C9115AXE-K - Cisco Catalyst 9115 Dual-band Wifi 6 Access Points

C9115AXE-K exact order identity

C9115AXE-K is a Cisco Catalyst 9115 Series indoor 802.11ax access point. The complete PID selects the E antenna form, controller-based access-point order and regulatory-domain token K.

Antenna and installation boundary

Cisco documents external antennas as separately ordered and certifies the 9115AXE for antenna gains up to 6 dBi at both 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz. The acceptance record must identify antenna PID, gain, pattern, connector, cable loss, mounting and country approval; an AXI antenna statement cannot be reused.

Controller-image boundary

The exact PID has no EWC infix, so it does not establish an AP-hosted Embedded Wireless Controller image. Record the target wireless LAN controller, supported release, licensing, CAPWAP join and recovery result.

K regulatory evidence

Cisco treats the final token as a regulatory-domain identifier and makes the customer responsible for verifying country approval. Tie the K-domain purchase line to the controller country configuration and the post-join enabled-channel export.

Center the K-domain package on channel-state evidence. Retain the Cisco country lookup and controller country configuration, then export the enabled-channel state after the AP joins. Store the output with exact PID, serial and survey reference. Repeat the comparison after controller upgrades so a software change cannot silently separate the live radio state from the approved order.

PoE and environmental reduced states

With 802.3at, the 9115 operates both radios at 4x4, negotiates 2.5G and enables USB; 802.3at full-feature consumption is published as 21.4W. Under 802.3af both radios reduce to 2x2, Ethernet reduces to 1G and USB is disabled. Cisco also documents the same reduced state above 40 degrees C ambient.

Lifecycle and migration decision

Cisco's current hardware bulletin sets 2026-12-31 as the last order date and 2031-12-31 as the last support date for affected Catalyst 9115 orders, with Cisco Wireless 9174E Access Point as the migration form for this antenna architecture.

Deployment evidence worksheet

Power-state acceptance

Measure power after the access point has joined its controller and the planned radios and services are active. Record switch model, port, negotiated power level, LLDP result and any reduced-capability warning. An idle boot result is not sufficient evidence for the deployed power budget. If an injector is proposed, verify its supported use and include its exact identity in the maintained bill of materials rather than treating it as an unspecified accessory. Record the negotiated 802.3at or 802.3af state because a successful boot does not prove full radio capacity.

Serial-level asset control

Capture chassis serial, base MAC address, carton reference, deployment site, controller assignment and asset owner. Reconcile the identifiers against the purchase line before activation. Multi-unit cartons require an entry for every physical access point; a carton SKU alone cannot show which unit was installed, held as a spare or returned. This record is also needed to trace support entitlement, replacement history and monitoring ownership. Link serial, base MAC, installed site, controller object and regulatory evidence before activation.

Authentication path test

Commission representative clients through association, authentication, address assignment, DNS and application reachability. Preserve the identity policy used, test client type, result and relevant controller logs. An access point that joins its controller has not yet demonstrated the user path. Repeat the test after any controller, certificate or authentication-service change and retain failures separately from RF or switch-port evidence. Test association, authentication, address assignment, DNS and application reachability after final staging.

Roaming acceptance

Define the neighboring access points and client types used for roaming validation. Record handoff behavior, interruption observed, authentication result and controller events along the intended movement path. Compare the outcome with the site's design target rather than declaring success from static association. Where this unit replaces an older AP, test both entry and exit from its cell so a local improvement does not hide a boundary problem. Document roaming path, client type, neighboring cells and controller events rather than only a static join.

Interference baseline

Preserve the pre-install and post-install noise, neighboring-radio and channel-occupancy observations for the selected location. Record any controller-driven channel change during acceptance. If the regulatory profile limits the channel choices, state how that constraint affected reuse and mitigation. This baseline gives future troubleshooting a reference point and prevents an unrelated interference change from being attributed to the hardware order. Preserve the enabled-channel export after first join and after every controller or country-setting change.

Replacement dependency map

Map this unit to controller, licenses, authentication services, switch power, cable, bracket, antenna design and monitoring objects. For an end-of-sale platform, state which dependencies can be reused by the planned Catalyst migration and which require change. A nominal access-point replacement can fail when the surrounding platform was never inventoried. Keep the map with the asset rather than only in a one-time project file. Compare the relevant 9174I or 9174E migration form, including controller, power, antenna and coverage changes.

Operational log retention

Store the initial controller events, switch-port state, radio assignment, channel list and client test results with a consistent asset identifier. Define how long commissioning evidence is retained and who can retrieve it. A later firmware, controller or RF change should add a new dated observation rather than overwrite the original. The resulting history supports lifecycle decisions and distinguishes a new regression from the accepted baseline. Keep the first accepted power, wired, radio and client results as the baseline for later troubleshooting.

Handover completeness

The handover package should include exact order identity, destination approval, serial record, controller evidence, switch port, mounting or antenna record, user-path tests and named operational owners. Review the package with the receiving team and list unresolved exceptions. A unit is not operationally accepted when important evidence remains only in installer notes, email attachments or an unowned temporary dashboard. Handover should include exact PID, serial, compliance result, software role, antenna record and lifecycle owner.

Related Catalyst 9115 order records

• C9115AXI-K - compare antenna form, controller-image state and regulatory evidence.
• C9115AXI-EWC-Z - compare antenna form, controller-image state and regulatory evidence.
• C9115AXI-EWC-S - compare antenna form, controller-image state and regulatory evidence.

Official evidence: Cisco Catalyst 9115 data sheet; Cisco deployment guide; Cisco Catalyst 9115 lifecycle bulletin; and Cisco compliance lookup.