Free Cisco Meraki AP

Dave85 · 19 Nov 2013 at 11:32

kellie sinnott was my rep was on and off the phone in about 30 seconds only wanted me to confirm my vat number company name and address

GodAtum · 19 Nov 2013 at 13:36

What exactly is this device for? is it just a wireless switch?

Caged · 19 Nov 2013 at 13:38

It's an enterprise grade access point. It also has a second LAN port that you can bind to an SSID which is quite handy if you're deploying them as VPN endpoints.

GodAtum · 19 Nov 2013 at 13:53

So it could replace my Asus wireless router?

Caged · 19 Nov 2013 at 14:05

In a hacky round-about way I suppose it could. You'd be better off using it as an AP though.

GodAtum · 19 Nov 2013 at 14:29

What are the benefits of a home user to paying a yearly fee then?

Caged · 19 Nov 2013 at 14:32

None at all, assuming a typical home user.

Jasseh · 19 Nov 2013 at 18:21

Jasseh said:
I got an answer to my question about VAT number requirement. For anyone else working for a charity with no VAT number here it is:

Spoke to Tom on the phone and found out this answer wasn't entirely correct. I need to find out if the charity is officially exempt from paying VAT or not before they can send me the free AP

.

Found out while typing this: not exempt, no free AP for me

.

Edit: Spoke to the boss and I've been told they are VAT exempt, not sure why the other staff member said they weren't. Hopefully still a chance of getting the free AP

.

Trifid · 19 Nov 2013 at 19:03

GodAtum said:
So it could replace my Asus wireless router?

I am not aware of this having any routing ability (although I haven't checked). I assuming no PSU will be provided too. I'd be running it off a ASA 5505.

iMacMart · 19 Nov 2013 at 20:20

It comes with a power supply

Caged · 19 Nov 2013 at 20:46

Trifid said:
I am not aware of this having any routing ability (although I haven't checked). I assuming no PSU will be provided too. I'd be running it off a ASA 5505.

It sort of has - your SSIDs can have their own DHCP and NAT group, but whatever you shoved into the eth0 would need to be a connection that worked without needing something like PPPoE.

It's not designed to be a router though, so there's no point trying to use it as one.

MarcLister · 19 Nov 2013 at 21:14

Now that's more than a coincidence. I got an email from an Apple trainer arranged by a colleague of mine as we're interested in setting our iPads up a bit better than they are now for our students to use and not misuse. There's a mention of a Cisco Meraki in the email.

Signed up for a webinar tomorrow morning. A free device will be nice. :cool:

Caged · 19 Nov 2013 at 21:18

Apple doesn't yet have a way of deploying enforceable profiles to their devices over the air, for reasons I'm not sure of. The best that MDM can do is alert you when an iPad stops reporting back.

Meraki do a free MDM system which can tie in with their access points. I have no idea if it's any good because it was very limited when I looked at it 18 months ago and I opted for Casper instead. Casper is incredibly powerful and virtually free to education, but you have to host it yourself

MarcLister · 19 Nov 2013 at 21:28

Caged said:
Apple doesn't yet have a way of deploying enforceable profiles to their devices over the air, for reasons I'm not sure of. The best that MDM can do is alert you when an iPad stops reporting back.

Meraki do a free MDM system which can tie in with their access points. I have no idea if it's any good because it was very limited when I looked at it 18 months ago and I opted for Casper instead. Casper is incredibly powerful and virtually free to education, but you have to host it yourself

This it?

http://www.jamfsoftware.com/for-education

Caged · 19 Nov 2013 at 21:34

Yeah. You don't pay for the product if you're in education, just the support.

MarcLister · 19 Nov 2013 at 21:47

Caged said:
Yeah. You don't pay for the product if you're in education, just the support.

Cheers. I've asked for a demo and emailed my colleague about it to keep him informed.

Deception · 20 Nov 2013 at 12:42

Mine turned up today.. Now what to do with it

Also noticed a nice wave of these appearing on the bay. Didn't know how much they cost! :eek:

Oh Ed not again. · 20 Nov 2013 at 12:45

Damnit, people are selling these on. Boo. I can't get mine free because several people in my company have claimed already, dah.

xGBHxPegasus · 20 Nov 2013 at 13:52

Using this at work to make the Meeting rooms wifi available at peoples desk.

The reporting tools on it are pretty interesting

Jasseh · 20 Nov 2013 at 16:58

randal said:
Damnit, people are selling these on. Boo. I can't get mine free because several people in my company have claimed already, dah.

That sucks, hope they are actually going to use them at least.

I'm still not sure if I'll be getting one yet, just called them again and now have to wait for someone to make a decision and email me back. I'm looking forward to trying out all the features so hope they decide I am eligible.