for mobile and IoT
Benefits of the Cisco Catalyst 9100 access points Devices such as smartphones, tablets, and IoT will see up
to four times less energy consumption with Wi-Fi 6 when
Higher performance with increased capacity compared to prior standards.
Wi-Fi 6 supports more data to more clients than any prior
version of the 802.11 standard. With speeds up to four times
faster than 802.11ac Wave 2, you’ll have more simultaneous For additional information be sure to click here to learn more.
throughput for more devices. Catalyst 9100 access points
make sure your network is ready for the data onslaught.
Better experience with reduced latency
With Wi-Fi 6 you can connect more than 100 devices per
access point with latency-sensitive apps like voice over IP
(VoIP) and video conferencing. That is three times more
compared to prior standards, thanks to reduced latency
provided by Catalyst 9100 access points.
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Cisco Catalyst 9100 Access Points portfolio Q What controller and management options are available for the
Q Cisco Catalyst 9100 Access Points?
What is the portfolio transition from the Cisco Aironet® 1800
Series to the Cisco Catalyst 9100 platform? A 
The Cisco Catalyst 9100 Access Points can be managed by all
A The Cisco Catalyst 9100 Access Points consist of the Cisco Catalyst Cisco Catalyst 9800 Series Wireless Controllers. In addition, they are
9115 and 9117 and are the follow-ups to the Cisco Aironet 1800 supported by the Cisco 3504, 5520, and 8540 wireless controllers
Series Access Points, specifically the Cisco Aironet 1830 and 1850 and the Cisco Virtual Wireless Controller (vWLC) in local, flex, and
Series, The Cisco Catalyst 9100 Access Points come equipped fabric modes. Support for Cisco Catalyst 9100 in Mobility Express will
with Wi-Fi 6 capabilities, better industrial design, and improved RF be available in the future.
performance, and deliver reliability, security, and intelligence at scale.
The Cisco Catalyst 9100 Access Points are designed to work
with Cisco DNA Center (Release 1.2.10 and later) for simplified
Q What feature sets do the Cisco Catalyst 9100 Access Points network management and orchestration, with automation,
support? assurance, and topology support. They can also be managed by Cisco
A The Cisco Catalyst 9100 Access Points support the packaging of Prime® Infrastructure (Release 3.6 and later).
features into Essentials and Advantage packages. The details of the
features in each package are listed in the data sheets. Q What cable category will be needed to connect the Cisco Catalyst
9100 Access Points?
Q Will Cisco Catalyst 9100 Access Points work with existing 802.11ac
A An 80-MHz, 8SS, 1024-Quadrature Amplitude Modulation (1024-
networks? QAM) Wi-Fi 6 radio, plus a second Wi-Fi 6 radio with 5 GHz at80 MHz,
A
Yes. For Cisco investment protection, ensuring that Wi-Fi 6 4SS, 1024-QAM approaches 5 Gbps of wired traffic. Forthis reason,
seamlessly coexists with existing 802.11ac Wave 1 and Wave Cisco recommends using Category 6a cables to eachAP and suggests
2 products is the number one priority. The industry has carefully 2.5- or 5-Gbps Cisco Catalyst Multigigabit ports for the access
designed Wi-Fi 6 to interact naturally with 802.11ac and older APs switch.
and clients. Cisco Catalyst 9100 APs supporting the Wi-Fi 6
standard adhere to the requirement that a Wi-Fi 6 device must Q What are Cisco’s solutions for 2.5-Gbps and 5-Gbps connections
support all the mandatory modes of 802.11a/g/n and 802.11ac. to Access Points?
They can communicate with 802.11a/g/n and 802.11ac clients using
A Cisco offers stackable Cisco Catalyst 9300 Series Switch models
802.11a/g/n or 802.11ac formatted Physical Protocol Data Units
that support 10-, 5-, 2.5-, and 1-Gbps, and 100-Mbps interfaces.
(PPDUs). ing 802.11a/g/n or 802.11ac formatted Physical Protocol
This dense solution will allow a single stack of eight units to support up
Data Units (PP
to 384 ports, connected using the industry’s highest stack bandwidth,
Cisco StackWise®-480. All ports also support Cisco Universal Power
over Ethernet (Cisco UPOE®), Power over Ethernet Plus (PoE+), and
Power over Ethernet (PoE). You can find other options here.

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Q What are Cisco’s options for site survey for Catalyst 9100
Warranty and support
deployment?

Q What is the warranty coverage plan on the Cisco Catalyst 9100
A Customers can choose 3rd party planning and site survey tools for Access Points?
initial deployments. In addition, Cisco Catalyst 9100 Access Points
are capable of running Cisco Mobility Express (ME) which a virtual A The Cisco Catalyst 9100 Access Point comes with a limited lifetime
wireless controller function embedded on an Access Point. ME also warranty, similar to the Cisco Aironet Access Points. The warranty
supports internal DHCP server which enables Access Point to be used includes 10-day advance hardware replacement and ensures that
for Site Survey. Mobility Express support is not available at FCS of software media are defect-free for 90 days. For more details, visit
Catalyst 9115 and Catalyst 9117. https://www.cisco.com/go/warranty.ataly

Q Will the mounting brackets of 1850 series work with Catalyst 9115 Orderingst
and 9117 Access Points?
A Yes. The new Access Points are designed to support mounting Q Where can I find the complete SKU list, shipping list or datasheets

for the Cisco Catalyst 9100 Access Points? ies Wireless C
bracket, AIR-AP-BRACKET-1/ AIR-AP-BRACKET-2, used for 1850
series. Thus reducing installation costs. A A complete list of PIDs is available in the platform-specific data
sheets: (Cisco Catalyst 9115 Access Points: Datasheet & Cisco
Q Will the Cisco Catalyst 9100 Access Points support the new Cisco Catalyst 9117 Access Points: Datasheet)
Catalyst 9800 Series Wireless Controllers? Services
A
Yes. The new Cisco Catalyst 9800 Wireless Controllers will be fully
Q Are any services available to support the Cisco Catalyst Q 9100
supported by both the Cisco Catalyst 9100 and existing 802.11ac
Access Points?
Access Points. With the Cisco Catalyst 9800 Series, your infrastructure
Wi-Fi network will be ready to be upgraded to Wi-Fi 6. A Yes. With Cisco Services, you can achieve infrastructure excellence
Q faster with less risk. From initial WLAN readiness assessment to
Do Cisco Catalyst 9100 Access Points support Bluetooth?
implementation, full solution support and in-depth training,
A 
All models have native hardware support for Bluetooth 5. our services for the Cisco Catalyst 9100 Access Points provide expert
Q guidance to help you successfully plan, deploy, manage,
and support your new Access Points. With unmatched networking
Q What type of PoE will be needed to power the Cisco Catalyst 9100
Access Points? expertise, best practices, and innovative tools, Cisco
Services can help you reduce overall upgrade, refresh, and migration
A This depends primarily on the mode of operation. For the current costs as you introduce new hardware, software, and protocols into
Cisco Catalyst 9100 SKUs, we recommend 802.3at (PoE+) for full the network. With a comprehensive lifecycle of services, Cisco experts
functionality. Some of these APs may have restricted functionality will help you minimize disruption and improve operational efficiency to
when 802.3af (PoE) is provided. extract maximum value from your Cisco DNA ready infrastructure.
Learn more.

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Licensing and migration

Q
What are the options for migrating existing Cisco DNA licenses
Q What are the licensing options for Cisco Catalyst 9100 Access

when purchasing the Cisco Catalyst Access Points?
Points?
A Cisco DNA term-based licenses (AIR-Cisco DNA Licenses) are A Customers who have purchased Cisco DNA Licenses may receive
mandatory at the purchase of Catalyst 9100 Access Points. $ credits for the unused term. These credits can be used to
These Access Points support three types of Cisco DNA Licenses: purchase Cisco DNA License with Catalyst 9100 Access Points. Also,
Cisco DNA Essentials, Cisco DNA Advantage and Cisco DNA Premier. the credits may be applicable while moving to the same license tier or
Cisco DNA subscription licenses have to be purchased for a 3-, 5-, above.ly
or 7-year subscription term. However, upon expiry of Cisco DNA Q Are Cisco DNA Licenses Enterprise Agreement (EA) eligible?s Wirel

license, Cisco DNA features will expire, whereas network essentials
and network advantage features will remain. A Yes. Cisco DNA licenses are currently eligible for Enterprise
Agreements.
Q Can Cisco Catalyst 9100 Access Points connect to AireOS and
Catalyst 9800 Controller? If so, what are the licensing options?
A Cisco Catalyst 9100 Access Points can connect to both AireOS
3504/5520/8540 controllers and Catalyst 9800 Controllers. These
Access Points require mandatory Cisco DNA License to connect to
either AireOS controllers or Catalyst controllers.

Q Are Cisco Catalyst 9100 Access Points’ licenses portable?

A
Cisco DNA Licenses of Catalyst 9100 Access Points are portable
across Cisco Catalyst 9100 product family, AireOS controllers and
Catalyst wireless controllers.

Q What are the options for migrating existing Cisco DNA li- censes
when purchasing the Cisco Catalyst Access Points?

A 
Use Perpetual to Cisco DNA subscription migration credits:

For Perpetual Licenses and Access Point licenses tied to legacy

wireless LAN controllers – Customers can purchase Cisco DNA
Advantage/Cisco DNA Premier along with Cisco Catalyst 9100 Access
Point and receive credits based on existing perpetual licenses.

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