Information About Client Roaming
The Cisco UWN solution supports seamless client roaming across lightweight access points managed by the same controller, between controllers in the same mobility group on the same subnet, and across controllers in the same mobility group on different subnets. Also, in controller software release 4.1 or later releases, client roaming with multicast packets is supported.
You can adjust the default RF settings (RSSI, hysteresis, scan threshold, and transition time) to fine-tune the operation of client roaming using the controller GUI or CLI.
Inter-Controller Roaming
Multiple-controller deployments support client roaming across access points managed by controllers in the same mobility group and on the same subnet. This roaming is also transparent to the client because the session is sustained and a tunnel between controllers allows the client to continue using the same DHCP- or client-assigned IP address as long as the session remains active. The tunnel is torn down, and the client must reauthenticate when the client sends a DHCP Discover with a 0.0.0.0 client IP address or a 169.254.*.* client auto-IP address or when the operator-set session timeout is exceeded.
Intra-Controller Roaming
Each controller supports same-controller client roaming across access points managed by the same controller. This roaming is transparent to the client as the session is sustained, and the client continues using the same DHCP-assigned or client-assigned IP address. The controller provides DHCP functionality with a relay function. Same-controller roaming is supported in single-controller deployments and in multiple-controller deployments.
Inter-Subnet Roaming
Multiple-controller deployments support client roaming across access points managed by controllers in the same mobility group on different subnets. This roaming is transparent to the client because the session is sustained and a tunnel between the controllers allows the client to continue using the same DHCP-assigned or client-assigned IP address as long as the session remains active. The tunnel is torn down, and the client must reauthenticate when the client sends a DHCP Discover with a 0.0.0.0 client IP address or a 169.254.*.* client auto-IP address or when the operator-set user timeout is exceeded.
Voice-over-IP Telephone Roaming
802.11 voice-over-IP (VoIP) telephones actively seek out associations with the strongest RF signal to ensure the best quality of service (QoS) and the maximum throughput. The minimum VoIP telephone requirement of 20-millisecond or shorter latency time for the roaming handover is easily met by the Cisco Wireless solution, which has an average handover latency of 5 or fewer milliseconds when open authentication is used. This short latency period is controlled by controllers rather than allowing independent access points to negotiate roaming handovers.
The Cisco Wireless solution supports 802.11 VoIP telephone roaming across lightweight access points managed by controllers on different subnets, as long as the controllers are in the same mobility group. This roaming is transparent to the VoIP telephone because the session is sustained and a tunnel between controllers allows the VoIP telephone to continue using the same DHCP-assigned IP address as long as the session remains active. The tunnel is torn down, and the VoIP client must reauthenticate when the VoIP telephone sends a DHCP Discover with a 0.0.0.0 VoIP telephone IP address or a 169.254.*.* VoIP telephone auto-IP address or when the operator-set user timeout is exceeded.
CCX Layer 2 Client Roaming
The controller supports five CCX Layer 2 client roaming enhancements:
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Access point assisted roaming—This feature helps clients save scanning time. When a CCXv2 client associates to an access point, it sends an information packet to the new access point listing the characteristics of its previous access point. Roaming time decreases when the client recognizes and uses an access point list built by compiling all previous access points to which each client was associated and sent (unicast) to the client immediately after association. The access point list contains the channels, BSSIDs of neighbor access points that support the client’s current SSID(s), and time elapsed since disassociation.
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Enhanced neighbor list—This feature focuses on improving a CCXv4 client’s roam experience and network edge performance, especially when servicing voice applications. The access point provides its associated client information about its neighbors using a neighbor-list update unicast message.
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Enhanced neighbor list request (E2E)—The End-2-End specification is a Cisco and Intel joint program that defines new protocols and interfaces to improve the overall voice and roaming experience. It applies only to Intel clients in a CCX environment. Specifically, it enables Intel clients to request a neighbor list at will. When this occurs, the access point forwards the request to the controller. The controller receives the request and replies with the current CCX roaming sublist of neighbors for the access point to which the client is associated.
Note
To see whether a particular client supports E2E, choose Wireless > Clients on the controller GUI, click the Detail link for the desired client, and look at the E2E Version text box in the Client Properties area.
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Roam reason report—This feature enables CCXv4 clients to report the reason why they roamed to a new access point. It also allows network administrators to build and monitor a roam history.
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Directed roam request—This feature enables the controller to send directed roam requests to the client in situations when the controller can better service the client on an access point different from the one to which it is associated. In this case, the controller sends the client a list of the best access points that it can join. The client can either honor or ignore the directed roam request. Non-CCX clients and clients running CCXv3 or below must not take any action. No configuration is required for this feature.
This section contains the following subsections: