Guest Wi-Fi support troubleshooting checklist

A first- and second-line checklist for guest-network access issues.

Gather the basics

• User contact details, and whether the issue is recurring.
• The device: connected by Wi-Fi or wired; operating system and version; any recent OS/firmware upgrade, network-setting change, or new security app (VPN, antivirus).
• Scope: are other users at the site affected, and is there a pattern (same OS or device type, a recent major OS update)?

Triage by symptom

• Captive portal does not appear: confirm the correct SSID and a redirect-capable browser; rule out VPN/firewall/proxy; check the device is not on the MAC blacklist in the Administration Portal.
• No IP address: on a Service Gateway, verify in the Administration Portal that the MAC is registered and an IP is assigned, on the correct VLAN/IP network; on Cisco Meraki, check DHCP in the Dashboard (or with the customer’s external DHCP).
• Unexpected disconnects: check session and inactivity timers in the Administration Portal, network load or AP issues, and recurring errors for the MAC in the logs.
• Login or redirect fails: check in the Administration Portal whether the login attempt failed, and confirm the email domain or SAML credentials are not blocked by policy; test with the same credentials on a reference device.
• Cisco Meraki: verify the Walled Garden allows traffic to the captive-portal endpoints.

Escalating to second line

Collect the device MAC and IP, the user’s email/phone, timestamps and a description, the connection type and OS version, and the steps already taken.

Related pages

• Administration Portal: where most of the checks above are performed.
• Guest Wi-Fi captive-portal FAQ.