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Sophos Central Wireless requirements

Central Wireless

Sophos Central Wireless works reliably only when Access Point, network, and internet access are prepared before onboarding. Many registration errors are not caused by the Wireless profile itself, but by missing IP addresses, blocked outbound ports, wrong time, or unsuitable Access Point models.

Important: If these requirements are not met, registration in Sophos Central can already fail in the Onboarding Wizard or when adding an Access Point later.

Supported Sophos Access Points

Before setup, check whether the model is intended for Sophos Central Wireless. For older devices, firmware also matters.

  • Sophos AP series (End-of-Life)
  • Sophos AP15 / AP15c
  • Sophos AP55 / AP55c
  • Sophos AP100 / AP100c / AP100x

Sophos APX series

Sophos AP6 series

Info: Whether an Access Point is compatible with Sophos Central Wireless depends on the model and, for older series, also on the installed firmware. Access Points with a Central sticker are intended for registration in Sophos Central. Older AP models without a suitable firmware version may require an update through an existing Sophos Firewall or UTM environment.

Network requirements

For successful communication with Sophos Central, these points must be met:

  • DHCP assigns an IPv4 address to the Access Point.
  • DNS can resolve the required Sophos Central destinations.
  • NTP is reachable so time and certificate validation work.
  • The Access Point reaches the internet without an upstream HTTPS proxy.
  • During onboarding, the Access Point must reach Sophos Central before complex VLAN or SSID designs apply.
  • Outbound access must allow at least 80/TCP, 443/TCP, and 123/UDP.

Practical checks before registration

Before adding an Access Point, a short basic check is worthwhile:

  1. Enable the switch port and check PoE power.
  2. Check the DHCP lease for the Access Point.
  3. Check DNS server and default gateway in the AP network.
  4. Allow outbound firewall rules for HTTP, HTTPS, and NTP.
  5. Ensure no transparent HTTPS proxy or Captive Portal is in the way.
  6. Note the serial number and compare it with the device or box.

If the Access Point is not found later in the wizard, these checks help faster than an immediate factory reset.