Some would argue that installing a controller-based wireless LAN in your home is overkill.
I’m not one of those people.
I enjoy getting my hands on older and/or discarded high-quality equipment and upcycling it. This often means that I take enterprise and service provider gear that’s a generation or two old and repurpose it for SOHO use. My needs are often less demanding, so the equipment usually meets my performance needs while providing the extra features and fit and finish of premium gear.
There’s a glut of used Cisco wireless equipment, some still supported, available dirt cheap on the secondary market right now. Since I’m not into corporate IT, I’m not sure exactly why. Maybe companies are just ditching it because it’s out of support or going out of support, maybe they’re migrating to Meraki or Ubiquity, or maybe they want the new gigabit wireless.
I haven’t really researched the “why” of it. What I do know is that the best and most seamless wireless network I’ve ever used was one I put together for my employer back in 2013. It’s a Cisco WLAN that used a 2504 Wireless LAN controller and LAP1142N lightweight access points.
After having yet another frustrating WiFi experience in my apartment, I was done. It’s bad enough that I have my desk hard-wired to my network even though it’s only 5 feet from the AP, which was a Cisco WAP131 small business AP. It cost about $100 a two years ago and gave me dual bands and dual radios with multiple SSIDs. It was exactly what I needed, or so I thought. But, for some reason, this is the place where WiFi (and Cellular) signals go to die.
i was surfing around Facebook Marketplace, looking for someone to part me, a fool, from his money, and found a AP1142N for $25. The AP1142N is the standalone version of the LAP1142N, and a good AP in it’s own right. So, I snatched it up. After a couple of days, I found myself lusting for a controller-based network, so I hopped on eBay and found an older Cisco WLAN Controller, the 4402, for $47 including shipping, and a box of 5 LAP1142Ns for $32.
The Gear
Some of the parts and pieces I already had, or were part of my existing network. If you want to do something like this yourself, here’s a list of what you’ll need with examples:
- Your router or firewall should support VLAN interfaces. You could do it without this, but you’re going to significantly limit your flexibility and functionality.
- A Gigabit PoE Switch. It should probably support (at least) VLANs. You could do it with a dumb switch and a single VLAN, but it’s going to limit your flexibility. I’m using a Cisco Catalyst C3560G 48 Port PoE switch (WS-C3560G-48PS-S). It’s out of support as of January 2018, but it’s an Ethernet switch. It may need bug and security fixes, but it’s fine for my home network. (And I don’t have a Cisco support contract, so I’m not really entitled to any updates, anyway.) I found a guy on Facebook Marketplace selling this for $35 and met him in a parking lot.
This wasn’t the first time I bought an Ethernet switch in a parking lot. - A Cisco wireless LAN controller. I’m using a Cisco WLC4402 (AIR-WLC4402-12-K9). This is no longer supported by Cisco as of June 30th, 2016, but it works fine for this project. You could also get a newer model, a 5508 that’s supported through July 2023 for instance, for only a few more dollars. Be aware that these are licensed by the number of access points. My 4402 will support 12, as will the entry 5508. This should be plenty for just about any residential application. If you need more than 12 access points in your home…well, these are problems I’d like to have.
- Some Cisco lightweight access points. I began with the Cisco LAP 1142N (AIR-LAP1142N-A-K9) because I know them and they’re dirt cheap. They’re also out of support as of September 2018. I got a lot of 5 on eBay for $32.85 including shipping and the mounting brackets. Make sure you get the brackets if you have any intention of mounting these to the ceiling or wall, otherwise, I don’t see a good way to do it. I’m already planning to upgrade to the CAP3502i because I want CleanAir. The CAP3502i is still supported by Cisco through March 2021 but is almost as inexpensive.
- Any transceivers that your WLC and switch may require. The WLC4400-series has SPF slots for both data ports. You can use whatever media you want (1000BaseT or 1000BaseSX/LX). I’m using 1000BaseT. I paid $20 for a pair of these. Had I thought it through ahead of time, I probably could have bought a newer WLC that didn’t require them and been cost-neutral. Oh, well. Impulsivity has its price.
- Patch cables, riser cable, patch panels, etc. I did it the fancy way. I needed a 12-port Cat5e patch panel, twelve Cat5e patch cables of various lengths, four Cat5e RJ-45 modular jacks, four modular wall boxes, about 250′ of Cat5e riser cable, a couple of packages of wire staples and some wire ties. You may also need drywall anchors to mount the access points. I had bulk stranded Cat5e lying around, so I made my patch cables. That required the cable plus two dozen Cat5e RJ-45 plugs and I’m a big fan of anti-snag boots. I haven’t yet, but I’m probably going to installa 6U rackmount cabinet for the WLC and switch. Right now, it’s just on my workbench.
You’ll need tools such as a cable tester, 110 tool, RJ45 crimp tool, electric drill, screwdriver, wire cutters, utility knife, level and hammer. I’m assuming that if you’re contemplating this project, you know all about the cabling and physical installation of the equipment. You can be as fancy or basic as you want, of course. You could be totally low-rent about it and use pre-made 50′ or 100′ patch cables strung down your hallway and draped across the couch and dining table, I guess.
It’s your living space and that’s on you. I ain’t here to tell you how to live, you savage.
To configure the Switch and WLC, you’ll need some sort of terminal with a working serial port. I had a Raspberry Pi sitting on my workbench, so I plugged a USB-to-Serial adapter into it, but I could have easily used a laptop. I’m a Linux/Unix guy, so it was the easiest way to go about it. I used screen as a terminal emulation package. You can do the same on OSX, and if you’re on Windows, you can use the PuTTY package. If you’re using a Cisco Ethernet switch, it will require the standard Cisco RJ45 to DB-9 adapter and a modular console cable. The WLC 4400 requires a DB-9 to DB-9 null modem cable.
Once you’ve gathered up all of the bits, you can begin your installation.