Before you apply your license key, please ensure the wireless controller has a working internet connection.
To achieve this, make sure that DNS Server and Default Gateway addresses for your network are set correctly in the wireless controller web interface.
Check DNS and Default Gateway settings
Open a web browser, and in the browser’s address field, type the wireless controller’s IP address.
By default, the IP address is 192.168.0.250. The wireless controller’s login window opens.
Navigate to Configuration > System > IP/VLAN.
Test Internet Connectivity
You can verify the wireless controller’s Internet connectivity by running a ping test.
Navigate to Diagnostics > Ping.
In the IP address field, enter the URL of a website, for example www.netgear.com then click Start. Click Stop to stop the ping test.
Check firmware version
Before you can activate your license key the wireless controller must be running the following firmware version or higher. If your wireless controller is not running this firmware version or higher, the license activation will fail:
WC7500, WC7600, WC7600v2 and WC9500: Firmware 6.5.3.7
WC7520: Firmware 2.5.0.47
To check the current version of firmware, navigate to Monitor > Controller > Summary. Firmware Version is listed under Controller Info.
If your controller is running an older version than what is required, you must first upgrade the firmware. Firmware images can be found on the NETGEAR product support site.
Please follow the firmware upgrade instructions carefully when upgrading the controller firmware as the upgrade path to the latest firmware is dependant on the current active firmware running on your wireless controller, and the access points it is managing.
Retrieve a bundled license key
To retrieve licenses that come as part of a wireless controller bundle, please follow the instructions on How do I activate the license included in a ProSAFE Wireless Controller bundle kit or on a replacement Wireless Controller
Add a license:
- Navigate to Maintenance > Licencing > Licence > Registration.
- In the Registration Key field enter the Licence Key and click Add.
- You may enter Customer Information and VAR Information at this time.
- Click Apply.
- After a few minutes click Refresh and the Key Status should change to Registered. The Registration info can also be viewed in the Inventory tab.
Additional License information:
- The WC7520 wireless controller comes with a pre-installed license providing support for 20 access points (AP’s). It is possible to add support for 50AP’s total, by adding 30 more licenses in 3 batches of 10.
- The WC7500 wireless controller comes with pre-installed license key providing support for 10 AP’s. It is possible to add an additional license key to support 5 more AP’s to support 15 AP’s in total.
- The WC7600v1 and WC7600v2 wireless controller comes with a 2 AP evaluation licence, for system testing. Once you apply any license key the evaluation keys expire. It is possible to add license keys to support up to 50 AP’s in 5 batches of 10 or 1 batch of 50. One single WC7600v1/v2 supports up to 50 AP’s. It is possible to stack up to 3 WC7600v1/v2’s to support up to 150 AP’s.
- The WC9500 wireless controller comes with a 2 AP evaluation licence, for system testing. Once you apply a license key the evaluation keys expire. It is possible to add support for up to 200 AP’s per WC9500 in batches of 10AP, 50AP, 100AP or 200AP. It is possible to stack up to 3 WC9500’s to support up to 600 AP’s.