Ping Labz (Page 5)

Catalyst Center CLI Templates for Network Teams That Hate Fragile Automation

Catalyst Center CLI templates sit between full manual work and heavy automation frameworks. Here is how to use them for repeatable, non-fragile network changes across campus and enterprise sites without building a platform you regret in six months.

13 min read Apr 7, 2026

Cisco public

Post-Quantum Crypto in Cisco Campus Networks: What Operators Need to Know

J

NIST finalized three post-quantum cryptography standards and Cisco is marketing quantum-ready Catalyst 9000s. Here is what PQC actually means for campus networks, where your real exposure is, and what to prioritize now versus watch.

12 min read Apr 7, 2026

Cisco public

Wi-Fi 7 for Cisco Shops: Upgrade Now or Wait?

J

Wi-Fi 7 is shipping and Cisco has a full 802.11be AP lineup, but the real question is whether your environment, wiring, and refresh timing justify the spend now. A practical upgrade decision guide for wireless architects.

13 min read Apr 7, 2026

Cisco public

Catalyst Center and ThousandEyes: What Problem Does This Actually Solve?

J

Catalyst Center shows your infrastructure is healthy while the user still cannot load Salesforce. ThousandEyes closes that gap. Here is what the integration actually solves, how it works, and where it fits in a Cisco shop.

14 min read Apr 7, 2026

Cisco public

Is Cisco SD-Access Worth It in 2026? A Brownfield Reality Check

J

After years of real-world SD-Access deployments, the honest answer is: it depends. A practical, checklist-driven reality check on whether Cisco SD-Access is worth the effort in brownfield campus networks in 2026.

12 min read Apr 7, 2026

Wireless public

Backing Up, Restoring, and Upgrading the Cisco C9800

J

Backup, restore, and upgrade on the Cisco C9800 look simple until they are not. A full lifecycle walkthrough with Install mode, ISSU, SMU, N+1 rolling upgrades, and the gotchas that never fit on a GUI tooltip.

9 min read Apr 6, 2026

Wireless public

Cisco C9800 Fabric Mode and SD-Access Wireless Integration

J

In an SD-Access fabric, the Cisco C9800 stops being the wireless data-plane anchor. Client traffic rides the VXLAN overlay from fabric-enabled AP to edge switch. Here is how fabric-mode wireless actually works and why you would adopt it.

8 min read Apr 6, 2026

Wireless public

C9800 FlexConnect vs. Local Mode: How to Choose

J

Local mode and FlexConnect are the two fundamental ways a C9800 hands off client traffic, and the wrong choice shapes WAN use, failure behavior, VLANs, ACLs, and AAA. A per-site decision framework for wireless designers.

8 min read Apr 6, 2026

Wireless public

C9800 RF Design: Site Survey, Channel Planning, and Power Tuning

J

RF punishes shortcuts. Bad AP count, wrong channel plan, or a misjudged power envelope will haunt a wireless design for years. A practical Cisco C9800 RF design guide covering site survey, channel planning, and 2.4, 5, and 6 GHz power tuning.

9 min read Apr 6, 2026

Wireless public

Cisco C9800 Design Best Practices: The Definitive Guide

J

A working Cisco Catalyst 9800 deployment and a good one are very different things. This guide pulls together the design decisions that matter most, platform, HA, tags, RF, security, and upgrades, with the CLI to validate each.

11 min read Apr 6, 2026

Wireless public

C9800 NETCONF and RESTCONF: Automation and Programmability

J

The Cisco Catalyst 9800 supports model-driven programmability through NETCONF and RESTCONF. A practical guide to automating WLC configuration and retrieving operational data with YANG models on real wireless deployments.

8 min read Apr 6, 2026

Wireless public

C9800 Model-Driven Telemetry: Streaming Wireless Data with YANG and gRPC

J

Traditional polling consumes bandwidth and lags reality. Model-Driven Telemetry streams real-time wireless data from the C9800 using YANG and gRPC. A guide to MDT on the Catalyst 9800 for dashboards and operational insight.

9 min read Apr 6, 2026