Re: CAPWAP BOF follow up: nmrg - CAPWAP

["Bernard Aboba" <bernard_aboba@hotmail.com>]

> as usual, i am hearing both sides of the song.  many folk are
> indeed saying "reinventing the wheel."  many others are saying
> "but this is different."  and 802.11 is pushing it.  so i asked
> bert to post this to iesg and iab so we can have a consensus
> before we move in either direction.
I do not believe that CAPWAP is "reinventing the wheel."  There is today no 
protocol appropriate for control of a "lightweight AP" device, so at least 
that much is new.

That said, there is disagreement about whether the protocol proposals 
discussed in CAPWAP are appropriate to the problem.

I attended the IEEE 802 plenary this week, and got feedback from quite a few 
802.11 vendors relating to CAPWAP.  I've asked them to forward their 
feedback directly.  Several expressed the concern that the protocol and 
approach proposed is inappropriate for a "lightweight" device.  I heard this 
from vendors on both sides of the "lightweight AP" issue, including both 
startups and well established players, so I don't think it's just axe 
grinding.  Several vendors mentioned that they will be advocating that IEEE 
802 start its own competing standards effort in order to produce a more 
appropriate design.

Given the level of debate within IEEE 802, we probably should not assume 
that Dorothy Stanley, the IEEE 802.11 Liason to IETF, is speaking for IEEE 
802.11 relating to CAPWAP.

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