Fast Roaming and Guest Login WAC505

[NetDave]

Hello,

I'm implementing a structured wiring system in my new home using 2-4 WAPs and would like to use the WAC505 access point. After much reading, I'm confused about these two points using Insight basic to manage the WAC505s.

1. Can 802.3r fast roaming be enabled on the WAC505 with Insight basic?

2. I'm planning on just using the unmanaged Netgear GS324P switch. If there was an Insight managed 24-port switch maybe I would use it. Will Insight basic allow me to setup guest logins on the WAC505 without VLANs? I don't have much use for VLANs.

Thanks.

[schumaku]

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@NetDave wrote:

1. Can 802.3r fast roaming be enabled on the WAC505 with Insight basic?

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802.1r is it ... to my knowledge: No.

The most informative post on this subject is here -> https://community.netgear.com/t5/NETGEAR-Insight-Network/Fast-Roaming-with-Insight-Premium/m-p/15076...

Check the Insight Subscription Plans FMI. In my opinion it's worth the yearly investment.

How to enable Auto RRM and Fast roaming in Insight 4.0 (ff.) 

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@NetDave wrote:

2. I'm planning on just using the unmanaged Netgear GS324P switch. If there was an Insight managed 24-port switch maybe I would use it.

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Of course you could power the WAC on a non-managed PoE switch, it's not mandatory to have an Insight cloud managed switch.

There are plenty of Insight cloud manageable switches (GC models) available: This includes the XC728XP/XC752XP switches with the two 10Gb SFP+ ports which are available for a longer time (no plan for a fast NAS?) or the Smart Managed Pro Switch GS with Cloud Management models (firmware upgrade required for Insight Cloud management). Convinced you find a switch models which does fit for your network design.

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@NetDave wrote:

Will Insight basic allow me to setup guest logins on the WAC505 without VLANs? I don't have much use for VLANs.

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The Insight management environment is designed mainly for WAC and GC, GS, XC switches - so SMB class devices with VLAN. The VLANs allow a proper isolation. You can always configure an additional SSID as a guest network into the very same [V]LAN already from Insight Basic, or enable Guest WiFi and Captive Portal again to the same [V]LAN without any further isolation - that's what many users want, as isolation does cause issues with printers, media server, ...

Happy Holidays!

Regads,
-Kurt

[NetDave]

Thanks Kurt! Your explanation was a big help. Sorry, I meant 802.11r for fast roaming. I think I'm just going to go with the unmanaged GS324P switch and APs and keep it simple. Managed L3 switches are an overkill for my home needs although it would be fun to play with.

[schumaku]

Don't worry about the typo. And if you already have some non-managed PoE switch it's perfectly sufficient to run a basic Insight system (withing the obvious limitations of course). Have some previously installed or spare switches (SMB managed to non-managed) which continue to work for us in some "edge" applications in Insight environments - being here at home, or with managed customer sites.