Using the Dashboard XML API or Public Status Page
To augment Dashboard, Cisco Meraki MR Access Points have a public status page that can be made available. This is an overview of a network that shows information such as the number of clients or amount of traffic being passed. In addition to a publicly visible webpage, an XML or KML feed can be made available as well. These settings are configured on the Configure > Network-wide settings page in MR networks, or Network-wide > Configure > General in combined networks. This page also provides a network-specific link to the various feeds.
We provide access to our office network in this fashion to help showcase what can be displayed. Our network can be found below:
Public page: http://p7.meraki.com/network/merakicorp
XML feed: http://p7.meraki.com/network/merakicorp/api
KML feed: http://p7.meraki.com/network/merakicorp/earth
Public Page
This page creates a publicly accessible HTML instance of the Monitor > Maps & floor plans page, which is powered by Google Maps. This page is identical to the map found in the Dashboard, including floorplans or uploaded maps, device placement, and information about the clients or usage. This page is read-only, and changes can still only be applied through the Dashboard. Map and Satellite view are available as long as satellite imagery is available in your geographic area, and any floorplans that have been uploaded via Dashboard will also be displayed. The MR Access Points are either placed manually on the map, or place themselves if an address is provided. More information on map placement can be found hre.
The number on each node is configurable, and can display the AP model number, number of current clients, number of clients in the past 24 hours, or the number of hops to the gateway. Links between mesh neighbors can be added in a variety of colors, and there exists an option to display a circle around each AP, which scales larger with increased usage. These options are all configured by clicking the cog in the top right corner of the map.
Figure 1. Map display options
This information makes it easy to publicly display an arrangement of access points, or to monitor the network at a glance. Since the information is clearly presented in a visual way, this is a great page to share with individuals who may not be interested in the more detailed or more technical information.
XML
Any information available on the map is also available in an easily-parsed XML file. This makes it much simpler to take that information and sort, store, or manipulate it as needed. With a little bit of effort, this XML dump makes it easy to track historical patterns and automate the monitoring of a network. By selecting 'Enabled, but hide geographic locations' instead of simply 'Enabled', information about latitude and longitude will be hidden.
KML
KML, or Keyhole Markup Language, is an XML notation created for use with Google Maps. The KML dump will contain location information for the access points, which is useful for exporting this data into another program or tool. This page will not be generated if geographic locations are hidden in the public status page settings. More information on KML can be found here.