How can I install Enforced Licenses/Smart Licensing Authorization code (SLAC) within an On-Prem Deployment?

For External Customer / Partner Use Only: These instructions are provided to help customers / partners perform the following action themselves to resolve the issue. If the customer / partner runs into issues following the instructions, please have them open a case with licensing support (https://www.cisco.com/go/scm) To help resolve.

Video

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Introduction

SLAC installation on the device using OnPrem deployment is a two-step process where the device must send the usage report to OnPrem, and OnPrem needs to sync with CSSM to receive the ACK for the usage report sent by the device. If you are using a network sync, the SLP synchronization will be triggered depending on the network sync schedule. If preferred, a faster method can be achieved by manually triggering the network sync at any time from the “Reports” tab in the OnPrem GUI.

Prerequisites

Before you start, ensure that you have the following:

• A Cisco Smart Account 

• A valid CCO User ID and Password that has access to the Smart Account or Virtual Account. 

• Admin Access to SSM On-Prem

• Product Instance received an ACK from the OnPrem (OnPrem synchronization with CSSM was completed for SLP).

Note:

• Please DO NOT perform these actions yourself if you are an internal Cisco resource outside of the Licensing Support team.
• The export-controlled licenses authorized for use on a specific Product Instance will be displayed on the Virtual Account as Reserved.

Steps

To generate the SLAC request in OnPrem Disconnected Mode

Step 1: Generate Auth Code on CSSM.

Step 1A: Access CSSM Cloud from https://software.cisco.com/

Step 1B: Log in with your Credentials, Username, & Password.

Step 1C: Choose the correct smart account from the Top Right Corner.

Step 1D: Click on Manage Licenses under Smart Software Manager

Step 1E: Click on the Inventory Tab & Select your Virtual Account

Step 1F: Navigate to the Product Instance Tab

Step 1G: Click the Authorize License-Enforced Features button.

Step 1H:  In the new pop-up window, click Proceed. Enter the required information. It is recommended to copy these values from the "show license udi" output on the device to avoid typos.

Step 1I: Select License type and Quantity - you can only select non-demo licenses available on the virtual account

Step 1J: If the device type could not be identified (for example: C8000v), you will be asked to select the type from the drop-down menu (DNA On-Prem might be the only option displayed; it's OK to select it).

Step 1K: Click the Generate Authorization Code button and then Download as File to download the auth file to your laptop/Desktop.

Step 2: Import the Auth File to On-Prem

Step 2A: Open SSM On-Prem (https://(IP Address):8443/#/mainview/).

Step 2B: Navigate to Licensing Workspace > Smart Licensing > Inventory Tab

Step 2C: Navigate into SL Using Policy tab.

Step 2D: Select the relevant Virtual Account

Step 2E: Click Export/Import All and select Import from Cisco from the drop-down menu.

Step 2F: Select the Auth File downloaded earlier from CSSM.

Step 3: Send the Auth Code Request to the Product Instance

Step 3A: On the device, trigger the license authorization request:

Step 3B: Wait a few minutes and verify the license authorization using the command “show license authorization.”

Step 3C: Once the license has been authorized, the feature needs to be enabled on the device. The next step depends on the platform being used:

To install SLAC using Network Connected Mode

Step 1: On the device, trigger the license authorization request.

Step 2: On the On-Prem GUI, go to License Workspace -> Smart Licensing -> Click on Reports -> Click on usage Schedules -> Click on Synchronize now with Cisco Button.

Step 3: Wait for CSSM to generate the ACK & OnPrem to get the generated ACK from CSSM.

Step 4: When the Device Polls next time, depending on the interval, the ACK will be sent from the OnPrem to the Device.

To enable Instant authorization request to CSSM from OnPrem in Network Connected Mode

Step 1: From the On-Prem Admin Workspace (https://(IP Address):8443/admin/#/mainview), click the Settings widget. The Settings window appears. 

Step 2: Click the CSLU tab. 

Step 3: Slide the Instant authorization request to CSSM toggle to the right to enable. 

Step 4: Click Save

Note:

• Instant authorization request to CSSM only supports push-mode devices. Pull-mode devices are not supported.
• CSSM Cloud includes reserved licenses in the total number of licenses used. SSM On-Prem, however, does not. This causes CSSM Cloud and SSM-On Prem to show a different number of licenses in use after sending multiple SLAC requests.
• Instant authorization requests to CSSM are only supported in Connected-mode, not Disconnected-mode.
• The Instant authorization only applies to devices with IOS version 17.9 and above (Smart Agent version greater than 5.3).
• You can also refer to the Specific Product Guide to follow detailed steps to install the Auth Code on the device.

Troubleshooting

Collecting Data from Product Instance

Collect these outputs from the Product Instance for analysis:

A) to verify which licenses are activated/in use

- show version

- show license summary

- show license authorization

- show license usage <<< it will also indicate which licenses are Perpetual vs Subscription

B) to verify the transport URL and whether there was a RUM report sent to the OnPrem and/or whether ACK was received:

- show license status

C) to verify if the enforced/export-controlled license is authorized:

- show license authorization

D) to verify what messages were sent to/received from OnPrem

- show license history message 

If you experience an issue with this process that you cannot address, open a case in Support Case Manager (SCM) using the software licensing option.

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