Objective
The objective of this article is to create a guest network using the Web User Interface (UI) inside a
Cisco Business Wireless (CBW) mesh network. If you would like to learn about the basics of Mesh
Networking, check out Cisco
Business: Welcome to Wireless Mesh Networking.
To create a guest network using a mobile device instead of the Web UI, click the toggle at the top of the
article.
Applicable Devices | Firmware Version
Introduction
Cisco Business Wireless (CBW) Access Points (APs) are 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac (Wave 2) based, with internal
antennas. These APs support the latest 802.11ac Wave 2 standard for higher performance, greater access,
and higher-density networks. They deliver industry-leading performance with highly secure and reliable
wireless connections, for a robust, mobile end-user experience.
The CBW access points can be used as traditional standalone devices or as part of a mesh network.
Are you looking to create guest access on your CBW network using the Web UI of the Primary Access Point
(AP)? If you are, you have come to the right place. Keep reading!
Configuration Steps
Beginner Help
This toggled section highlights tips for beginners.
Logging In
Log into the Web User Interface (UI) of the Primary AP. To do this, open a web browser and enter
https://ciscobusiness.cisco. You may receive a warning before proceeding. Enter your
credentials.You can also access the Primary AP by entering https://[ipaddress] (of the Primary AP)
into a web
browser.
Tool Tips
If you have questions about a field in the user interface, check for a tool tip that looks like the
following:
Trouble locating the Expand Main Menu icon?
Navigate to the menu on the left-hand side of the screen, if you don’t see the menu button, click
this icon to open the side-bar menu.
Cisco Business App
These devices have companion apps that share some management features with the web user interface.
Not all features in the Web user interface will be available in the App.
Frequently Asked Questions
If you still have unanswered questions, you can check our frequently asked questions document. FAQ
Step 1
Power up the Access Point if it isn’t already on. Check the status of the indicator lights. When the LED
light is blinking green, proceed to the next step.
Booting up the access point will take about 8–10 minutes. The LED will blink green in multiple
patterns, alternating rapidly through green, red, and amber before turning green again. There may be
small variations in the LED color intensity and hue.
Step 2
Log into the Web UI of the Primary AP. Open a web browser and enter www.https://ciscobusiness.cisco. You may receive a warning
before proceeding. Enter your credentials.
You can also access it by entering the IP address of the Primary AP into a web browser or you can use the
Cisco Business Wireless app for minor configuration changes.
If you are unfamiliar with the terms used, check out Cisco Business: Glossary of New Terms.
Step 3
A Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN) can be created by navigating to Wireless Settings >
WLANs. Then select Add new WLAN/RLAN.
Step 4
Under the General tab, enter the following information:
- WLAN ID – Select a number for the WLAN
- Type – Select WLAN
- Profile Name – When you enter a name, the SSID will auto-populate with the same name. The
name must be unique and should not exceed 31 characters.
The following fields were left as default in this example, but explanations are listed in case you would
like to configure them differently.
- SSID – The profile name also acts as the SSID. You can change this if you would like. The
name must be unique and should not exceed 31 characters.
- Enable – This should be left enabled for the WLAN to work.
- Radio Policy – Typically you would want to leave this as All so that
2.4GHz and 5GHz clients can access the network.
- Broadcast SSID – Usually you would want the SSID to be discovered so you would want to
leave this as Enabled.
- Local Profiling – You would only want to enable this option to view the Operating System
that is running on the Client or to see the User name.
Click Apply.
Step 5
You will be taken to the WLAN Security tab. In this example, the following options were
selected.
- Guest Network – Enable
- Captive Network Assistant – If you use Mac or IOS, you will probably want to enable this.
This feature detects the presence of a captive portal by sending a web request on connecting to a
wireless network. This request is directed to a Uniform Resource Locator (URL) for iPhone models and
if a response is received, then the Internet access is assumed available and no further interaction
is required. If no response is received, then the Internet access is assumed to be blocked by the
captive portal and Apple’s Captive Network Assistant (CNA) auto-launches the pseudo-browser to
request portal login in a controlled window. The CNA may break when redirecting to an Identity
Services Engine (ISE) captive portal. The primary AP prevents this pseudo-browser from popping up.
- Captive Portal – This field is visible only when the Guest Network option is enabled. This
is used to specify the type of web portal that can be used for authentication purposes. Select
Internal Splash Page to use the default Cisco web-portal-based authentication. Choose
External Splash Page if you will have captive portal authentication, using a web server
outside your network. Also, specify the URL of the server in the Site URL field.
In this example, the Guest WLAN with an enabled Social login access type will be created. Once the user
connects to this guest WLAN, they will be redirected to Cisco default login page where they can find the
login buttons for Google and Facebook. The user can log in using their Google or Facebook account to
obtain Internet access.
Step 6
On this same tab, select an Access Type from the drop-down menu. In this example, Social
Login was selected. This is the option that allows guests to use their Google or Facebook
credentials to authenticate and get access to the network.
Other options for Access Type include:
- Local User Account – The default option. Choose this option to authenticate guests using
the username and password which you can specify for guest users of this WLAN, under Wireless
Settings > WLAN Users. This is an example of the default Internal Splash Page.
You can customize this by navigating to Wireless Settings > Guest WLANs. From here
you can enter a Page Headline and Page Message. Click Apply. Click
Preview.
- Web Consent – Allows guests access to the WLAN upon acceptance of displayed terms and
conditions. Guest users can access the WLAN without entering a username and password.
- Email Address – Guest users will need to enter their email address to access the network.
- RADIUS – Use this with an external authentication server.
- WPA2 Personal – Wi-Fi Protected Access 2 with Pre-shared Key (PSK)
Click Apply.
Step 7
Be sure to save your configurations by clicking the Save icon on the top right panel of
the Web UI screen.
Conclusion
That’s it! You have now created a guest network that is available on your CBW network. Your guests will
appreciate the convenience.
Objective
The objective of this article is to create a guest network via app in a Cisco Business Wireless (CBW)
Mesh Network. If you would like to learn the basics of mesh networking, check out Cisco
Business: Welcome to Wireless Mesh Networking.
To create a guest network via Web User Interface (UI), click the toggle at the top of the page.
Applicable Devices | Software Version
Introduction
Cisco Business Wireless access points are 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac (Wave 2) based, with internal antennas. These
access points support the latest 802.11ac Wave 2 standard for higher performance, greater access, and
higher-density networks. They deliver industry-leading performance with highly secure and reliable
wireless connections, for a robust, mobile end-user experience.
The Cisco Business Wireless access points can be used as traditional standalone devices or as part of a
mesh network.
Are you looking to add a guest network on your CBW network using the Cisco Business Wireless App? Then you
are in luck. Let’s do this!
Configuration Steps
Beginner Help
This toggled section highlights tips for beginners.
Logging In
Log into the Web User Interface (UI) of the Primary AP. To do this, open a web browser and enter
https://ciscobusiness.cisco. You may receive a warning before proceeding. Enter your
credentials.You can also access the Primary AP by entering https:// (of the Primary AP)
into a web
browser.
Tool Tips
If you have questions about a field in the user interface, check for a tool tip that looks like the
following:
Trouble locating the Expand Main Menu icon?
Navigate to the menu on the left-hand side of the screen, if you don’t see the menu button, click
this icon to open the side-bar menu.
Cisco Business App
These devices have companion apps that share some management features with the web user interface.
Not all features in the Web user interface will be available in the App.
Frequently Asked Questions
If you still have unanswered questions, you can check our frequently asked questions document. FAQ
Step 1
Power up the Access Point. Check the status of the indicator lights. When the LED light is blinking
green, proceed to the next step.
The access point will take about 8–10 minutes to boot. The LED will blink green in multiple patterns,
alternating rapidly through green, red, and amber before turning green again. There may be small
variations in the LED color intensity and hue.
Step 2
Download the Cisco Business Wireless application from Itunes or Google Play.
Step 3
Connect to your Cisco Business wireless network on your mobile device. Log into the application. Click on
the WLAN icon on the top of the page.
Step 4
The Add New WLAN screen opens. You will see any existing WLANs. Select Add New
WLAN.
Step 5
Enter a Profile Name and SSID. Fill in the rest of the fields or leave
at the default settings. Click Next.
Step 6
Turn on Guest Network. In this example, Captive Network Assistant is also toggled on,
but this is optional. You have options for Access Type. In this case, Social
Login is selected.
Step 7
This screen gives you the options for Traffic Shaping (Optional). In this example, no traffic
shaping has been configured. Click Submit.
Step 8
You will see a confirmation pop-up. Click Ok.
Step 9
Save your configuration by clicking the More tab and then select Save
Configuration from the drop-down menu.
Conclusion
There you go, it’s that simple! Now guests can enjoy the benefits of your Cisco Business wireless network
too.