The state of business Wi-Fi right now

The business landscape isn’t just changing fast—it’s transforming at the speed of AI. Networking teams now face challenges their Wi-Fi isn’t built for. AI and IoT operations need continuous, often instant access to data. Device proliferation is clogging up networks. And unmanaged devices are increasing risk exposure.

Without the right approach, network bottlenecks become business bottlenecks. That means more support tickets, more security incidents, and less time spent focusing on business growth.

The solution is simple: enhanced performance, resilience, and security with Wi-Fi 7.

Why businesses need faster, more secure Wi-Fi

Wi-Fi 7 uses advancements like wider channels and multi-link operation (MLO) to dramatically transform network performance. If your business depends on high-speed connectivity (looking at you retail, manufacturing, and financial services), the outcomes are tangible: 

• Drastically lower latency
• Much higher bandwidth for data-intensive apps
• Faster data transfer speeds
• Enhanced network reliability

By implementing Wi-Fi 7 solutions, you’ll be able to support everything from 4K and 8K video streaming to data-hungry AI applications with ease.

Wi-Fi 7 also provides security enhancements by incorporating Wi-Fi Protected Access 3 (WPA3). As your network scales and your company grows, WPA3 enables more advanced encryption and authentication methods, ensuring more reliable connectivity for employees and customers.

Why companies of all sizes are moving to Wi-Fi 7

What do the most successful companies across industries consistently deliver? Experiences. And every experience in today’s digital-first world depends on the power of the network. Wi-Fi 7 unlocks new, bespoke experiences at scale, securely—no matter the retail location, event venue, or crowd size.

When you move to Wi-Fi 7, you can expect massive upgrades, like:

• Ultra-high performance: 4x data transfer rates compared to Wi-Fi 6 and 6E, and 2x wider channels up to 320 MHz.
• Built-in security: WPA3 certification with mandatory Protected Management Frames to protect against deauthentication attacks.
• Simplified IT operations: Flexible management across cloud, on-premises, or hybrid environments.
• AI-driven assurance: Predicts and resolves issues proactively, ensuring consistent, high-quality connectivity.

Now, let’s take a look at Cisco Wi-Fi 7 in action.

How a global retailer delivers bespoke experiences with Wi-Fi 7

Samsøe Samsøe is a retailer that puts innovative customer experiences first. With 69 locations in 19 countries, creating those differentiated experiences in every store is no easy feat.

Then they moved to a cloud-first, wireless-first model with Cisco. By deploying Wi-Fi 7 access points in stores, Samsøe Samsøe made in-store experiences unique and frictionless for customers.

Picture this:

• Joining the loyalty program with one tap
• Syncing instantly with POS and automatically connecting to Wi-Fi in every store
• Using Wi-Fi 7 infrastructure to gain actionable insights into customer behavior
• Experiencing innovations like smart dressing rooms that simplify try-before-you-buy

Advanced Wi-Fi 7 features like high throughput, location services, and OpenRoaming data make it all possible. Best of all, these outcomes are repeatable. With the Meraki dashboard, Samsøe Samsøe can use network templates to spin up new locations with 300% fewer IT resources.

But retail isn’t the only industry where Wi-Fi 7 use cases are changing the game.

Event experiences in the AI era: Live Nation and BottleRock

Live Nation Entertainment produces 40,000 shows and 100 festivals every year, and BottleRock Napa Valley continues to be a marquee event.

This year, Live Nation’s production team had clear goals:

• Provide secure, high-performance connectivity for thousands of simultaneous users in a high-density environment
• Support massive real-time data transfer volumes without hiccups
• Ensure zero downtime during peak moments
• Deliver comprehensive network and operational visibility to manage crowd flow, security, and vendor transactions

The math was daunting: 55,000 unique Wi-Fi users, more than 20,000 concurrent connections, 44 terabytes of data, and three days of unforgettable festival experiences.

Cisco and partner Clair Global delivered advanced wireless solutions to meet these goals. The new Cisco Wireless 9179F large public venue access point and Catalyst 9300 switches provided robust, low-latency, high-bandwidth connectivity. Thanks to OpenRoaming, festivalgoers enjoyed password-free, automatic, and secure Wi-Fi access for more convenient event experiences.

Live Nation also leveraged AI area occupancy and presence analytics directly on Cisco MV cameras to get real-time telemetry on crowd flow and security. Plus, Splunk dashboards aggregated data from network sensors, cameras, and applications to deliver comprehensive operational insights and help optimize future events.

Now, let’s move to our epic team-up with the USGA at the U.S. Open.

U.S. Open Golf: Connectivity from the tee to the clubhouse

How’s this for a challenge: powering secure network access for more than 225,000 attendees across four days, 900 screen displays, and 191 acres of ground at Oakmont Country Club.

The USGA deployed CW9179F Access Points—designed specifically for large-scale environments like the men’s U.S. Open—to deliver faster network speeds, lower latency, and reliable, high-density connectivity. Campus Gateways were also deployed, a cloud-based wireless solution purpose-built for seamless roaming at scale, so fan devices stay connected as they traverse the course.

The results speak for themselves:

• 82 terabytes of data transferred over the USGA network (including 13 TB of fan data)
• 40,195 unique devices supported
• 4x faster upload and download speeds in high-density areas of the course

The ecosystem at the USGA also integrated Splunk observability to deliver real-time network visibility and insights, Cisco Spaces to understand crowd movement and hotspots, and Webex to make staff collaboration a breeze.

How Cisco Wi-Fi 7 enhances business connectivity

Cisco Wi-Fi 7 access points are designed to support growing businesses of all sizes. Our APs go beyond the standard with built-in Ultra-Reliable Wireless Backhaul (URWB) and Ultra-Wideband (UWB) technologies. These innovations deliver low-latency connectivity to support advanced applications and seamless mobility for users across diverse environments. And now, our Wi-Fi 7 access points are even simpler to purchase and deploy with unified licensing and a single support model.

Security is fused into the network with WPA3 and Cisco ISE, enabling dynamic segmentation and adaptive policy management. This empowers IT to protect every Wi-Fi 7 connection to devices, users, apps, and more.

To keep pace with AI advancements, we’ve infused AI-powered assurance across our entire Wi-Fi 7 portfolio:

• Automated Root Cause Analysis (RCA): Quickly identifies and expedites issue resolution to reduce troubleshooting time.
• Client Analytics: Provides real-time device identification and profiling to manage and troubleshoot unmanaged devices.
• AI-Enhanced Radio Resource Management (AI-RRM): Uses machine learning to optimize wireless configurations proactively to improve connection quality.
• Seamless integration with ThousandEyes: Enables predictive network optimization to ensure more efficient traffic flow.
• Unified AI-powered platform: Supports continuous performance optimization to drastically reduce manual errors and ensure every user experience is flawless.

Why now is the time to upgrade

As the digital landscape changes at the pace of AI innovation, your business needs to keep up. More devices, higher data consumption, AI applications, and more demanding customer expectations require it.

With Cisco Wi-Fi 7 solutions you’ll be able to:

• Fuel employee innovation and collaboration with reliable, high-speed wireless
• Deliver bespoke experiences in any setting, from boutique retail locations to epic events
• Power new levels of operational efficiency and IT agility, all while reducing costs
• Lay a foundation for the future-proofed workplace, with a more secure, resilient network that scales at the speed of your growth

So, are you ready to see what Cisco Wi-Fi 7 solutions can do? Check out our latest offers now.

Wireless networks are the lifeblood of the modern workplace. They enable new levels of productivity and business growth, while offering phenomenal user experiences and provide a platform for innovation. But let’s be real—you don’t want to broadcast RF into the void and hope only the right people are listening. At Cisco, we know that wireless security isn’t just about slapping WPA3 on your SSIDs and calling it a day; it demands building a multilayered defense that adapts faster than threat actors can say “evil twin.”

Why the airwaves are a battlefield

Wi-Fi’s broadcast nature is both its superpower and its Achilles’ heel. While your users enjoy seamless roaming, attackers are out there with Python scripts, probing for misconfigurations and setting up rogue APs. Cisco’s two-decades-plus leadership in wireless networking means we’re constantly engineering solutions for high-density, high-stakes scenarios—think healthcare teams serving patients, classrooms streaming lectures, and manufacturing with massive IoT swarms.

The Cisco approach to defeating wireless threat vectors

Here’s how the modern wireless warrior outsmarts the enemy:

Zero-trust onboarding: Because MAC filters are so 2003

Basic MAC filtering isn’t cutting it anymore. It’s far too easy to spoof. Modern enterprise security demands a more holistic approach. It starts with using 802.1X authentication and TLS-based EAP methods that provide strong mutual authentication, where both client and network prove their identity with X.509 certificates.

For example, Cisco wireless LAN controllers paired with Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE) create an 802.1X authentication pipeline with dynamic VLAN assignment, downloadable access control lists (dACLs), segmentation with security group tags (SGTs), and policy enforcement that shuts down attackers. No cert? No network. It’s that simple.

Encryption that actually matters: WPA3 and beyond

Our Wi-Fi 7 access points ship with the latest WPA3 security. Enhancements to WPA3 Personal, Enhanced Open, and WPA3-Enterprise provide the strongest encryption with AES-256-GCMP protecting your data over the air. And for those already thinking about the threat of quantum computers, we support WPA3-Enterprise-192, which offers the strongest encryption and authentication available while post-quantum cryptography wireless standards are being developed. A mandatory feature of WPA3 is Protected Management Frames (PMF/802.11w), which protects you from deauthentication and disassociation attacks.

Adaptive wireless intrusion prevention system (WIPS): The AI-powered spectrum sentinel

Cisco Adaptive Wireless IPS Software monitors every frame flying through your airspace. Fuzzed beacons? Detected. Evil twins? Quarantined. DDoS floods? Mitigated. Using network traffic analysis, network device and topology information, signature-based techniques, and anomaly detection, it learns your RF environment and automatically distinguishes between a well-behaved client and a sophisticated adversary. Add rogue and honey pot detection through managed SSID rules and start sending bad actors packing.

Mastering the patch cadence: Firmware updates and certificate hygiene

Firmware updates aren’t suggestions—they’re your first line of defense against threats. Cisco ships continuous firmware drops for its access points and controllers that squash vulnerabilities and boost stability. Stale firmware is an invitation for attackers. And those X.509 certificates powering your EAP-TLS authentication? They expire. Automate renewal workflows and leverage Cisco features to simplify patching. Certificate lifecycle management isn’t glamorous, but neither is explaining to the business why email went dark.

Real-time detection, assurance, and automated wireless operations

Cisco automatically baselines normal behavior, flags anomalies, and auto-triggers responses before your SOC even gets the alert. Detect rogue DHCP servers, identify suspicious client roaming patterns, and catch misconfigured SSIDs before they become incident reports. And use Cisco CleanAir on access points for event-driven radio resource management to automatically detect and remediate high levels of interference that could be a wireless jamming attack.

But we all know the network is not the end goal for attackers. They want to compromise clients and applications. Cisco brings native integrations with Apple, Intel, Samsung, and Zebra to deliver real-time granular insights into client behavior. Add to this Cisco ThousandEyes integrations and Cisco Application Visibility and Control (AVC), and you’ll have greater visibility so you can better protect every client and application on your network.

You get the kind of visibility that turns reactive firefighting into proactive threat hunting, because the best security incidents are the ones that never make it past your automated defenses.

Practitioner protocols: Your security runbook

• Deploy 802.1X + EAP-TLS: It’s certificate-based auth or bust. Integrate with ISE for policy perfection.
• Stateful segmentation: Dynamically group and isolate clients using Campus Fabric and SGTs—smart segmentation, zero hassle.
• Mandate WPA3-Enterprise: No excuses. Use transition mode, if necessary, but set the sunset date now.
• Weaponize ISE + Adaptive WIPS: Dynamic posture assessment + RF threat hunting = a beautiful security symphony.
• Patch like your network depends on it: Firmware updates and certificate lifecycle management are not optional.
• Embrace AI-driven analytics, insights, and operations: Cisco Wireless assurance including Cisco ThousandEyes = visibility superpowers.

Mission accomplished: Now lock it down

Securing enterprise wireless isn’t a checkbox—it’s an ongoing fight requiring intelligence, automation, and hardware that doesn’t fold under pressure. The Cisco Wi-Fi 7 ecosystem, battle-tested security frameworks, and Cisco ISE integrations give you the tools to build networks that are both high performance and hardened against modern threats. Craving more wireless security wisdom? Pick your format: Read more about what Wi-Fi security really means, or tune in to the Packet Pushers podcast to discover the Wi-Fi 7 secrets your competitors don’t want you to know. (Warning: both may cause sudden urges to audit your wireless security posture.)

Now, go forth and lock down those airwaves like the Wi-Fi warrior you are meant to be.

The next frontier of connectivity

Across every industry, networks are under pressure. AI applications are consuming exponentially more bandwidth than traditional workloads. Device density is surging and experiences increasingly depend on reliable, real-time wireless performance.

As organizations embrace hybrid work, intelligent buildings, and connected operations, wireless networks must now handle unprecedented bandwidth, latency, and security demands.

But AI is more than a challenge—it’s an opportunity. From safer autonomous factories to smarter hospitals and immersive digital campuses, AI-driven innovation depends on fast, trustworthy data exchanges. To realize these opportunities, organizations need networks that are intelligent, secure, and scalable.

The latest Cisco wireless innovations deliver exactly that. IDC recently named Cisco a Leader in the IDC MarketScape: Worldwide Enterprise Wireless LAN 2025 Vendor Assessment—recognition that reflects our commitment to define what enterprise-grade connectivity looks like today. I’m excited to share how our newest advancements—built on three pillars: scalable devices ready for AI, AgenticOps for operational simplicity, and security fused into the network—extend that leadership even further.

Scalable devices ready for AI

The Cisco Wi-Fi 7 portfolio delivers comprehensive coverage for every operational need through a full range of advanced access points and infrastructure solutions. It provides scalable, reliable connectivity across hospitality, education, enterprise campuses, and high-density venues such as stadiums. Built on a foundation of continuous innovation, Cisco continues to raise the bar for wireless performance and scale with flexible management options spanning cloud, on-premises, and hybrid deployments.

We’re now extending this portfolio with new, versatile options engineered for low- to medium-density environments:

• Cisco Wireless 9171 Series Access Points: Providing the flexibility, intelligence, security, and full performance of Wi-Fi 7 without the cost or complexity of high-density infrastructure; designed for low-density environments like classrooms, retail spaces, and small- to mid-sized businesses.
• Cisco Wireless 9174 Series Access Points: Delivering high-speed, reliable connectivity for modern applications that can’t tolerate downtime; designed for demanding environments like healthcare facilities, hospitality, manufacturing floors, and large office campuses. This enterprise-grade access point offers tri-band support (2.4 GHz, 5 GHz, and 6 GHz) with both integrated omnidirectional and external antenna connector models, allowing the CW9174E to adapt to unique coverage scenarios and support mission-critical wireless needs.
• Cisco CW9800-L Wireless Controller: Enabling enterprises in regulated industries like finance, healthcare, and government to modernize their wireless infrastructure while meeting stringent security certifications and compliance requirements. This robust and scalable controller platform delivers the secure, reliable wireless infrastructure that’s essential for critical business functions, seamlessly integrating with Cisco’s broader networking and security ecosystem without compromising performance.

Complementing these devices is the Cisco Campus Gateway, recently recognized with the Wireless Broadband Alliance Wi-Fi Network Technology Award 2025. This enterprise-class, cloud-native solution delivers real-time control and active-active stateful load balancing to ensure seamless roaming at scale—supporting up to 50,000 clients and 5000 access points with cloud management, without requiring network redesign.

This unified infrastructure empowers enterprises to meet evolving connectivity needs with seamless, high-performance, and secure wireless experiences built to handle AI’s unique demands.

AgenticOps for operational simplicity

Cisco is redefining wireless assurance—simplifying radio frequency (RF) and client management, accelerating troubleshooting, and delivering on the promise of AgenticOps. These innovations give IT teams greater visibility and control, allowing them to proactively detect issues, reduce mean time to resolution, (MTTR) and keep users connected with confidence.

Features like Cisco AI-Enhanced Radio Resource Management (AI-RRM), which automatically optimizes radio performance, and Cisco Intelligent Packet Capture, which provides real-time visibility and actionable insights down to the packet level—keep networks performing at their best.

Building on these foundations, we’re introducing new capabilities that further streamline operations and proactively maintain wireless health:

• Roaming health insights: Identify and display roaming issues at the network and location level to accelerate troubleshooting. This feature simplifies visibility into client roaming behavior, providing actionable data that reduces MTTR.
• Client analytics with Zebra integration: Gain native visibility into Zebra devices without requiring extra client software. Zebra joins Apple, Intel, and Samsung in partnering with Cisco to simplify client management by displaying trends and insights at the device and driver level. For instance, in a warehouse environment, network admins can leverage this to track Zebra handheld scanners—including driver and serial number information—to quickly troubleshoot connectivity issues.
• Active testing (currently in beta): Enable on-demand and scheduled tests at the access point to proactively identify network issues. Powered by ThousandEyes, active testing enables network admins to easily pinpoint where issues occur—anywhere from the access point to the cloud. For example, a university campus can run active tests with the access point acting as a client device, helping to detect and resolve network bottlenecks before students experience connectivity problems during peak hours.

Together, these capabilities reduce manual effort, save time, and ensure consistent, reliable experiences across both cloud and on-premises deployments.

Security fused into the network

Security is foundational to everything we build. Cisco goes beyond traditional security measures by integrating it deeply into the network. This includes securing app access for users, things, and agents through solutions like Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE), secure access service edge (SASE), and adaptive policy enforcement. Network access is protected with advanced wireless intrusion prevention systems (aWIPS) and Air Marshal, while network connectivity is safeguarded using WPA3, MACSec, and IPsec protocols.

Devices themselves are secured with features such as Cisco Secure Boot (PDF) and Cisco Live Protect. This holistic, multi-layered approach means security is intrinsic, not an add-on. Every component, from device to application, works together to protect data, prevent threats, and enable organizations to confidently scale wireless access in an increasingly complex, AI-driven environment.

Connectivity built for tomorrow

These innovations position Cisco at the forefront of wireless technology, delivering scalable, intelligent, and secure solutions that empower customers to thrive in an increasingly connected world.

Thank you for your continued trust in Cisco as we build the future of wireless together.

Deep within a cutting-edge Planet Farms factory environment, nestled not on sprawling fields but towering upwards in layers, produce is being farmed in tightly controlled conditions. This is where traditional agriculture is being revolutionized, within a highly automated, data-driven, vertical farming model.

“If we want to set new standards in vertical farming, we must start with a radical change of perspective,” says Massimo Mistretta, CISO, Planet Farms. “We want to change the way the world thinks about agriculture.”

Creating efficiency through a seamlessly connected network

The change is to shift from supply-led farming to demand-led. The Planet Farms model is not restricted by seasonal growing cycles, geography, or access to water. For Planet Farms, the work isn’t done by tractors, but by robots moving on the plant and automated guided vehicles (AGVs). This is critical to maintaining the highly efficient processes Planet Farms has developed to grow fresh, nutritious, flavorful food. Robots transport everything from seedlings to harvested produce, ensuring minimal human contact and maximum speed. No soil, no pesticides, and minimal water.

“The customer is the first to open the bag and touch the product,” Mistretta points out. “Everything else is completely automated, from seeding to primary and secondary packaging. The product doesn’t need to be washed; it arrives ready to eat.”

However, keeping everything seamlessly connected posed a challenge. For critical, latency-sensitive communications required by AGVs, a dropped connection or even a pause during handoff could disrupt operations, potentially leading to delays or errors.

Real-time data access through automation

Enter Cisco Ultra-Reliable Wireless Backhaul (URWB). Planet Farms discovered that URWB was designed precisely for connecting moving assets, providing a level of performance that standard Wi-Fi couldn’t guarantee for its critical operations. URWB offers ultra-reliable, low-latency wireless connectivity with seamless handoffs and zero packet loss, essential for uninterrupted movement of their robots and AGVs.

“Cisco URWB enables our AGVs and 3D cameras to collect data in real time without interruption. This data is vital for advanced agentic AI models to make informed decisions.” – Massimo Mistretta, CISO, Planet Farms

Unlike Wi-Fi, URWB employs a “make before break” roaming mechanism, establishing the connection to the next access point before dropping the connection to the current one. Its Multipath Operations (MPO) technology allows traffic, especially critical data, to be sent to multiple access points simultaneously. This means that even with obstacles and interference common in complex industrial environments, such as a multi-level vertical farm, if one connection is interrupted, the traffic still gets through via another path.

Deploying URWB felt surprisingly familiar to Planet Farms’ existing IT team. The solution is built on 802.11 standards and deploys just like Wi-Fi, making it quick for teams to get connected. Planet Farms now has a wireless network that can finally keep pace with its ambitious automation. The network is then centrally monitored and maintained using tools such as Cisco Industrial Wireless Monitor, providing real-time data and alerts.

“We want to show that vertical farming is not only feasible but can be profitable.” – Massimo Mistretta, CISO, Planet Farms

Innovation and increased sustainability

For Planet Farms, Cisco URWB enables the high level of automation necessary to run its vertical farms efficiently, reducing downtime, complexity, and manual intervention. It supports the precise, sub-millisecond latency needed for AGVs to navigate tightly controlled paths. This technological leap isn’t just about connectivity; it enables Planet Farms’ mission of producing delicious, healthy, and sustainable vegetables without pesticides, minimizing its environmental impact.

By going vertical and embracing technologies like Cisco URWB, Planet Farms is truly shaping the future of agriculture.

Imagine needing to connect a new building, parking lot, or sports field to your network. The vision is clear—but the reality of running fiber? That’s a whole different story. For IT leaders, the cost and complexity of digging, trenching, and laying cables can put projects on indefinite hold – imagine this challenge for cities and school districts working to close the digital divide in underserved and rural communities.

While fiber-optic cable is often considered the gold standard for connectivity, there are a few important factors to consider:

• Time: Projects can be delayed and stretch on for months, as they often require trenching, environmental clearances, and can cause disruption to people in the surrounding area.
• Obstacles: Highways, rivers, graveyards, and historic sites can make traditional cabling nearly impossible.
• Cost: Expenses can range from $1 to $6 per foot. Urban projects may reach $40,000–$80,000 per mile, while rural deployments often higher due to difficult terrain and lengthy permitting.

Wireless backhaul provides a compelling alternative to physical cabling, using high-capacity wireless links to connect access points and extend network reach where fiber or copper would be too costly or time-consuming. Unlike traditional wired infrastructure, wireless backhaul can be deployed rapidly with minimal disruption, making it ideal for expanding connectivity to parking lots, adjacent building areas, or even entire communities and rural regions.

By addressing common cabling challenges—such as high costs, lengthy installation times, and geographic obstacles—wireless backhaul enables agile, scalable network expansion for everything from smart cities and industrial automation to community internet access. The result is connectivity that is faster, more affordable, and far more inclusive.

Cisco’s access points make it easy for you to use URWB as a backhaul technology to extend your network and Wi-Fi for end-user access simultaneously. This means when you need to extend Wi-Fi to a new location, a single remote access point is all you need—simplifying installation, reducing hardware costs, and accelerating deployment.

Did you know? Cisco’s access points can simultaneously extend your network with URWB and deliver Wi-Fi access simultaneously—so extending your network is now even easier.

Let’s explore three practical use cases URWB helps you connect farther, faster, and smarter.

1. Bring Wi-Fi Where You Never Thought Possible. Whether you’re overseeing a university campus, healthcare complex, or corporate HQ, your network often needs to reach places fiber just can’t go—at least not easily or affordably. Think parking lots, outdoor event spaces, or new temporary structures. With Cisco access points, you can quickly bridge these gaps— extending your network with URWB and enabling seamless Wi-Fi for students, employees, or guests wherever they need it. Deployment is fast and flexible, with access points installed on rooftops, light poles, or existing infrastructure—no digging required.

2. Extend Physical Security Beyond the Building. Modern security requires eyes everywhere. But placing cameras at the perimeter of a facility, near parking areas, or covering outdoor assets can be cost-prohibitive if you rely on trenching cable. With URWB, you can connect cameras and sensors across your property—delivering the bandwidth and reliability you’d expect from fiber, without the cost or delay. This is ideal for campus perimeters, athletic fields, or remote storage areas within your grounds.

3. Quickly Connect Communities, New or Temporary Buildings. Need to bring connectivity to a modular classroom, event tent, or a newly built annex? Or maybe extend connectivity to under connected neighborhoods? Running fiber might not be practical—or possible on short notice. URWB lets you set up high-performance links in days, not weeks, helping you adapt to changing needs. Cisco URWB empowers communities to bridge these gaps—connecting city buildings, libraries, or distant school campuses with robust, scalable wireless links, Wi-Fi can be enabled in the access point to provide access to end-user devices. This flexibility makes it ideal for temporary classrooms, construction trailers, or pop-up health clinics on your property.

Real-world solutions

Organizations are putting these ideas to work—right now:

Canutillo Independent School District, Texas

“We needed to extend reliable connectivity to our athletic fields and remote campus buildings, and traditional fiber just wasn’t feasible. With Cisco’s wireless backhaul, we connected every corner of our district—quickly and cost-effectively.”
— Gary Gomez, Executive Director of Technology, Canutillo ISD

City of Fort Worth

“We saved substantial time and money by deploying Cisco’s wireless backhaul instead of running new fiber. The reliability and performance exceeded our expectations, even in challenging urban environments.”
— Kevin Gunn, Chief Technology Officer, City of Fort Worth

Break Connectivity Barriers—No Cables Required

Cisco’s URWB isn’t about replacing every fiber run—it’s about giving IT leaders the flexibility to extend networks where it matters most, when it matters most. With enterprise-grade reliability, simple deployment, and the ability to scale as your needs grow, Cisco URWB helps you rapidly extend your network wherever you need.

Cisco access points supporting both Wi-Fi and URWB simultaneously offer:

• Rapid deployment: No cabling, no delays—just a clear path and power at each access point
• Rock-solid reliability: Backhaul technology engineered for mission-critical applications.
• Flexible coverage: Extend your network exactly where you need it within your property.
• Cost savings and simplified operations: One access point delivers both wireless backhaul and Wi-Fi, streamlining deployment and management.

If you’re ready to expand your network faster, more affordably, and with greater flexibility—learn more about Cisco URWB.

[For figures/illustrations please refer to the original post HERE]

There’s a great deal of talk around the capability of Wi-Fi 7 (IEEE 802.11be) to revolutionize the wireless experience. It’s not hype. A key feature that delivers this transformative impact is multi-link operation (MLO). A mandatory and defining component of 802.11be, MLO enables a multi-link device (MLD) to simultaneously operate across multiple frequency bands, including 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz, and 6 GHz.

Access point (AP) and non-AP MLDs learn each other’s MLO parameters and capabilities through the multi-link information elements exchanged in frames like Beacons and Association Request/Response. In this blog, I’ll illustrate MLO’s impact on wireless connectivity and show you how it works in simultaneous transfer/receive (STR) mode.

How does multi-link operation (MLO) enhance wireless connectivity?

MLO introduces significant benefits for a variety of use cases. Key enhancements include:

• Simultaneous use of multiple bands. MLDs can transmit (Tx) and receive (Rx) data over more than one band at the same time. This is useful in environments with heavy congestion, as it avoids interference on any single band.
• Improved throughput. MLO leverages the combined capacity of multiple channels across different bands to enable higher aggregate throughput. This makes Wi-Fi 7 ideal for bandwidth-heavy applications like video streaming, virtual reality, and online gaming.
• Reduced latency. By offloading traffic across multiple channels. This is particularly useful in gaming, video conferencing, or other apps that require real-time communication.
• Better reliability and robustness. If one band (for example, 2.4 GHz) experiences congestion, then station (STA) MLDs can seamlessly switch to a less congested band (such as 6 GHz) without dropping the connection. This is extremely helpful in spaces with busy radio frequency (RF) traffic, such as stadiums, apartments, and offices.

Type of MLO operation modes

Wi-Fi 7 defines several single and multi-radio MLO modes, with stations able to support these modes based on their respective hardware capabilities. Various software thresholds—such as bandwidth requirements, band preferences, RF congestion, and QoS—will influence and guide a station’s choice of operating mode.

Among these modes, MLSR is required to be supported by all AP and non-AP MLDs. Support for EMLSR and STR modes is mandatory for AP MLDs, but optional for non-AP MLDs (stations). STR is currently incorporated by most vendors, making this mode an excellent starting place for dissection.

MLO’s STR mode in action

In STR operation, each link can be used to Tx or Rx concurrent physical layer protocol data units (PPDUs) without any synchronization. Figure 2 illustrates an example where an AP MLD and a non-AP MLD are operating over an STR link pair. Both devices contend for access to the wireless medium and engage in subsequent frame exchanges on those links.

After the AP MLD and the non-AP MLD complete a multi-link setup to successfully establish link 1 and link 2, and with the links enabled, AP 2 can receive data frames from STA 2 on link 2. Meanwhile, AP 1 contends for the wireless medium and, upon securing a transmit opportunity (TXOP), transmits data frames to STA 1 on link 1.

Next, let’s conduct a lab test using Cisco’s CW9178I AP running on Catalyst 9800 Wireless LAN controller (WLC) to demonstrate STR in action.

The access point under test (APUT) is configured to operate on 2.4 GHz (20 MHz) and 5 GHz (40 MHz) bandwidths with a WPA3-SAE WLAN. In the first step of the test, Wi-Fi 7/802.11be/MLO is enabled on both bands. We are using a Qualcomm 7800-based STR/MLMR-capable station, while the CW9178I AP serves as the sniffer—capable of capturing data across multiple bands and decoding Wi-Fi 7 frames.

Next, let’s associate the STAUT and check the capability details in both the WLC and Wireshark. During the association process, multiple elements are exchanged: the MLO information elements for the 5 GHz Association link, as well as the “Per-STA Profiles” information elements containing details about the non-association link (2 GHz).

The WLC identifies the STA as STR capable if the “Maximum Number of Simultaneous Links” value in the ML information element of the association request is non-zero. This indicates the number of radios the station is using for its association. See Figure 4 below for the corresponding Wireshark capture.

Figure 4 – STR capability in Association Request

The Catalyst 9800 WLC provides a clear display of the STA’s 802.11be capabilities, including MLD links with Slot IDs and bands, MLO mode support (STR/eMLSR), and Tx/Rx RF and data statistics for each band. Equivalent CLI commands are also available, though not covered in this blog.

Now that the STA has associated on the 5G band with an STR link to both the 5G and 2G bands, let’s initiate traffic for one minute to verify STR operation. Using the IxChariot server, we will begin full-bandwidth Downlink UDP traffic. Initially, traffic will flow only on the 5G band, as it is the only active association link. However, the STA will soon assess the need for a secondary link to achieve higher bandwidth. It will then send a QoS Null data frame over the secondary (2G) link. The AP acknowledges this request and enables simultaneous data transmission across both bands.

Figure 6 shows the sequence starting with data on channel 36, followed by a QoS Null data frame on channel 6, and concluding with simultaneous data transmission on both channel 6 and channel 36.

The Catalyst 9800 WLC offers a comprehensive view of the client’s performance on each MLO link, with monitors providing detailed Tx/Rx data along with RF statistics.

Following the one-minute traffic run, the average throughput measured is 747 Mbps, as shown in Figure 8.

To provide a comparison, the test was repeated under the same conditions, but with 802.11be/MLO disabled, running in 802.11ax mode instead. The average throughput was 506 Mbps.

The table below summarizes the throughput comparison between clients. The impact is indeed transformative: Wi-Fi 7 with STR MLO significantly outperforms Wi-Fi 6, delivering a 47% throughput increase, along with more efficient spectrum utilization.

The CW9178I, CW9176I, and CW9176D1 APs, along with 9800 series wireless controllers, will fully support Wi-Fi 7 capabilities and features from IOS XE 17.15.2 onward.

Even in demanding, high-density environments, Wi-Fi 7 delivers speed, efficiency, and rock-solid reliability. At the crux of this breakthrough in wireless connectivity is the Multiple Resource Unit (MRU) feature and the way that Wi-Fi 7 integrates MRU to augment the Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDMA) framework.

Originally introduced in Wi-Fi 6, OFDMA enables dynamic allocation and independent modulation of subcarriers across frequency resources, facilitating concurrent transmissions to multiple client devices. In this blog, we illustrate how MRU advances this methodology by implementing refined interference suppression mechanisms and optimizing multi-user scheduling.

How does Multiple Resource Unit (MRU) impact efficiency in wireless connectivity?

By selectively excising interfered spectral segments, MRU ensures that transmissions are confined to interference-free subchannels, thereby maximizing effective throughput and link reliability in congested radio frequency (RF) environments. One way to visualize this is to imagine a busy freeway where each vehicle represents a data packet. OFDMA, as introduced in Wi-Fi 6, is like redesigning the highway with multiple lanes that allow many cars to travel side by side, each heading to its own destination. Now, with MRU in Wi-Fi 7, it’s as if the highway can intelligently guide vehicles into express lanes to further reduce congestion and ensure a smooth journey for all—even in heavy traffic.

This optimization is accomplished through punctured resource units (RUs), which are structured aggregations of 78.125 kHz-wide subcarriers. These individual RUs are assigned to different stations, allowing wireless access points to serve each of them simultaneously during uplink and downlink transmissions. MRU is in effect when many RUs are assigned to a single user. This allows for the aggregation of RUs of varying sizes to better match data transmission needs.

MRU configurations are classified into small (< 242) and large (> 242). Small MRU configurations include 52+26-tone and 106+26-tone groupings, wherein “tone” denotes the subcarrier or small frequency segment into which the available spectrum is divided. Large MRU configurations comprise combinations such as 484+242-tone, 996+484-tone, 996+484+242-tone, 2×996+484-tone, 3×996-tone, and 2×996+484-tone.

This results in more efficient user allocation and bandwidth utilization. For instance, in 11ax with a 20 MHz channel (totaling 242 tones), when two clients each use 106 tones, the total utilization is (106×2)/242 = ~88%. In contrast with Wi-Fi 7, if one client is assigned RU106 and another is allocated MRU106+26, the total utilization increases to (106×2+26)/242 = ~98%.

Evaluating Wi-Fi 7’s MRU feature

To conduct this evaluation, we used a Cisco Wireless 9178I Access Point connected to a Cisco Catalyst 9800 Series Wireless LAN Controller (WLC) running firmware version 17.15.2. The 9800 Series provides centralized control and greater visibility over traffic segmentation, user access, and security. The test environment consists of 4x Wi-Fi 7 and 4x Wi-Fi 5 stations (STAs). This diverse mix allows us to assess how different wireless standards handle congestion and latency.

To put MRU to the test, we simulate a high-traffic scenario on each bandwidth.

We generate user datagram protocol (UDP) full buffer traffic, creating network congestion by continuously pushing data to the access point on Wi-Fi 5 STAs. This replicates a real-world environment where multiple devices compete for bandwidth, allowing us to analyze the impact of MRU on latency. We then generate 750 Kbps real-time transport protocol (RTP) downlink and uplink traffic streams, mimicking real-time applications like voice and video streaming.

Measuring latency: OFDMA vs. OFDMA+MRU performance

To quantify performance improvements, we measure latency in milliseconds (ms) across three different configurations or combinations of channel bandwidth:

• Non-OFDMA mode: Traditional Wi-Fi scheduling without frequency partitioning
• Wi-Fi 6 OFDMA: Optimizes resource allocation
• Wi-Fi 7 OFDMA+MRU: Allows flexible frequency allocation

Even with just four MRU-capable STAs, we consistently observe lower latency in both downlink and uplink directions. The improvements reach approximately 55% in downlink and 48% in uplink when using a 320 MHz channel.

Enhancing connectivity and eliminating blind spots with MRU

MRU revolutionizes next-generation wireless connectivity by boosting efficiency, increasing speed, and ensuring enhanced reliability—even in high-density environments such as offices, airports, and stadiums, as well as IoT networks with cameras and sensors. By complementing 5G, it strengthens indoor wireless connectivity where 5G signals may be weaker. Additionally, MRU unlocks seamless experiences for applications requiring ultra-low latency, including augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR), and cloud gaming.

All Cisco Wi-Fi 7 access points, including CW9178I and CW9176I, along with Cisco Catalyst 9800 Series Wireless Controllers, fully support multi-RU functionality starting with the IOS XE 17.15.2 release—and provide centralized control for greater visibility, faster troubleshooting, and ease of management.

Picture this: A robotic inspection vehicle speeds along the production line. Its cameras scan every component, transmitting high-definition video in real time. Suddenly, it detects a microscopic crack in a crucial part—something invisible to the human eye. Instantly, its onboard AI flags the defect and alerts the central control system to halt the process, preventing a costly recall and ensuring only perfect products leave the factory.

Now, imagine if that robot’s wireless connection dropped for just a split second as it crossed the factory floor. The video feed freezes, the defect goes undetected, and a faulty part slips through. The cost? Potential downtime, rework, or even reputational damage.

In modern manufacturing, this isn’t science fiction. Companies like BMW and Samsung Electronics are already deploying vision-enabled mobile robots and AI-powered inspection systems to automate quality assurance on the move. For these systems, connectivity is as critical as electricity—any interruption can mean missed defects, lost productivity, or compromised safety.

This isn’t just about productivity or product quality—safety is also at stake. If a robot or AGV loses its network connection, it will typically stop immediately to prevent accidents—a necessary safety measure, but one that can halt the entire production line. In environments where heavy AGVs and mobile robots operate alongside human workers, reliable network connections are crucial not only for smooth operations, but also to ensure that real-time safety systems—such as proximity alerts and emergency stop signals—continue to function as intended. If connectivity is lost, these alerts may be delayed or interrupted, increasing potential safety risks on the factory floor.

The Common Thread: Mobility and Data-Hungriness

What do today’s most advanced manufacturing devices have in common? They move—fast and unpredictably—and they generate and consume enormous amounts of data. For example:

• Mobile robots patrol the floor, using cameras and AI to detect defects or safety hazards, requiring real-time video streaming and instant feedback.
• Automated inspection vehicles scan parts with high-definition imaging, sending gigabits of data per hour to edge AI models that spot tiny flaws invisible to the human eye.
• Heavy-weight collaborative robots shift between workstations, working in close proximity to humans, continuously collecting and processing proximity data to trigger instant alerts and avoid accidents—any lapse in connectivity could mean a missed warning and a potential safety incident.

Why Wi-Fi Alone Isn’t Enough

Traditional Wi-Fi has served factories well for general-purpose connectivity, but it wasn’t engineered for the demands of these new, highly mobile, mission-critical devices. The challenge isn’t just about speed—it’s about ultra-low latency, seamless handoffs, and rock-solid  reliability. In many industrial environments, Wi-Fi can struggle with:

• Lost connections as devices move between access points or through RF-challenged areas
• Latency spikes that delay real-time decision-making
• Interference from machinery, metal structures, or high device density

Enter Ultra-Reliable Wireless Backhaul (URWB): The Perfect Complement to Wi-Fi

To meet the needs of modern manufacturing, a new class of wireless—engineered specifically for mobility, low latency, and reliability—is required. URWB is designed for just this purpose. URWB provides:

• Near-zero latency (less than 10 ms) for real-time control and feedback
• Uninterrupted handoffs as devices move throughout the facility
• Performance comparable to private 5G but using unlicensed spectrum avoiding costs and complexities of spectrum management.

URWB is integrated into many of Cisco’s Wi-Fi 7, 6E, and 6 wireless access points, allowing manufacturers to run Wi-Fi and URWB side-by-side on the same device. This means both general-purpose and mission-critical applications can be supported—without adding new infrastructure or complexity.

Cisco’s Ultra-Reliable Wireless Backhaul (URWB) is specifically designed to deliver deterministic, high-bandwidth connectivity in environments with heavy mobile assets and dense interference. By ensuring that safety-critical data and alerts flow instantly, URWB enables factories to enforce dynamic safety zones, trigger automatic slowdowns or stops, and provide workers with real-time warnings when machines approach. In real-world deployments, this level of reliability isn’t just a technical upgrade—it’s a foundational requirement for protecting both people and equipment.

Smarter Design for Modern Manufacturing: Introducing the Industrial Automation Wireless Design Guide

Deploying next-generation wireless for industrial automation isn’t just about choosing the right technology—it’s about designing your network for reliability, security, and performance from the ground up.

That’s where our new Industrial Automation Wireless Design Guide comes in, providing you with a comprehensive, practical resource developed by experts to help you plan, deploy, and optimize your wireless network for Industrial Automation Control Systems (IACS). Specifically created for manufacturing and industrial environments and distills best practices, real-world lessons, and detailed technical recommendations into an actionable blueprint you can follow. Inside you will find:

• Clear explanations of key use cases for wireless in industrial automation, including mobile robots, real-time monitoring, and machine-to-machine communications.
• Detailed design guidelines for integrating Wi-Fi and URWB, ensuring seamless and resilient connectivity for both general-purpose and mission-critical applications.
• Reference architectures that illustrate proven network designs to support modern manufacturing workflows.
• Deployment best practices and configuration tips to help you achieve reliable, high-performance wireless in challenging industrial settings.

With this guide, you can move forward confidently—knowing you have a blueprint built on industry expertise and real-world deployments.

The Bottom Line

The future of manufacturing depends on the ability to connect a new generation of mobile, intelligent devices—securely, reliably, and with ultra-low latency. Wi-Fi remains essential, but it needs a specialized companion: URWB. Together, they unlock new applications, new efficiencies, and new possibilities for your factory.

Ready to see what uninterrupted motion and smarter wireless can do for your operations? Dive into our Industrial Automation Wireless Design Guide to get started, or explore our solution overview to learn more.

Even in demanding, high-density environments, Wi-Fi 7 delivers speed, efficiency, and rock-solid reliability. At the crux of this breakthrough in wireless connectivity is the Multiple Resource Unit (MRU) feature and the way that Wi-Fi 7 integrates MRU to augment the Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDMA) framework.

Originally introduced in Wi-Fi 6, OFDMA enables dynamic allocation and independent modulation of subcarriers across frequency resources, facilitating concurrent transmissions to multiple client devices. In this blog, we illustrate how MRU advances this methodology by implementing refined interference suppression mechanisms and optimizing multi-user scheduling.

How does Multiple Resource Unit (MRU) impact efficiency in wireless connectivity?

By selectively excising interfered spectral segments, MRU ensures that transmissions are confined to interference-free subchannels, thereby maximizing effective throughput and link reliability in congested radio frequency (RF) environments. One way to visualize this is to imagine a busy freeway where each vehicle represents a data packet. OFDMA, as introduced in Wi-Fi 6, is like redesigning the highway with multiple lanes that allow many cars to travel side by side, each heading to its own destination. Now, with MRU in Wi-Fi 7, it’s as if the highway can intelligently guide vehicles into express lanes to further reduce congestion and ensure a smooth journey for all—even in heavy traffic.

This optimization is accomplished through punctured resource units (RUs), which are structured aggregations of 78.125 kHz-wide subcarriers. These individual RUs are assigned to different stations, allowing wireless access points to serve each of them simultaneously during uplink and downlink transmissions. MRU is in effect when many RUs are assigned to a single user. This allows for the aggregation of RUs of varying sizes to better match data transmission needs.

MRU configurations are classified into small (< 242) and large (> 242). Small MRU configurations include 52+26-tone and 106+26-tone groupings, wherein “tone” denotes the subcarrier or small frequency segment into which the available spectrum is divided. Large MRU configurations comprise combinations such as 484+242-tone, 996+484-tone, 996+484+242-tone, 2×996+484-tone, 3×996-tone, and 2×996+484-tone.

This results in more efficient user allocation and bandwidth utilization. For instance, in 11ax with a 20 MHz channel (totaling 242 tones), when two clients each use 106 tones, the total utilization is (106×2)/242 = ~88%. In contrast with Wi-Fi 7, if one client is assigned RU106 and another is allocated MRU106+26, the total utilization increases to (106×2+26)/242 = ~98%.

Evaluating Wi-Fi 7’s MRU feature

To conduct this evaluation, we used a Cisco Wireless 9178I Access Point connected to a Cisco Catalyst 9800 Series Wireless LAN Controller (WLC) running firmware version 17.15.2. The 9800 Series provides centralized control and greater visibility over traffic segmentation, user access, and security. The test environment consists of 4x Wi-Fi 7 and 4x Wi-Fi 5 stations (STAs). This diverse mix allows us to assess how different wireless standards handle congestion and latency.

To put MRU to the test, we simulate a high-traffic scenario on each bandwidth.

We generate user datagram protocol (UDP) full buffer traffic, creating network congestion by continuously pushing data to the access point on Wi-Fi 5 STAs. This replicates a real-world environment where multiple devices compete for bandwidth, allowing us to analyze the impact of MRU on latency. We then generate 750 Kbps real-time transport protocol (RTP) downlink and uplink traffic streams, mimicking real-time applications like voice and video streaming.

Measuring latency: OFDMA vs. OFDMA+MRU performance

To quantify performance improvements, we measure latency in milliseconds (ms) across three different configurations or combinations of channel bandwidth:

• Non-OFDMA mode: Traditional Wi-Fi scheduling without frequency partitioning
• Wi-Fi 6 OFDMA: Optimizes resource allocation
• Wi-Fi 7 OFDMA+MRU: Allows flexible frequency allocation

Even with just four MRU-capable STAs, we consistently observe lower latency in both downlink and uplink directions. The improvements reach approximately 55% in downlink and 48% in uplink when using a 320 MHz channel.

Enhancing connectivity and eliminating blind spots with MRU

MRU revolutionizes next-generation wireless connectivity by boosting efficiency, increasing speed, and ensuring enhanced reliability—even in high-density environments such as offices, airports, and stadiums, as well as IoT networks with cameras and sensors. By complementing 5G, it strengthens indoor wireless connectivity where 5G signals may be weaker. Additionally, MRU unlocks seamless experiences for applications requiring ultra-low latency, including augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR), and cloud gaming.

All Cisco Wi-Fi 7 access points, including CW9178I and CW9176I, along with Cisco Catalyst 9800 Series Wireless Controllers, fully support multi-RU functionality starting with the IOS XE 17.15.2 release—and provide centralized control for greater visibility, faster troubleshooting, and ease of management.