Cisco Networking Subscription Data Sheet

Data Sheet

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Updated:September 3, 2025

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The documentation set for this product strives to use bias-free language. For the purposes of this documentation set, bias-free is defined as language that does not imply discrimination based on age, disability, gender, racial identity, ethnic identity, sexual orientation, socioeconomic status, and intersectionality. Exceptions may be present in the documentation due to language that is hardcoded in the user interfaces of the product software, language used based on RFP documentation, or language that is used by a referenced third-party product. Learn more about how Cisco is using Inclusive Language.

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Updated:September 3, 2025
 

 

Cisco Networking Subscription streamlines management of Cisco software, hardware, services, and platforms. This licensing model supports your network investment today and protects it for the future.

Features and benefits

With an active Cisco Networking Subscription, you have flexibility to:

     Aggregate and align renewal dates to your cost-center needs

     Add licenses to an existing subscription and keeping a consistent renewal date

     Upgrade entitlements mid-term and at end-of-term (renewal)

     Include different license tiers (Essentials or Advantage) in the same subscription

Additionally, the Cisco Networking Subscription includes unified product support, providing a consistent and reliable customer support experience with hardware and software coverage.

Licensing

A Cisco Networking Subscription can include our new unified licenses: Cisco Wireless Essentials and Advantage, Cisco Switching Essentials and Advantage and Cisco WAN Essentials and Advantage. These licenses give you the flexibility to set up networks in different ways—whether that’s on-premises or in the cloud.

For a full list of feature please visit:

     Cisco Switching Licensing Feature Matrix

     Cisco Wireless Licensing Feature Matrix

     Cisco Routing* and WAN Licensing Feature Matrix

* Routing licensing is not available in a Cisco Networking Subscription. To learn more about Routing and WAN licensing, visit the solution overview.

Note:      For a new subscription, a standard minimum term length is 36 months.

Additionally, a Cisco Networking Subscription can also consist of Meraki subscription licenses for the Meraki line of products.

Unified hardware

The following hardware models have the capability to choose whether to operate in the cloud or on-premises for ultimate flexibility:

     CiscoWi-Fi7accesspoints:CiscoWireless9172,9176,and9178series

     Cisco C9350 Series Smart Switches

     Cisco C9610 Series Smart Switches

Cisco Networking Subscription deployment options

A screenshot of a computer screenAI-generated content may be incorrect.

Figure 1.            

Deployment Options for Cisco Wireless and Switching

Cloud: If you choose to manage your subscription in Meraki Dashboard, your Wi-Fi 7 and switching deployment can be cloud-managed, or a mixed mode (licensing and inventory management on Dashboard, with devices managed on-premises).

Meraki Dashboard license and inventory management: Manage inventory and licenses via a single dashboard, with no cloud management except for reporting consumed licenses to CSSM. Devices can still be managed through an on-premises platform or CLI console.

On-Premises: If you choose to manage your subscription in Cisco Smart Software Manager (CSSM), your Wi-Fi 7 and switching deployment can be on premises only, with no access to Meraki Dashboard functionality.

Deployment options for Cisco WAN

Figure 2.            

Deployment options for Cisco WAN

Cloud/On Premise – WAN licenses in CSSM can be managed by Catalyst SD-WAN manager, support for both Customer managed On-Premise/Cloud. Cisco Hosted and Managed service will be an add-on under Cisco Networking subscription.

Wireless Enforcement

With Cisco Networking Subscription, there are 2 wireless enforcement scenarios that apply:

1.     Never Licensed

2.     License Expiration

Never Licensed:

     Full device functionality restricted until licensed

     For Cisco Wireless: 2.4GHz only until licensed

License Expiration:

     Devices will continue to pass traffic

     Management and monitoring via Cisco network management platforms will be restricted

     On-device management (WebUI, CLI, API) available

     Software updates will be restricted, except for PSIRT and critical bug fixes

     Additional Cisco cloud-based services and features (e.g., Spaces, ISE, TE) included in the management license or sold as add-ons will be restricted

     Access to Cisco Support provided through the subscription will be denied

WAN Licensing Enforcement

With Cisco Networking Subscription, there are 2 WAN licensing enforcement scenarios that apply:

1.     Never Licensed

2.     License Expiration

Never Licensed:

     Devices cannot be provisioned on Catalyst SD-WAN manager until associated with the appropriate license

License Expiration:

     Devices will continue to pass traffic

     Out of Compliance message appears on Catalyst SD-WAN manager if one or more devices has an expired licenses

     Access to Cisco Support provided through the subscription will be denied

     Software updates will be restricted, except for critical PSIRTs

     Management, Monitoring and Analytics via Cisco network management platform (catalyst SD-WAN manager) will be restricted

Switching Licensing Enforcement

For the on-device features, there will be no enforcement, so the OS functionality on your device will continue to operate even if the license expires.

To have uninterrupted access to the platform and its features (Meraki Dashboard and Catalyst Center) an active subscription license is needed. If your license expires or your device is never licensed, your access to the platforms will be limited, and management and monitoring capabilities will be restricted. Access to support through Cisco Networking Subscription will not be available.

Unified support

Customers get reactive, unified hardware and software support included for Cisco Networking Subscription, with 24x7 access to Cisco Technical Assistance Center (TAC).

Customers seeking faster, proactive support for multi-product, multi-vendor environments to minimize downtime, you can upgrade to Cisco Support – Enhanced. Return Material Authorization (RMA) Upgrade service for hardware replacement can be added at the device level.

Table 1.        Cisco Support - Enhanced

 

Cisco Support - Enhanced

Cisco RMA Upgrade

Trusted support

24x7 access to Cisco TAC support for software, hardware with 30-minute response time and priority case handling

 

Software and OS updates

 

Hardware RMA (available at the device level)

Warranty1

Advance hardware replacement options: 2Hr/4Hr/NCD/NBD/Onsite

Third-party solution support: Support coordination for Cisco and Cisco Alliance Partner product teams, with prioritized case handling.

ü   

 

Cisco AI Assistant for Support: AI-powered assistant provides customers and partners with self-service guided experience for TAC engagements to get things done quicker.

 

Digital insights

Assets and license view: Inventory of Cisco products with installed location, coverage information, and other details for better planning and budgeting.

 

Case management: Detailed status of support cases to track and improve case handling.

 

Security advisories, field notices, and bugs: Relevant PSIRTs, field notices, and bugs notification identified in your network to help mitigate the impact of known product vulnerabilities.2

 

 

Rapid problem resolution: Cisco engineers assist IT with troubleshooting with proactive diagnostics and automated remediation.2

ü   

 

e-Learning

e-Learning – powered by Cisco U.: Curated, use case-based training content for successful adoption and engagement of Cisco architectures and solutions.

 

1 Refer to product datasheet for warranty information.
2 These features are only available on certain platforms as determined by Cisco. The list of availability is subject to change. Contact a Cisco representative for the most up-to-data information on supported technologies.

Product specifications

Supported Switches:

Cisco C9350 Series Smart Switches

Cisco C9350-48HX, Cisco C9350-48TX, Cisco C9350-48U,

Cisco C9350-24U, Cisco C9350-48P, Cisco C9350-24P, Cisco C9350-48T, Cisco C9350-24T

Cisco C9610 Series Smart Switch

Cisco C9610R

Supported Routers:

Cisco 8000 Series Secure Routers

C8570-G2, C8550-G2, C8475-G2, C8455-G2, C8375-E-G2, C8355-G2, C8235-G2, C8231-G2, C8161-G2, C8151-G2

Supported Access Points:

Cisco Wireless 9178 Series

CW9178I

Cisco Wireless 9176 Series

CW9176I, CW9176D1

Cisco Wireless 9172 Series

CW9172I, CW9172H

Supported Wireless LAN Controllers (WLCs):

Cisco 9800 Wireless LAN Controller Series

C9800-80-K9, C9800-40-K9, C9800-L-C-K9, C9800-L-F- K9, C9800-CL

Cisco CW9800 Wireless LAN Controller Series

CW9800H1, CW9800H2, CW9800M

Unified Licensing SKUs:

Cisco Wireless Essentials

LIC-CW-E

Cisco Wireless Advantage

LIC-CW-A

Cisco Switching Essentials

LIC-CS-AC1-L-E
Cisco Switching Essentials License Access Tier 1, Large (48 port)

LIC-CS-AC1-M-E
Cisco Switching Essentials License Access Tier 1, Medium (up to 24 port)

Cisco Switching Advantage

LIC-CS-AC1-L-A
Cisco Switching Advantage License Access Tier 1, Large (48 port)

LIC-CS-AC1-M-A
Cisco Switching Advantage License Access Tier 1, Medium (up to 24 port)

LIC-CS-CO-MO-A
Cisco Switching Advantage License Core Modular (only available with C9610)

WAN Licensing SKUs:

Cisco WAN Essentials

LIC-CSWAN-S-E
Cisco WAN Essentials License, Small

LIC-CSWAN-M-E
Cisco WAN Essentials License, Medium

LIC-CSWAN-L-E
Cisco WAN Essentials License, Large

LIC-CSWAN-XL-E
Cisco WAN Essentials License, Extra Large

Cisco WAN Advantage

LIC-CSWAN-S-A
Cisco WAN Advantage License, Small

LIC-CSWAN-M-A
Cisco WAN Advantage License, Medium

LIC-CSWAN-L-A
Cisco WAN Advantage License, Large

LIC-CSWAN-XL-A
Cisco WAN Advantage License, Extra Large

Cisco Hosted/Managed Cloud service

LIC-CSWAN-HCLD

LIC-CSWAN-HCLDPRO

Advanced Security Add-ON SKUs

LIC-SEC-XL-T

LIC-SEC-XL-M

LIC-SEC-XL-C

LIC-SEC-L-T

LIC-SEC-L-M

LIC-SEC-L-C

LIC-SEC-M-T

LIC-SEC-M-M

LIC-SEC-M-C

LIC-SEC-S-T

LIC-SEC-S-M

LIC-SEC-S-C

Meraki Subscription Licenses

MX

  LIC-MX-S-A
  LIC-MX-S-E
  LIC-MX-M-A
  LIC-MX-M-E
  LIC-MX-L-A
  LIC-MX-L-E
  LIC-MX-XL-A
  LIC-MX-XL-E

MS

  LIC-MS-100-S-A
  LIC-MS-100-S-E
  LIC-MS-100-M-A
  LIC-MS-100-M-E
  LIC-MS-100-L-A
  LIC-MS-100-L-E
  LIC-MS-200-M-A
  LIC-MS-200-M-E
  LIC-MS-200-L-A
  LIC-MS-200-L-E
  LIC-MS-300-M-A
  LIC-MS-300-M-E
  LIC-MS-300-L-A
  LIC-MS-300-L-E
  LIC-MS-400-M-A
  LIC-MS-400-M-E
  LIC-MS-400-L-A
  LIC-MS-400-L-E

MR

  LIC-MR-A
  LIC-MR-E

MV

  LIC-MV-E
  LIC-MV-SEN
  LIC-MV-CA7
  LIC-MV-CA30
  LIC-MV-CA90
  LIC-MV-CA180
  LIC-MV-CA360

MG

  LIC-MG-E

SM

  LIC-SM-E

Z

  LIC-Z-A
  LIC-Z-E

Minimum firmware requirements:

     Wireless on-premises: IOS-XE 17.15.2

     Switching: IOS-XE 17.18.1

     SD-WAN: IOS-XE 20.15.3

     Cloud: no Meraki firmware requirements

Cisco Capital

Flexible payment options make it easier than ever to get the Cisco technology you need.

Cisco Capital® delivers leading-edge payment solutions, allowing you to stay focused on what’s most important—your business. We can help you drive business outcomes, accelerate innovation and digital transformation, and adapt to market dynamics faster with flexible payment options tailored to your specific business needs. Reduce the total cost of ownership, conserve capital, and accelerate growth. We help you realize the full benefits of Cisco technology today, and in the future, and pay for it in the way that best suits your business requirements. Whether you are looking for a pay-as-you consume model, or need to bundle Cisco hardware, software, services, subscriptions and third-party solutions, learn more about how Cisco Capital can help.

Document history

New or revised topic

Described in

Date

Added unified licensing enforcement details

Enforcement section

December 16, 2024

 

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