Cisco Spaces (formerly Cisco DNA Spaces) is a cloud platform that turns your Cisco or Meraki Wi-Fi access points into sensors, giving you real-time occupancy, location analytics, asset tracking, and building insights without installing a separate sensor network. Meraki customers get it included: MR Enterprise licenses now bundle Cisco Spaces Essentials, and MR Advanced licenses bundle Cisco Spaces Advantage. Organizations use it to right-size office space, find equipment faster, and monitor safety and environmental conditions.
This guide covers what Cisco Spaces is, what each license includes, how it works with Meraki, use cases by industry, privacy considerations, and how to get started.
What Is Cisco Spaces?
Cisco Spaces is a location-based services and analytics platform that works with your existing Cisco Catalyst or Meraki wireless infrastructure. Access points detect Wi-Fi and Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) signals from devices, badges, and tags, and Cisco Spaces turns that data into dashboards and alerts about how people and assets move through your buildings. It can also pull data from Webex room devices and IoT sensors for occupancy, temperature, humidity, and air quality.
With Cisco Spaces, organizations can:
- Analyze workspace utilization: identify underused floors and rooms, improve floor plans, and support hybrid work.
- Track assets in real time: locate tagged equipment such as carts, pumps, tools, and forklifts.
- Improve operations in healthcare, education, and manufacturing: monitor occupancy, simplify wayfinding, and reduce time spent searching.
- Enhance safety and security: see where people are during an emergency, receive environmental alerts, and support compliance reporting.
Cisco Spaces Licenses: What’s Included
According to Cisco Meraki documentation, Spaces licenses are now bundled with Meraki wireless licenses on co-term and subscription licensing (not per-device licensing):
| Meraki license | Included Cisco Spaces tier | Typical capabilities |
|---|---|---|
| MR Enterprise | Spaces Essentials | Location analytics, live occupancy, device detect and locate, behavior metrics |
| MR Advanced | Spaces Advantage | Essentials plus IoT device management, environmental analytics, smart workspace apps, and APIs |
| Add-on | Spaces Premier and solution packs | Advanced asset tracking and IoT services for operations and large venues |
If you already run Meraki MR access points, you may already be licensed for Cisco Spaces Essentials and just need to activate the integration.
Why Cisco Meraki + Cisco Spaces Is a Game-Changer
Meraki provides the backbone: secure, scalable, cloud-managed networking with centralized visibility. Cisco Spaces turns that backbone into a source of intelligence, helping organizations reduce real estate and operating costs, improve efficiency, and create better experiences for employees, patients, and students.
The integration is now native. You can enable Cisco Spaces from the Meraki dashboard, and it syncs your networks, floor plans, access points, and telemetry automatically, eliminating the manual mapping that older integrations required. Pair it with Meraki MV cameras and MT sensors for a single cloud dashboard covering network, video, and environment. For a camera overview, read our Cisco Meraki security cameras overview.
Cisco Meraki + Cisco Spaces Use Cases Across Industries
- Warehouses and manufacturing: track tools, carts, and equipment with BLE tags, monitor zones, and ensure reliable wireless coverage on the floor.
- Corporate workplaces: measure real occupancy to support hot-desking, consolidate underused space, and adjust cleaning and HVAC schedules.
- Healthcare facilities: locate mobile medical equipment, offer wayfinding to patients and visitors, monitor occupancy, and receive IoT-driven environmental alerts.
- Education: understand classroom, library, and common-area use across campuses and plan facilities accordingly.
- Government and public facilities: monitor occupancy and plan space without adding new sensors.
Privacy and Data Considerations
Location analytics should be deployed transparently. Cisco Spaces works with aggregated and anonymized data for most occupancy analytics. Before enabling features that identify individuals or devices, define what data you collect, how long you keep it, and who can see it, and align with your privacy policy, employee notices, and state privacy laws such as California’s CCPA/CPRA.
How to Get Started with Cisco Spaces
- Check your licensing: confirm whether your MR licenses include Spaces Essentials or Advantage.
- Validate coverage: location accuracy depends on access point density and placement; older APs may need upgrades.
- Upload accurate floor plans and place APs correctly in the Meraki dashboard.
- Define goals: start with one or two measurable outcomes, such as reducing leased space or cutting equipment search time.
- Add tags and sensors where you need asset tracking or environmental monitoring.
Why Businesses Choose BTI as Their Cisco Meraki Partner
Technology only delivers results when paired with the right expertise. BTI Communications Group has been in business for 40 years and designs, deploys, and manages Meraki networks across industries:
- Certified Cisco and Meraki engineers: proven experience implementing wireless, switching, security, and camera solutions.
- End-to-end IT and security: from Wi-Fi surveys and design to deployment, managed services, and ongoing monitoring.
- Strategic approach: we align technology with business goals, improving efficiency and reducing risk.
Work with a Cisco Meraki partner that can activate and tune Cisco Spaces for your buildings, or contact our Cisco Meraki Los Angeles team. See how Cisco Meraki MV and Axis cameras compare as you plan the rest of your smart building.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Cisco Spaces?
A cloud location-services and analytics platform, formerly Cisco DNA Spaces, that uses Cisco or Meraki Wi-Fi access points as sensors for occupancy, location analytics, and asset tracking.
Is Cisco Spaces included with Meraki?
Yes, on co-term and subscription licensing. Meraki MR Enterprise licenses include Cisco Spaces Essentials and MR Advanced licenses include Cisco Spaces Advantage.
What is the difference between Cisco Spaces Essentials and Advantage?
Essentials provides location analytics, live occupancy, and device detect-and-locate. Advantage adds IoT device management, environmental analytics, smart workspace apps, and APIs.
Does Cisco Spaces require new hardware?
Not usually. It works with existing Cisco and Meraki access points, though location accuracy depends on AP density, and asset tracking requires BLE tags.
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