User's Manual

2 Introduction to the Access Point

The Cisco Aironet 1530 Series Outdoor Mesh Access Point (hereafter called the access point or AP) is a

rugged outdoor access point designed for service in mesh networks. The 1530 series leverages

802.11n technology with integrated radio and internal/external antennas.

The 1530 contains a 2.4-GHz and 5-GHz radio with an option to configure in centralized, Flexconnect, or

mesh mode. The 2.4-GHz radios are used primarily for local access, and the 5-GHz radios can be

configured for both local access and/or wireless backhaul in the Mesh mode.

The access point is a standalone unit that can be wall, pole or tower mounted. The access point can also

operate as a relay node for other access points not directly connected to a wired network. Intelligent wireless

routing is provided by the Adaptive Wireless Path Protocol (AWPP). This enables each access point to

identify its neighbors and intelligently choose the optimal path to the wired network by calculating the cost

of each path in terms of signal strength and the number of hops required to get to a controller. The access point

is configured, monitored, and operated through a Cisco wireless LAN controller (WLC), referred to as a

controller in this document. The WLC is described in the appropriate Cisco Wireless LAN Controller

Configuration Guide. The Cisco Mesh Networking Solution Deployment Guide describes how to plan and

initially configure the Cisco mesh network, which supports wireless

point-to-point

and

point-to-multipoint

mesh deployments. The controllers use a browser-based management system, a command-line interface

(CLI), or the Cisco Prime Infrastructure (CIP) network management system to manage the controller and the

associated access points.