CUCM License Migration from Version 8.x to Version 9.x

Introduction

This document describes the process of Cisco Unfiifed Communications Manager (CUCM) license migration from Version 8.x to Version 9.1. This document discusses the conversion process and the difference between Versions 9.0 and 9.1 licensing. Since Version 9.0 is now superceded by Version 9.1, the examples and screenshots shown are from CUCM Version 9.1.

CUCM Version 9 introduces the Enterprise License Manager (ELM), a separate product that provides licenses to Cisco Unified Communications applications. ELM runs co-resident with CUCM or Cisco Unity Connection (CUC) and acts as a single licensing repository for all CUCM or CUC clusters in the network.

Important Pre-Upgrade Considerations

ELM is Installed Co-resident with CUCM and CUC by Default

It is important to understand that ELM is always installed with CUCM and CUC. Before you migrate, decide which server you want to run ELM. This server is where all your licenses are loaded. Even though ELM is installed on every node, it does not run unless configured.

ELM can also run as a standalone server, which reduces the impact of an outage of one of your CUCM or CUC nodes on the licensing for other clusters. If you run a standalone ELM, it bypasses the requirement that ELM licenses be rehosted by Cisco Licensing Technical Assistance Center (TAC) when there are network configuration changes on CUCM or CUC.

Spare DLU Licenses

One of the first things you need to consider before you upgrade is what to do with any spare licenses that remain for your Version 8.x installation. If you have Device License Units (DLUs) that have been purchased but have not been uploaded to the call manager and you want them to be considered during the migration process, upload them to CUCM 8.x now. You cannot upload them after the Version 9.1 upgrade.

Caveats for the Upgrade to Version 9.0

Cisco Bug ID CSCuc02327, found in Version 9.0, causes an issue when you migrate DLUs. If no devices are added to the system, this primarily applies to non-production upgrade scenarios.

Caveats for the Upgrade to Version 9.1 Base

Cisco Bug ID CSCue14471, identified in Version 9.1, causes double license usage with extension mobility. It is recommended that you upgrade to Version 9.1(1a) in order to avoid this licensing bug.

Perform the Upgrade

You cannot migrate your licenses until after you have performed the upgrade. It is always recommended that you upgrade to the latest version available on Cisco.com for the destination version.

Complete the instructions in the Release Notes and Upgrade Guides to plan and perform your upgrade. Reference the Cisco Unified Communications Manager Documentation Guide, Release 9.1(1) in order to locate these documents.

Note: The specific steps for the upgrade are not covered in this document.

At this point, as mentioned in the Spare DLU Licenses section, make sure all your spare DLU licenses are loaded into your call manager before you upgrade because this is your last chance to do so. Once you have uploaded all your spare DLUs, reviewed the caveats above, and have chosen your upgrade version, you are ready to begin the upgrade.

Note: The license migration process takes place post-upgrade.

Post-Upgrade

This section describes the steps required in order to get your newly upgraded cluster properly licensed for CUCM Version 9.1.

A First Look at ELM

Now that the upgrade is complete, log in to ELM for the first time and investigate it. The URL for the ELM web interface is: https://<ip or hostname of publisher>/elm-admin.

Note: ELM is automatically installed co-resident with a CUCM publisher. It can also be installed as a standalone application on a physical server or virtual machine. If you install ELM in a virtualized environment, choose the smallest deployment type from the CUCM Open Virtual Appliance (OVA) template. If you plan to manage multiple clusters with ELM, it is recommended that you use a standalone ELM.

The login information for ELM is the application you created when the server was installed. Or, if you run ELM co-resident with your CUCM publisher, use the same credentials you use to log in to the CUCM Administration web page.

Once you log in, this ELM Dashboard page displays:

From the ELM Dashboard, you can access this information:

• Overview: A count of product instances added, the last time a change to licensing was made, and the last time a synchronization was performed.
• License Alerts: Any alerts that pertain to non-compliance of other licensing issues.
• License Usage: Counts of licenses.
• Synchronization Failures: Details about synchronization failures.

Add Your Cluster and Sync

In order to add your cluster to the ELM product instances list, navigate to Inventory > Product Instances, and click the Add button.

When you click the Add button, you are prompted for your CUCM publishers information. You do not need to add your subscribers, only the publisher. Click OK once all the information is added.

As long as your login information is correct and ELM is able to reach the cluster IP address, this message displays:

Synchronize your cluster with ELM in order to upload all device data from the cluster and allow ELM to allocate the licenses required by your CUCM cluster.

Note: If you have more than one cluster, for the sake of efficiency, you might want to add all clusters before you perform your first sync.

When you are ready, click Synchronize Now. When synchronization is complete, an image similar to this one displays:

Note: At the bottom of the page, the asterisk indicates that there are pre-9.0 licenses installed in the product instance which you added. The message states that you can "upgrade" these licenses on the license planning page.

Understand the New Licensing Structure

This section details how licensing has changed from the device-based licensing structure of CUCM Version 8.x (and previous) to the user-based licensing structure in CUCM Version 9.x.

Version 8.x and Older Versions

• DLU: In Version 8.x, each device in the cluster required a specific number of DLUs. Even though licensing was sold as User Connect Licensing (UCL) and Unified Workspace Licensing (UWL), these user-based licenses were converted into the number of DLUs that CUCM allocated based on the device type.
• SW Feature License: This license was required in order to activate features and services in CUCM, per CUCM version. This license has no parallel in Version 9.x. It has been removed.
• Node License: This license determined the number of call processing nodes allowed in the cluster. This license type has no parallel in Version 9.x and has also been removed.

Version 9.x and Newer Versions

• UCL: This is one of the two types of user licensing available to users. With each UCL, you get support for one physical device (the device type varies based on UCL license type), voice service, and video (only for Enhanced and Enhanced Plus).
• UWL: This is the other type of user license available now. UWL is a per-user license for up to 10 physical devices.
  
  • UWL Standard comes with advanced call control features and allows for mobile/desktop clients.
  • UWL Professional comes with all Standard features plus professional collaboration workspace features.

This chart provides more detail about the features and device types that apply to each license type/level:

IP phones fall into one of the first three categories:

Essential: Fax devices; Analog endpoints, which include Skinny Call Control Protocol (SCCP) gateways and analog telephone adapters (ATAs); 6901; and 3905 IP phones.

Basic: 6911 and 6921 IP phones.

Enhanced: All other IP phone models, soft-clients, and personal Telepresence devices (EX-series).

Note: CUCM Version 9.0 includes UCL Advanced and UWL Premium levels, which no longer exist in Version 9.1. UWL Standard and Professional both allow the same device types as UCL Enhanced. Telepresence Rooms are licensed separately from user devices.

For a more in-depth explanation, refer to the Cisco Unified Communications 9.0 Licensing article.

Perform the License Migration

License migration is NOT an instant conversion of the old licenses to the new. The migration generates a request for the licensing to process.Then, you are provided with a new license file for Version 9.x once all the contract checks and billing are addressed.

Note: There might be a purchase involved if the contract does not include access to all major upgrades. You should be aware of the terms of the contract and your rights under the contract. If you are unsure of your contractual entitlements, contact your Cisco account team.

Generate your request

There are multiple steps in this process. It is important to understand the needs of your organization, and how they expand in order to select the right counts for each license type.

Caution: If you do not have a list of license types and the amount of each you want to request based on your current and future needs, review the Cisco Unified Communications 9.0 Licensing article in order to determine what types of licenses and amounts of each one your organization needs before you proceed with the steps below.

1. Access the License Planning Page
   In order to access this page, navigate to License Management > License Planning, and click Upgrade Licenses. This page displays:
   

   

2. Upgrade Licenses
   
   • When you click Upgrade Licenses, this prompt displays. Choose Unified CM and click Next.
     

     

   • Choose Which Cluster to Migrate
     On this page, you need to choose which Product Instances (which cluster) you want to migrate. Once you have chosen the ones you want, click the arrow button that points to the right. In this example, only one cluster is added. However, if you have multiple clusters, you can add them all at once if you want.
     

     

     
     Once you have selected your products, the page should look like this. If it does, click Next.
     

     

3. Select License Type Counts
   On this page, choose your license type counts. Choose the recommendation mode you want to use, which depends on whether you want to use UCL licensing or UWL licensing as your main type of license and changes the recommended license counts for each type given by the tool.
   

   Note: For additional information, refer to the Cisco Unified Communications 9.0 Licensing article.

   
   

   

4. Adjust Your License Count
   Based on your current license usage counts and recommended counts, use the Adjust Recommended Count column in order to adjust the number of each license type you want to request.
   

   

5. Run a Compliance Check
   Once you have adjusted all your license type values (see the next image), click Run Compliance Check in order to have ELM verify that the license counts you have requested are sufficient for the configuration given the current phone/services configurations for all your users.
   Final Count Values:
   

   

   
   Compliance check results:
   

   

6. Verify
   If you did not use all of your licenses, Unused DLUs Remaining displays in the bottom right corner. You might see this message when you click Next. If you think you have selected enough licenses in order to cover your current users and any additions to their capabilities and additions to future staff, click Continue. If you want to request more licenses, click Return to License Counts.
   

   Caution: If you click continue, the DLUs that remain are deleted and are not considered in the migration process.

   
   

   

7. Summary and Request Generation
   Read all the text here carefully! If you want to save this request for record-keeping purposes and associate it with the license file you get from licensing, click the Save Summary in ELM checkbox and give it a description. Click the Finish & Generate Request button.
   

   

8. Save and Submit Your License Request
   Copy and paste the text from the page that displays into the online licensing portal.
   

   

   
   Click the License Migration Portal link provided in the popup. Either use the file you saved to your computer or the text you copied from the text box in order to submit a license migration request.

Submit Your Request Online

Click the link in the License Migration Request window in order to be taken to the page where you can submit your migration request text or the file you obtained from ELM.

Navigate to Voice Products > Cisco Unified Communications 9.0 in order to access this page:

Choose either Copy & Paste Contents or Upload Files. Click Next in order to access this page:

Note: This is the page that displays for Cisco TAC engineers. You might have a few more screens to click through for ordering/contract steps.

Next, a popup window that shows your License Request Status displays:

This screen displays and you receive an email with an attached zip file.

Install Your Licenses

Once you have downloaded and extracted the .bin file from your email from licensing (do NOT modify this file in ANY way), navigate back to License Management in ELM, and click the Licenses option in order to access this page.

Choose Other Fulfillment Options and Fulfill Licenses from File.

A popup window displays that allows you to choose the .bin file you previously extracted. Browse to the file. If you chose to save a summary for this license request, check the Associate this transaction with a saved add/upgrade license summary checkbox, choose the appropriate summary, and click Install.

If everything worked, this popup message displays.

Close the popup window. The Licenses page should now have an entry in the Licenses table:

One Last Sync

Now that your Licenses are installed, you must synchronize ELM with its Product Instances again. Navigate to Monitoring > License Usage, and click the Synchronize Now button. A window displays the licenses that are in use by your Product Instances, what licenses are Unused, and your compliance status.

Migration Completed

Congratulations! Your CUCM Version 9.1 cluster is now properly licensed and ready to be used. For other resources on CUCM Version 9.x licensing, refer to the the Related Information section below.

Related Information

• Cisco Unified Communications 9.0 Licensing
• Technical Support & Documentation - Cisco Systems