Licenses and Software Updates

View and Manage Licenses

Licenses determine the features that you can use and the type and number of devices that Cisco EPN Manager can manage. When you connect to Cisco EPN Manager (without logging in), the login page displays a banner that identifies the type of license the server is running (see Types of Cisco EPN Manager Licenses). If Cisco EPN Manager is configured to use single sign-on (SSO), check the license type by viewing the banner contents.

You can upgrade Cisco EPN Manager to a new version using one of the following licensing methods:

From Release 5.0, Smart license is enabled by default on all fresh installations of Cisco EPN Manager. In case you are upgrading to Cisco EPN Manager 5.0, the existing licensing mode will continue.

Types of Cisco EPN Manager Licenses

The following topics describe the feature and time-based licenses supported by Cisco EPN Manager.

Base License

A base license enables all applications and all device drivers (without device count restrictions) on the server. It is displayed in the web GUI as Base License.

Cisco Advantage Addon Function Right to Manage(RTM) License

The Cisco Advantage Addon Function RTM license is displayed in the web GUI as Cisco Advantage Addon Function Right To Manage license.

This license enables all features and options related to service discovery, provisioning, service promotion, service assurance, and multi-layer trace functions. Features and menu options related to these functions are not visible unless the license is active. Also, any scheduled provisioning jobs fail to run. After you install the first Cisco Advantage Addon Function Right to Manage (RTM) license, these features and options are enabled. Cisco EPN Manager licensing function tracks and reports use of this license in the licensing dashboard.

Device Right-to-Manage (RTM) License

Device RTM licenses allow the server to manage a specific number of devices of a specific device type. For RTM licenses, the device count is displayed next to the device type. These licenses come in two flavors:

  • Extended RTM licenses for core, edge, aggregation, and access network devices. These licenses enable end-to-end network management: device lifecycle management, network provisioning, and network assurance.

  • Foundation RTM licenses for service provider Wi-Fi networks that have Wi-Fi access points, WAN routers, core switches, and data center switches. Along with device lifecycle management, these licenses enable assurance visibility and troubleshooting capabilities.

Devices that are configured as satellites (for example, Cisco ASR 903 with a Cisco ASR 9000v host) are counted as independent devices.

Cisco EPN Manager also discovers third-party network devices. The collected information is displayed in the web GUI, but results can vary widely (depends on the responses Cisco EPN Manager receives from the devices).

RTM licenses are displayed in the GUI as follows:

  • For Cisco devices—Device model, such as NCS 2002 or ASR 9001.

  • For third-party devices—Generic: Third Party Device.

SBY License for High Availability

The Standby (SBY) license allows the setup of high availability deployments. In a high availability deployment, all the device and feature licenses must be installed on the primary server. No licenses are required on the secondary server.

Time-Based, Lab, and Permanent Licenses

Most licenses can be purchased as a lab license or time-based license:

  • Lab—For lab or staging environments.

    With lab license, there is no limit on the number of devices and types of devices you can manage. You can manage all devices in a staging environment with this license.


    Note

    You can choose either the Lab license or the Device Right-to-Manage license to manage your devices. If you choose both the licenses, by default Cisco EPN Manager enables only the Lab license and automatically updates the license summary count of the Device Right-to-Manage license as zero.

  • Time-Based (Evaluation)—For a 90-day trial period (the product is disabled when the trial period expires). If you purchase a time-based license, the days remaining are listed next to the license name.

These licenses can be converted to Permanent licenses.

Use Cisco Smart Licensing

Cisco recommends that you use the simple and efficient Cisco Smart Licensing mechanism to manage your licenses.

The following topics explain how to set up and manage Cisco EPN Manager licenses using Cisco Smart Licensing.

Set Up Cisco Smart Licensing in Cisco EPN Manager

Step

See:

1.

Create a Smart Account with Cisco Systems.

Go to Smart Account Request and follow the instructions on the web site.

2.

Set up communication between Cisco EPN Manager and the CSSM on Cisco.com.

Set Up the Transport Mode Between Cisco EPN Manager and Cisco Smart Software Manager

4.

Register Cisco EPN Manager with the CSSM on Cisco.com by obtaining a token from the CSSM and entering it in the Cisco EPN Manager web GUI.

Register Cisco EPN Manager with the Cisco Smart Software Manager

Set Up the Transport Mode Between Cisco EPN Manager and Cisco Smart Software Manager
Procedure
Step 1

Choose Administration > Settings > System Settings, then choose General > Account Settings.

Step 2

Click the Smart Licensing Transport tab and select a communication mode:

  • Direct mode—Sends license information directly to the cloud. This is the default. You cannot edit this URL. Click Test Connectivity to check the connection status.

  • Transport Gateway—Uses either a Cisco Smart Call Home transport gateway or a Cisco Smart Licensing Software satellite (which is installed at customer premises and provides a subset of CCSM functionality) for communication. (See Cisco.com for more details.) Enter the appropriate URL in the Enter URL field. Click Test Connectivity to check the connection status.

  • HTTP/HTTPS Proxy—Uses either an HTTP or HTTPS proxy for communication between Cisco EPN Manager and the cloud. To enable this option, you must first configure the proxy settings. Click HTTP/HTTPS Proxy hyperlink or click the Proxy tab to add or edit the proxy settings. See Set Up the Cisco EPN Manager Proxy Server.

Step 3

Click Save to save the transport settings.

Step 4

To revert to the default values, click Reset, and then click Save.

Check Cisco EPN Manager License Usage

To view these license counts:

Check this part of the dashboard:

For a specific week or month

License Summary—Hover over a bar chart to view more details.

For a specific license type

Device Distribution for License—Click one of the license links at the top of the License Summary dashlet. Hover your mouse cursor over the chart to view the details.

Reference: Smart Product Registration and License Authorization Statuses

Product Registration Status

The License Registration Status reflects whether the product is properly registered with Cisco Smart Software Licensing on Cisco.com.

License Registration Status

Description

Unregistered

Smart Software Licensing is enabled in Cisco EPN Manager but Cisco EPN Manager is not registered with the CSSM.

Registered

Cisco EPN Manager is registered with the CSSM. Cisco EPN Manager has received an ID certificate that will be used for future communication with the Cisco licensing authority.

Registration Expired

Cisco EPN Manager did not successfully renew its registration prior to the expiration date and has been removed from CSSM.

License Authorization Status

The License Authorization status reflects license usage against purchased licenses, and whether you are in compliance with Cisco Smart Licensing. If you exceed the number of purchased licenses, the product's status will be Out of Compliance.

License Authorization Status

Description

Evaluation Mode

Cisco EPN Manager is running in evaluation mode (expires in 90 days).

Authorized

Cisco EPN Manager has a valid Smart Account and is registered. All licenses requested by the product are authorized for use.

Out of Compliance

Cisco EPN Manager has exceeded the number of licenses that were purchased. (Specifically, the virtual account for the product instance has a shortage of one or more licenses types.)

Evaluation Expired

The evaluation period has expired and Cisco EPN Manager is in the unlicensed state.

Authorization Expired

Cisco EPN Manager did not successfully renew its license authorization prior to the authorization expiration date.

View the Licensing Dashboard

To open the dashboard, do one of the following:

  • Choose Administration > Dashboards > Licensing Dashboard.

  • Click the Licensing Dashboard link from the top-right corner of the Smart Software Licensing page.

The information displayed in the dashboard depends on the licensing mode that is enabled. If smart software licensing is currently enabled, the following dashlets are displayed:

  • License Summary dashlet—Displays a bar chart that graphs the number of licenses consumed for each license type during a particular time period. To view additional information, place your cursor over the chart.

  • Device Distribution for License dashlet—To view the device distribution chart for a particular license, click its link from the top of the chart displayed in the License Summary dashlet. To view additional information, place your cursor over the chart.


Note
The information displayed in the License Dashboard is refreshed daily after the SmartLicense job runs at 02:00 A.M. (its pre-configured run time). To view this job in the Job Dashboard, choose Administration > Dashboards > Job Dashboard.

Manage Software Updates

What Are Software Updates?

Cisco provides updates to the Cisco EPN Manager software periodically. These updates fall into the following three categories:

  • Critical Fixes—Provide critical fixes to the software. We strongly recommend that you download and apply all of these updates as soon as they are available.
  • Device Support—Adds support for managing devices which Cisco EPN Manager did not support at release time.

  • Add-ons—Provide new features, which can include GUI screens and functionality, to supplement the Cisco EPN Manager version you are using. This includes Cisco EPN Manager maintenance packs and maintenance pack point patches.

The update notifications that Cisco EPN Manager displays depend on the Notification Settings specified by your administrator. See Enable or Disable Notifications About Software Updates . All software updates are packaged in .ubf files. A large update can contain individual smaller updates, from which you can choose what you want to install. When you install an update, Cisco EPN Manager does the following:

  • Verifies that the file publisher is Cisco Systems and the file has not been tampered with.

  • Automatically installs any other updates that are required.

If you have connectivity to http://www.cisco.com , you can download and install the updates directly from Cisco.com. If you do not have internet connectivity, copy the update from a server that has the necessary connectivity and install it from there.

See the Cisco EPN Manager Installation Guide for installation instructions for maintenance packs. For point patch installation instructions, see the readme file provided with the patch file on the Software Download page on Cisco.com.

View the Installed Product Software Version

Use one of these methods to check the Cisco EPN Manager product version:

  • From the Web GUI, click the Settings icon at the top right of the page, and choose Help > About Cisco EPN Manager.
  • From the CLI, view the contents of the file named

    #cat /opt/CSCOlumos/installedComponentsVersions.xml

To use the CLI, see Establish an SSH Session With the Cisco EPN Manager Server.

View Installed Software Updates

If you are not logged in to the web GUI, you can view a pop-up window that lists the software updates by clicking View Installed Updates from the login page.

If you are logged in to the web GUI, you can view the software updates in two ways:

  • From the About Cisco EPN Manager page, by clicking the settings icon at the top right of the page and clicking About Cisco EPN Manager, and then clicking View Installed Updates. (The View Installed Updates link is also available from the login page.)

  • By choosing Administration > Licenses and Software Updates > Software Update (this method provides the most detail).

The Software Update page displays two tabs:

  • Installed Updates—Updates that Cisco EPN Manager is currently using.

  • Uploaded Update Files—Update files that have been uploaded to the server (including those that are not being used). The Corresponding Updates field lists any prerequisite updates that were also uploaded.

    If an update file has not yet been installed, it can be deleted. Select the file and click the Delete button.

Enable or Disable Notifications About Software Updates

By default, Cisco EPN Manager displays information about all available updates in the Software Updates page. Because the list can be quite long, you may want to adjust what is displayed and the updates for which you are notified. You can also disable all notifications and re-enable them later.

Procedure

Configure your software update notification settings.

  1. Choose Administration > Settings > System Settings, then choose General > Software Update.

  2. Under Notification Settings, select or deselect the update categories. To disable all notifications, make sure no categories are selected. For an explanation of the categories, see What Are Software Updates?

  3. Click Save.