Wireless controllers that take control of your network.
The Cisco Catalyst 9800 Series and Campus Gateways deliver rock-solid security, always-on availability, and on-prem or cloud deployment, for any size network. We size, source, and deploy the right one.
On-premises, cloud, and campus-gateway control
A wireless controller manages your access points: policy, RF, security, and roaming from one place. The Catalyst 9800 family runs as a hardware appliance, on a switch, in a VM, or in the public cloud, so you control your network the way that fits your sites.
Models and platforms
On-premises and cloud controllers
CW9800H2
For large campus deployments that require fast wireless connections
- Up to 6000 access points, 64,000 clients, and up to 100 Gbps throughput using 1/10/40 Gbps uplinks
- 1RU design along with 10 Gbps HA port allows for more flexible data center deployments
- Up to 36% increased performance and up to 40% less power consumption than the 9800-80
CW9800H1
For large campus deployments that require fast wireless connections
- Up to 6000 access points, 64,000 clients, and up to 100 Gbps throughput using 1/10/25 Gbps uplinks
- 1RU design along with 10 Gbps HA port allows for more flexible data center deployments
- Up to 36% increased performance and up to 40% less power consumption than the 9800-80
CW9800M
For midsize campus deployments that require fast wireless connections
- Up to 3000 access points, 32,000 clients, and up to 50 Gbps throughput using 1/10/25 Gbps uplinks
- 1RU design along with 10 Gbps HA port allows for more flexible data center deployments
- Supports 1000 more APs with up to 53% increased performance and up to 18% less power consumption than the 9800-40
CW9800L
Compact wireless controller for small to medium deployments
- Up to 500 access points, 10,000 clients, and 10 Gbps throughput
- 1 RU design with dual-unit rack shelf option
- Twice the capacity of the base Catalyst 9800-L controller and 10 dB quieter
Catalyst 9800-L
For small campus deployments, with the flexibility of copper or fiber uplinks
- Up to 250 access points, 5000 clients, and 5 Gbps throughput
- Hot patching, hitless upgrades with ISSU capabilities
- Advanced, on-demand telemetry
- Performance-license capable
Catalyst 9800-CL
For deployment in a private or public cloud
- Up to 6000 APs and 64,000 clients with multiple scaling options
- Hot patching, hitless upgrades with ISSU capabilities
- Advanced, on-demand telemetry
- Part of a strong first line of security with SD-Access
Campus Gateways (mobility)
CW9800H1-MCG
Cisco Campus Gateway for seamless roaming at scale in large campus networks.
- Scale up to 50,000 client devices and 5000 access points with a single device
- Achieve high availability stateful load balancing with clustered Campus Gateways
CW9800L-MCG
Cisco Campus Gateway for seamless roaming at scale in small to medium campus networks.
- Scale up to 50,000 client devices and 5000 access points with a single device
- Achieve high availability stateful load balancing with clustered Campus Gateways
Why upgrade to Catalyst 9800
How the Catalyst 9800 Series compares to older Cisco wireless LAN controllers.
| Feature | 2504 / 5508 / 7510 / 8510 | 3504 / 5520 / 8540 | Catalyst 9800 Series |
|---|---|---|---|
| Always on | |||
| High availability and resiliency | |||
| Hot and cold patching | — | — | |
| Seamless multisite upgrades | — | — | |
| Secure | |||
| Encrypted Traffic Analytics | — | — | |
| Software-Defined Access (SD-Access) | — | ||
| Built-in trustworthy security | — | ||
| Deploy anywhere | |||
| Cloud agnostic | — | — | |
| Multimode controller (Centralized, FlexConnect, Mesh) | |||
| Open and programmable | |||
| Streaming telemetry | — | ||
| Native YANG models | — | — | |
| Cisco Catalyst Center | — | ||
| Scale and performance | |||
| Application Visibility and Control | |||
| I/O support | Up to 10 GE | Up to 10 GE | Up to 100 GE |
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