Local Mode V FlexConnect

control · January 2013

I'm not to familiar with Wireless in general and just learning as I go along whilst using the setup we have at work.

Now I know LAPs can be in either of the above modes, but when exactly would you use one over the other? I have read that in Local Mode, the traffic goes through the WLC, but in FC mode, it is locally switched?

What exactly is meant here (locally switched)? And when in Local Mode, exactly what traffic goes through the WLC? COuld you provide an example to clear the 2 modes up?

Thank You

swabbies · August 2013

Control.
Example.
WLC is located in a datacenter in New York.
Office 1 is located in Boston (using local mode)
Office 2 is located in Seattle (using flex connect)

Local Mode means that a tunnel is created from Wireless AP to the WLC. All traffic goes to the WLC. Authentication and user traffic. If office 1(Boston) is configured with local mode, the wireless clients will actually have all of their traffic tunneled to New York and will use an IP from the WLC to get to other locations on the network. Internet browsing for the users will be from New York. If Boston wants to get a resource from Seattle the client will tunnel to New York and then go over company network to Seattle and back.

In FlexConnect. Only authentication traffic is sent to WLC. The AP will hand out local VLANS from the seattle office. It will use DHCP from Seattle office. So once authentication takes place all traffic takes place locally. Internet browsing would go out Seattle connection. traffic from seattle user to new york resource would follow same path as a wired user.

So it depends on deployment scenario. Some companies want to reduce internet presence in locations and tunnel all traffic to WLC. Other locations it makes more sense to switch the traffic at the office via Flex connect.

Hopefully that made sense.

kennethgoodridge · September 2014

thanks a million for this. appreciated.

Local Mode V FlexConnect

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