MANAGING CISCO IOS

OVERVIEW
The

router boot sequence

Locating IOS software
The configuration register
Recovering Passwords
Backing Up the Cisco IOS
Restoring or Upgrading the Cisco Router IOS
Backing Up Router Configuration
Restoring Router Configuration
Cisco Discovery Protocol (CDP)

ROUTER BOOT SEQUENCE

The router performs a POST. The POST tests the
hardware to verify that all components of the device
are operational and present. For example, the POST
checks for the different interfaces on the router. The
POST is stored in and run from ROM (read-only
memory)
2. The bootstrap looks for and loads the Cisco IOS
software. The bootstrap is a program in ROM that is
used to execute programs. The bootstrap program is
responsible for finding where each IOS program is
located and then loading the file. By default, the IOS
software is loaded from flash memory in all Cisco
routers.
3. The IOS software looks for a valid configuration file
stored in NVRAM. This file is called startup-config and
is only there if an administrator copies the runningconfig file into NVRAM.
4. If a startup-config file is in NVRAM, the router will load
1.

LOCATING IOS SOFTWARE

CONFIGURATION

It is 16-bit software register thats written into NVRAM.

Used to control how the router boots up.
The default configuration setting on Cisco routers is 0x2102.
To know what is the current value of configuration register, use show
version command.
You can change the default value by using this command.

REGISTER

Router(config)#config-register 0x2142

Notice that bit 6 can be used to ignore the NVRAM contents. If it is enabled.

RECOVERING PASSWORDS
Here are the main steps to password recovery:
1. Interrupting the Router Boot Sequence by pressing the Ctrl+Break key
combination when using HyperTerminal and while the router first reboots.
The command prompt will be like that.
rommon 1 >
2. Changing the Configuration Register to ignore NVRAM contents by using
this command
rommon 1 > confreg 0x2142
3. Reloading the Router and Entering Privileged Mode by this
command
rommon 1 > reset
The router will reload and ask if you want to use setup mode answer NO.
4. Copy startup-config to running-config in Privileged Mode by using
this command
Router#copy start run

RECOVERING PASSWORDS
5. Change password by setting new password
Router#conf t
Router(config)#enable secret kkkk
6. Change the value of configuration register to enable NVRAM
contents

Router(config)#config-register 0x2102
7. Save your work

Router#copy run start

8. Reload router to activate changing of configuration register

Router#reload

BACKING UP THE CISCO

IOS

Before you upgrade or restore a Cisco IOS, you really should copy the
existing file to a TFTP or FTP host as a backup just in case the new
image crashes and burns.
To back up the Cisco IOS to a TFTP server, you use this command
Router#copy flash FTP
OR

Router#copy flash TFTP

This command requires only the source filename and the IP address
of the TFTP or FTP server.

You can get the source filename by using Show

The key to success in this backup routine is to make sure that youve got
good, solid connectivity to the TFTP server. Check this by pinging the
device from the router.

Router#ping FTP_server

flash command.

RESTORING OR UPGRADING ROUTER IOS

You can download the file from a TFTP or FTP server to flash memory
by this command

Router#copy FTP flash

This command requires the IP address of the FTP server and the
name of the file you want to download.

You are prompted to make sure that you really want to proceed with
erasing flash memory.

BACKING UP ROUTER CONFIGURATION

To copy the routers configuration from a router to a FTP server, you can
use these commands.

Router#copy run
FTP
Router#copy start FTP

Copying the Current Configuration to NVRAM

Router#copy run start

RESTORING ROUTER
CONFIGURATION

If you did copy the routers configuration to a TFTP server

as a second backup, you can restore the configuration

Router#copy tftp run

This command ask you about FTP_IP address, Source

filename and destination filename.

CISCO DISCOVERY
PROTOCOL
CDP is a proprietary protocol designed by Cisco to help administrators

collect information about both locally attached and remote devices.

By using CDP, you can gather hardware and protocol information about
neighbor devices, which is useful info for troubleshooting and
documenting the network.

The show cdp command gives you information about two CDP global
parameters that can be configured on Cisco devices:

CDP timer

how often CDP packets are transmitted to all

active interfaces.

CDP holdtime the amount of time that the device will hold
packets received from neighbor devices.

Router#sh cdp

Global CDP information:

Sending CDP packets every 60 seconds

Sending a holdtime value of 180 seconds

CISCO DISCOVERY PROTOCOL

Use the global commands cdp holdtime and cdp timer to configure the CDP
holdtime and timer on a router:

Router(config)#cdp timer 90
Router(config)#cdp holdtime 240

Gathering Neighbor Information by using this command

Router#sh

cdp nei

Gathering Interface Traffic Information including the number of CDP packets

sent and received and the errors with CDP.

Router#sh cdp traffic

Gathering Port and Interface Information including CDP status on router

interfaces or switch ports.

Router#sh cdp interface

To turn off CDP on one interface on a router,

Router(config)#int s0
Router(config-if)#no cdp enable