CCNA · DEVICE MANAGEMENT

Upgrade classic IOS from a TFTP server

R1 is a Cisco 2911 running IOS 15.7(3)M8. Upgrade it to 15.9(3)M9, which waits on the TFTP server at 10.0.0.100. Classic IOS boots one bundle image: copy it to flash:, check that it arrived intact, point the boot variable at it, save, and reload. The published MD5 of c2900-universalk9-mz.SPA.159-3.M9.bin is d4d4724eeab343dfa86596645a7135c5.

CCNA ER track · Cisco IOS · 4 objectives

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Objectives

The simulator ticks each one as soon as the network meets it.

Copy c2900-universalk9-mz.SPA.159-3.M9.bin from 10.0.0.100 to flash: (copy tftp://10.0.0.100/ flash:).
Verify it against the published MD5: verify /md5 flash: d4d4724eeab343dfa86596645a7135c5.
Make R1 boot the new image (boot system flash:) and save the configuration.
Reload R1: show version reports 15.9(3)M9.

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Before you start

Check free space first (dir flash:): the copy fails when flash is too small. The boot system command is configuration, so it only survives the reload if you save it. Without a boot system line, or when every entry fails, IOS boots the first image it finds in flash:, which may still be the old one.

Concept

Upgrading classic IOS: copy, verify, boot system, reload

Classic IOS (and IOS XE in bundle mode) boots one image file. An upgrade copies the new image into flash, checks it is intact, tells the router to boot it, saves that setting and reloads. Every step can fail on its own: no room in flash, a corrupt transfer, a typo in the boot variable, or a boot variable that was never saved.

Concept

Router platforms: chassis, cards and show commands

Each router model has its own hardware: a fixed ISR 4451-X or Cisco 2911, or a modular NCS 5508 or Cisco 8808 with route processors, line cards, fabric cards, fans and power modules. The platform show commands tell you what is installed, what software runs, and whether every part is healthy, which is the first thing to check before an upgrade or a hardware change.