Storage Uni's Server & Network Project! [Update 05-06-14 - Cisco Meraki Installed]

Attended the Meraki webinar, awesome product, got my free AP on my desk waiting for some spare time to test. Only thing that puts me off is that the unit will stop working when the license runs out...

 

Thanks Saspro, I hadn't even thought about them! Does the license eventually run out though?

 

You get a 3 year license with it

 

Aye, +1 for Meraki.

 

Yeah I saw that after posting. So it's something like $150 per year after that?

 

Around that, I'm a Meraki partner so can usually get discounts on it

 

I've discovered that I probably won't qualify for the free AP. I'll give it a go but I'm not hopeful.

 

You don't need a VAT number etc, I know quite a few Sole Traders who've got one

 

Oh, well then I have a bit more hope. Any recommendations for which webinar to attend or are they all pretty useful?

 

They're all really good

 

The APs are pretty awesome - we've got loads across all our offices. Just plug them in and add them to our account. Then they configure themselves

 

I definitely like the sound of the Meraki and am signing up for it this evening

Can anyone recommend a gigabit 802.11ac router which would offer better performance or features than the ASUS AC68U for no more than £200? I'm going to order the AC68U if nobody can make any better suggestions, then the AC66U will be moved to use as an access point.

27 05 14

My Meraki Webinar is in the morning!

Also, I've discovered that the AC66U, when placed upside down on the top floor, has enough xmit power to reach most of the main floor downstairs, so I've made a custom bracket for the side of the cabinet and mounted it on the exterior of the cab to maximize signal strength until the other two APs are installed. With the router mounted this way, my ThinkPad X230 with its ridiculously good antennas picks up the 2.4GHz band with medium signal strength in the workshop, which is two floors below the router

28 05 14

Well, I've completed the Webinar on Cloud Managed WiFi and am very impressed with the system! I can see me getting this to my own clients in the future as well as in putting it in place here. When I called the UK office in London to confirm my details for the free access point, I was transferred to an American operator named Kellie, who apparently handles all sales for Northern Ireland and Ireland. After asking a few brief questions about my immediate and future use for Meraki in our business, she "made an exception" (to a sole trader requesting the free AP) and processed the order. Now I wait!

My head is already full of ideas for how this can be used on some of my larger client's sites. Does anyone know how much the various items of Meraki hardware actually cost?

[edit]

Never mind, I got some pricing from the solutions team at eBuyer.

05 06 14

Meraki MR18 installed and working; I'm very impressed so far, but unable to access shared resources like printers and network drives using machines connected to it. The Meraki dashboard is currently down at the moment, so I can't log in to fiddle around with it. Any ideas for what I can try when it's back up again? Also the "view local connection" option doesn't work from the iOS app; it tells me "you do not appear to be connected to any Cisco Meraki devices" when I actually am.

Really roughly installed pic, still need to put it on a PoE injector and all the mini trunking you see here needs to be replaced with larger conduit, at which point I'll route the Ethernet cable through it;



I've always loved Cisco AP mounting plates, but the Meraki takes it to a whole new level. They include everything you need to attach it to a wall, the bottom or top of a suspended ceiling and pretty much anywhere else you could possibly need to mount one.

 

Ok, I have to double post to bump it! You can delete this one once the next person posts Same question stands as in the post above

[edit]

I solved my sharing problem and it was being caused by exactly what I thought. I had it configured in NAT mode instead of bridge It's all running properly now, clients on the MR18 have access to network drives, printers and cameras.

 

Nice to see you are having fun with the Meraki's.
My previous company I worked at peddals quite alot of these units out. Our cloud dashboard was rather large

Was for a very large coffee chain. If your around London you've probably seen them.

 

Uni how are you getting on with your AP?

I can't seem to find a way to clear the client logs and start over. :/

 

I attended the Webinar at my last job and got sent the free AP, only to have it pinched from my desk!

Im pretty sure I have read somewhere the Meraki units can be flashed with DD-WRT too, though dont quote me!

 

I love it Votick, it just works! Admittedly I haven't done much cloud management with it in the past couple of months, but it's certainly handled its fair share of traffic since I installed it! I have also demonstrated it to a few clients who have expressed an interest in implementing Meraki products in their organizations in the future. I've never attempted to clear the client logs but there has to be a way to achieve that, I'll log into the dashboard this afternoon and have a look for you.

I still need to purchase and install a Meraki firewall to replace my old Cisco PIX 506e which is long overdue an upgrade.

 

Let me know what model you're after and I'll talk to Meraki for you