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Is there any way I can disable the 2.4Ghz and just leave 5.0Ghz channel enabled on a per WLAN (SSID) basis? Or the only way is to disable the AP's radio and leave 5Ghz enabled?

Mike Pennington
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Brown Taylor
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  • Did any answer help you? If so, you should accept the answer so that the question doesn't keep popping up forever, looking for an answer. Alternatively, you can post and accept your own answer. – Ron Maupin Jan 03 '21 at 04:15

1 Answers1

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Assuming a Cisco WLC... Go to "WLAN > Select the WLAN Profile > General Tab > Radio Policy"

Updating my answer to clarify a few things...

  • 802.11a operates at a maximum of 54Mbps, only in the 5GHz bands
  • 802.11b operates at a maximum of 11Mbps, only in the 2.4GHz bands
  • 802.11g operates at a maximum of 54Mbps, only in the 2.4GHz bands

Keep in mind that wireless operates in unlicensed frequency spectrum, so it is a bit like the wild west... Many corporate networks choose to marginalize support for 802.11b/g where possible, due to the rampant use of the 2.4GHz frequency spectrum by consumer devices... today, 5GHz (and thus, 802.11a) tends to have much lower background noise levels, so it is more suitable for business voice and data services... however it also doesn't propagate as well due to the smaller wavelength in 5GHz signals. Use care when you disable 802.11b/g... it might be worth checking for coverage holes, if most of the traffic formerly used 2.4G...

Mike Pennington
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  • Hi,Thanks for your response. I see that, but in there I can only choose 802.11a only, b only, g only, etc. However, if I choose b/g only, it will still work on 2.4Ghz and 5Ghz, right? I don't want to use 11a – Brown Taylor Jun 29 '13 at 01:47
  • the question says you want to disable 2.4G... that means using 5GHz, which is 802.11a... perhaps there is a misunderstanding? – Mike Pennington Jun 29 '13 at 02:07
  • That could be, but what if I wanted to run 5GHz on 802.1g only, would that be possible? If I choose a Radio Policy of 802.1g/only, then both 2.4 and 5Ghz would be enabled, right? Thanks for your help – Brown Taylor Jun 29 '13 at 02:33
  • I made an update to my answer that might help clarify a few things... perhaps this will help... – Mike Pennington Jun 29 '13 at 02:46
  • You might want to add that 802.11n can operate in either 2.4 or 5GHz. – generalnetworkerror Jun 29 '13 at 08:13
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    @generalnetworkerror, while that is true he is not asking about 802.11n... I would also mention that just because 802.11n can support both bands is not guarantee that a specific wireless device does support both bands. In particular, 5GHz support tends to only be available on the more expensive products (which makes sense, but it's easy to forget if you don't remind yourself that 802.11n 5GHz is optional) – Mike Pennington Jun 29 '13 at 09:51
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    There is an option in the controller template launchpad to push out a template that just simply disables 2.4ghz, not specific 802.11 specifications. –  Jun 29 '13 at 09:57
  • Thanks guys. That was my mistake. I meant 802.11n, which supports dual-band instead of 802.11g. My bad. But here is the problem in the WLAN Route-Policy drop-down menu, I don't see 802.11n only. It is a 2504 WLC, and it does support 11n (at least I think so). If there is 802.11n, is there anyway I can only let the WLAN use 11n but only use radio on the 5GHz RF. Thanks for all the support – Brown Taylor Jun 29 '13 at 15:26
  • I only mentioned including 802.11n for completeness since you listed 802.11a on 5GHz. – generalnetworkerror Jun 30 '13 at 06:12