Field Notice: FN74237 - Cisco Catalyst IR1101 Rugged Series Software Upgrade Using Install Mode May Be Unsuccessful Due to Limited Flash Memory Space - Workaround Provided

Cisco Catalyst IR1101 Rugged Series Routers that are using Install Mode for both their current Cisco IOS XE Software image and its upgrade may not be able to successfully upgrade due to limited bootflash space.

Cisco Catalyst IR1101 Rugged Series Routers are shipped with 4GB of storage media, part of which is assigned to the boot partition of the image. If the minimum space requirement for the boot partition is not met, the Cisco IOS XE Software upgrade process may be unsuccessful.

Cisco Catalyst IR1101 Rugged Series Routers firmware can be updated using binary image (.bin) files that are downloaded from Cisco Software Central. These files vary in size by release. Once downloaded, the .bin file can be installed on the router using two methods, Bundle Mode or Install Mode.

• Bundle Mode is the traditional method, where the entire .bin file is loaded onto the router at boot time. The boot statement in the router configuration points to the desired .bin file.
• Install Mode is the recommended method, where the .bin file is broken down into smaller .pkg files, which are loaded independently. Install mode requires more boot flash space to store the individual .pkg files.

Once the software is installed, the router can operate in either Autonomous Mode or Controller Mode.

• Autonomous Mode is the default mode for the routers and includes Cisco IOS XE Software features.
• Controller mode is used for Cisco IOS XE Catalyst SD-WAN Manager functionality.

Customers in one of the following scenarios may not be able to upgrade to a newer release of Cisco IOS XE software:

Problem Scenario: Cisco Catalyst IR1101 Operating in Controller Mode

Cisco Catalyst IR1101 Rugged Series Routers cannot upgrade to a later release of Cisco IOS XE Software using Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN Manager, formerly SD-WAN vManage, if the routers meet the following conditions:

• They are running Cisco IOS XE Releases 17.10.1a and 17.11.1a.
• They are operating in controller mode.
• They have less than 1400 MB of space available.

If all three conditions are met, the following error message will be observed:

[25-Sep-2024 13:11:19 AEST] Device: /flash requires 703602 KB of free space, but only 536416 KB is available
[25-Sep-2024 13:11:19 AEST] Software Install failed

Problem Scenario: Cisco Catalyst IR1101 Operating in Autonomous Mode

Routers that were shipped before December 2024 that are operating in autonomous mode might be affected by reduced flash space that impacts successful software upgrade. In this situation, the following files will be present in the bootflash:

IR1101-2# dir bootflash: 
62602-rw-63697069 Aug 8 2023 12:44:50-05:00 ir1101-rpboot.17.09.01.SPA.pkg
62605-rw-674161724  Jul 31 2022 16:33:58-05:00 ir1101-mono universalk9_iot.17.09.01.SPA.pkg
62611-rw-675136809  Aug 8 2023 12:37:22-05:00 ir1101-universalk9.17.09.01.SPA.bin

Workaround for Cisco Catalyst IR1101 routers that are operating in Controller Mode

Before upgrading to any later software version, first upgrade to Cisco IOS XE Release 17.12.5. For detailed steps on the upgrade process, refer to Troubleshoot IR1101 Software Upgrade Issue.

Workaround for Cisco Catalyst IR1101 routers that are operating in Autonomous Mode

Follow the steps in Troubleshoot Bootflash Cleanup on the IR1101 to remove unused images, .bin files, .pkg files, or unnecessary files from the bootflash to make room for the upgrade image. Once the necessary files have been removed from the bootflash, attempt the upgrade again.