Cisco Optical Automation Solution for Protected Point-to-Point Managed Optical Fiber Network

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Cisco Optical Automation Solution for Protected Point-to-Point Managed Optical Fiber Network

NCS 1001 setup and initial configuration

Updated: October 26, 2026

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Prepare Cisco NCS 1001 for operation by completing bootup, Day 0 configuration, and validation.

Cisco NCS 1001 setup includes booting the chassis, configuring management and OSC interfaces, enabling SSH and NETCONF, configuring routes, and validating access before Cisco Optical Site Manager onboarding.

Bringup approaches

Cisco NCS 1001 supports manual bringup and Zero Touch Provisioning (ZTP). Use the manual approach unless your deployment has an approved ZTP process.

Boot Cisco NCS 1001

Boot the Cisco NCS 1001 chassis after hardware installation so that it is ready for Day 0 configuration.

Before you begin

Install the Cisco NCS 1001 hardware and ensure that you can access the XR console port.

Procedure

  1. Connect to the XR console port and power on the Cisco NCS 1001 system.

  2. Allow the system to complete the boot process using the preinstalled operating system image.

    If a preinstalled image is not available, use one of these boot methods:

  3. After the boot operation completes, reload Cisco NCS 1001.

  4. Verify the running software version using the show version command.

    Example:

    RP/0/RP0/CPU0:ios# show version
Fri Aug 10 10:38:09.569 CEST
Cisco IOS XR Software, Version 7.0.1
Copyright (c) 2013-2019 by Cisco Systems, Inc.

Build Information:
Built By     : ahoang
Built On     : Wed Jul 31 16:21:34 PDT 2025
Built Host   : iox-ucs-023
Workspace    : /auto/iox-ucs-023-san2/prod/7.0.1.147I.SIT_IMAGE/ncs1001/ws
Version      : 7.0.1.147I
Location     : /opt/cisco/XR/packages/

  5. Compare the displayed version with the boot image version and verify that the versions match.

Cisco NCS 1001 is booted with the expected software version.

Configure NCS 1000 day-0 settings

Prepare NCS 1014, NCS 1004, and NCS 1001 for day-1 configuration and network onboarding by completing the day-0 sub tasks.

Repeat each task for every NCS 1014, NCS 1004, and NCS 1001 device that requires day-0 configuration.

Procedure

  1. Complete the manual bring-up workflow.

    See Manually bring up NCS1000.

  2. Configure NTP for time synchronization.

    See NTP server configuration.

Manually bring up Cisco NCS 1001

Manual Day 0 bringup prepares NCS 1014, NCS 1004, and NCS 1001 for Cisco Optical Site Manager management and downstream Cisco Optical Network Controller onboarding.

Repeat this task for every NCS 1014, NCS 1004, and NCS 1001 device that requires manual day 0 bringup.

Before you begin

Follow these steps to manually bring up NCS 1014, NCS 1004, and NCS 1001.

Procedure

  1. Connect to the node through the console port and set the root-system username and password when prompted.

    Example:

    Enter root-system username: <username>
Enter secret:
Enter secret again:
User Access Verification
Username: <username>
Password: <password>

  2. Assign a hostname to the node.

    Example:

    RP/0/RP0/CPU0:ios# config
RP/0/RP0/CPU0:ios(config)# hostname onc-ncs1001-230-125
RP/0/RP0/CPU0:ios(config)# commit
RP/0/RP0/CPU0:ios(config)# end

  3. View the IPv4 interface status on Cisco NCS 1001.

    Example:

    RP/0/RP0/CPU0:onc-ncs1001-230-125# show ipv4 interface brief
    Table 1. IPv4 interface status before configuration

    Interface

    IP address

    Status

    Protocol

    VRF name

    MgmtEth0/RP0/CPU0/0

    unassigned

    Down

    Down

    default

    MgmtEth0/RP0/CPU0/1

    unassigned

    Down

    Down

    default

    MgmtEth0/RP0/OSC1/0

    unassigned

    Down

    Down

    default

    MgmtEth0/RP0/OSC2/0

    unassigned

    Down

    Down

    default

    MgmtEth0/RP0/OSC3/0

    unassigned

    Down

    Down

    default

  4. Configure the management interface and the required OSC interfaces.

    Configure MgmtEth0/RP0/OSC1/0 and MgmtEth0/RP0/OSC3/0 on Cisco NCS 1001 for inter-node connectivity and remote management connectivity. This configuration is not required for Cisco NCS 1014 or Cisco NCS 1004.

    Table 2. OSC IPv4 address configuration requirements

    Node type

    OSC interface IPv4 configuration required?

    Purpose

    Cisco NCS 1001

    Yes

    DHCP relay and remote management connectivity

    Cisco NCS 1014 and Cisco NCS 1004 transponder shelves

    No

    –

    Example:

    RP/0/RP0/CPU0:onc-ncs1001-230-125# config
RP/0/RP0/CPU0:onc-ncs1001-230-125(config)# interface MgmtEth0/RP0/CPU0/0
RP/0/RP0/CPU0:onc-ncs1001-230-125(config-if)# ipv4 address 10.58.230.125 255.255.252.0
RP/0/RP0/CPU0:onc-ncs1001-230-125(config-if)# commit
RP/0/RP0/CPU0:onc-ncs1001-230-125(config-if)# exit
RP/0/RP0/CPU0:onc-ncs1001-230-125(config)# interface MgmtEth0/RP0/OSC1/0
RP/0/RP0/CPU0:onc-ncs1001-230-125(config-if)# ipv4 address 10.0.1.125 255.255.255.0
RP/0/RP0/CPU0:onc-ncs1001-230-125(config-if)# interface MgmtEth0/RP0/OSC3/0
RP/0/RP0/CPU0:onc-ncs1001-230-125(config-if)# ipv4 address 10.0.3.125 255.255.255.0
RP/0/RP0/CPU0:onc-ncs1001-230-125(config-if)# commit
RP/0/RP0/CPU0:onc-ncs1001-230-125(config-if)# exit

  5. Verify that the management and OSC interfaces are up.

    Example:

    RP/0/RP0/CPU0:onc-ncs1001-230-125# show ipv4 interface brief
    Table 3. IPv4 interface status after configuration

    Interface

    IP address

    Status

    Protocol

    VRF name

    MgmtEth0/RP0/CPU0/0

    10.58.230.125

    Up

    Up

    default

    MgmtEth0/RP0/CPU0/1

    unassigned

    Down

    Down

    default

    MgmtEth0/RP0/OSC1/0

    10.0.1.125

    Up

    Up

    default

    MgmtEth0/RP0/OSC2/0

    unassigned

    Down

    Down

    default

    MgmtEth0/RP0/OSC3/0

    10.0.3.125

    Up

    Up

    default

  6. Configure SSH on the node.

    Example:

    RP/0/RP0/CPU0:onc-ncs1001-230-125# config
RP/0/RP0/CPU0:onc-ncs1001-230-125(config)# ssh server rate-limit 600
RP/0/RP0/CPU0:onc-ncs1001-230-125(config)# ssh server session-limit 110
RP/0/RP0/CPU0:onc-ncs1001-230-125(config)# ssh server v2
RP/0/RP0/CPU0:onc-ncs1001-230-125(config)# ssh server vrf default
RP/0/RP0/CPU0:onc-ncs1001-230-125(config)# ssh server netconf vrf default
RP/0/RP0/CPU0:onc-ncs1001-230-125(config)# commit

  7. Configure NETCONF on the node.

    Example:

    RP/0/RP0/CPU0:onc-ncs1001-230-125(config)# netconf agent tty
RP/0/RP0/CPU0:onc-ncs1001-230-125(config-netconf-tty)# netconf-yang agent
RP/0/RP0/CPU0:onc-ncs1001-230-125(config-ncy-agent)# ssh
RP/0/RP0/CPU0:onc-ncs1001-230-125(config)# commit

  8. Configure static routes for management reachability.

    Use the IP addresses and next hops from your site DCN plan. Add platform-specific routes, such as the extra Cisco NCS 1014 route, only when required by the deployment.

    Example:

    RP/0/RP0/CPU0:onc-ncs1001-230-125# config
RP/0/RP0/CPU0:onc-ncs1001-230-125(config)# router static
RP/0/RP0/CPU0:onc-ncs1001-230-125(config-static)# address-family ipv4 unicast
RP/0/RP0/CPU0:onc-ncs1001-230-125(config-static-afi)# 0.0.0.0/0 10.58.228.1
RP/0/RP0/CPU0:onc-ncs1001-230-125(config-static-afi)# 10.58.251.0/24 10.58.253.1
RP/0/RP0/CPU0:onc-ncs1001-230-125(config-static-afi)# commit

  9. Verify SSH connectivity to the node.

    Example:

    $ ssh ncs1001@10.58.230.125
Password: <password>
RP/0/RP0/CPU0:onc-ncs1001-230-125#

  10. Verify that the node has one of these host keys.

    The key list must include one of these key types: ECDSA General Curve Nistp256, ECDSA General Curve Nistp521, ECDSA General Curve Nistp384, or ssh-rsa.

    Example:

    These example show how to configure an ECDSA or RSA host key. 
    RP/0/RP0/CPU0:onc-ncs1001-230-125# show crypto key mypubkey ecdsa
Key label: the_default
Type: ECDSA General Curve Nistp256
Degree: 256

RP/0/RP0/CPU0:onc-ncs1001-230-125# show crypto key mypubkey rsa
Key label: the_default
Type: RSA General purpose
Size: 2048

  11. If a supported key is not available, generate an ECDSA key.

    Example:

    RP/0/RP0/CPU0:onc-ncs1001-230-125# crypto key generate ecdsa nistp256

    A supported host key is required so that Cisco Optical Site Manager can manage Cisco NCS 1001 for synchronization and file transfer operations.

Cisco NCS 1001 has the required Day 0 configuration for Cisco Optical Site Manager management.

NTP server configuration

NTP uses the User Datagram Protocol(UDP) as its transport protocol. All NTP communication uses Coordinated Universal Time(UTC). An NTP network usually receives its time from an authoritative time source, such as a radio clock or an atomic clock attached to a time server. NTP distributes this time across the network.

An NTP broadcast client listens for broadcast messages sent by an NTP broadcast server at a designated IPv4 address. The client synchronizes the local clock using the first received broadcast message.

Below are the steps for NTP configuration:

Procedure

  1. Synchronize Clock with NTP Server

  2. Verify the Status of the External Reference Clock:

    1. Run the show running-config ntp command to verify the running NTP configuration.

      Example:

      RP/0/RP0/CPU0:ios#show running-config ntp
    2. Run the show ntp associations command to verify NTP synchronization status.

      Example:

      RP/0/RP0/CPU0:ios#show ntp associations
Sun Nov 5 15:14:44.128 UTC

address ref clock st when poll reach delay offset disp
*~192.0.2.1 198.51.100.1 2 81 128 377 1.84 7.802 2.129
* sys_peer, # selected, + candidate, - outlayer, x falseticker, ~ configured

What to do next

Troubleshoot NTP Issues

Configure NCS 1001 protection and amplifier settings

Configure PSM section protection on Cisco NCS 1001

PSM section protection enables the protected point-to-point design to use working and protect paths.

Before you begin

Follow these steps to configure PSM section protection.

Procedure

  1. Configure slot 2 for PSM section protection.

    Example:

    RP/0/RP0/CPU0:onc-ncs1001-230-125# config
RP/0/RP0/CPU0:onc-ncs1001-230-125(config)# hw-module location 0/RP0/CPU0 slot 2
RP/0/RP0/CPU0:onc-ncs1001-230-125(config-config params)# psm section-protection
RP/0/RP0/CPU0:onc-ncs1001-230-125(config-config params)# commit

  2. Verify the PSM configuration.

    Example:

    RP/0/RP0/CPU0:onc-ncs1001-230-125# show running-config hw-module location 0/RP0/CPU0 slot 2
hw-module location 0/RP0/CPU0 slot 2
 psm primary-path WORKING
 psm section-protection

The PSM card is configured in section-protection mode.

Configure amplifier safety-control mode on Cisco NCS 1001

Configure the amplifier safety-control mode manually when the protected point-to-point design requires this setting.

Caution

Change amplifier safety-control settings only when required by the approved design and maintenance procedure.

Before you begin

Follow these steps to configure amplifier safety-control mode.

Procedure

Disable safety-control mode on the required OTS controllers.

Example:

RP/0/RP0/CPU0:onc-ncs1001-230-125# configure
RP/0/RP0/CPU0:onc-ncs1001-230-125(config)# controller ots 0/1/0/0 safety-control-mode disable
RP/0/RP0/CPU0:onc-ncs1001-230-125(config)# controller ots 0/3/0/0 safety-control-mode disable
RP/0/RP0/CPU0:onc-ncs1001-230-125(config)# commit

The OTS controller safety-control mode is configured for the protected point-to-point design.

Configure amplifier remote-node settings on Cisco NCS 1001

Amplifier remote-node settings identify the local and remote OSC interfaces used for span-loss and amplifier coordination.

Before you begin

Follow these steps to configure amplifier remote-node settings.

Procedure

  1. Verify the existing hardware-module configuration.

    Example:

    RP/0/RP0/CPU0:onc-ncs1001-230-125# show running-config hw-module location 0/RP0/CPU0 slot

  2. Confirm that ampli span-loss and ampli remote-node are configured on slot 1 and slot 3.

    Example:

    hw-module location 0/RP0/CPU0 slot 1
 ampli flex-mode
 ampli span-loss
 ampli grid-mode gridless
 ampli node-type TERM
 ampli remote-node local-ipv4 10.0.1.125 remote-ipv4 10.0.1.145 remote-slot-id 1
!
hw-module location 0/RP0/CPU0 slot 3
 ampli flex-mode
 ampli span-loss
 ampli grid-mode gridless
 ampli node-type TERM
 ampli remote-node local-ipv4 10.0.3.125 remote-ipv4 10.0.3.145 remote-slot-id 3

Amplifier span-loss and remote-node settings are configured on the required Cisco NCS 1001 slots.

Validate the Cisco NCS 1001 setup

Confirm that licensing, software, and hardware are configured and operating as expected.

Perform these validation checks after the initial setup and Day 0 configuration and before starting Day 1 configuration.

Before you begin

Ensure that Cisco NCS 1001 is reachable and that the required management and OSC interfaces are up.

Procedure

  1. Verify that Smart Licensing is configured and activated.

    Example:

    RP/0/RP0/CPU0:ios# show license status

  2. Perform the preliminary checks to verify the default setup.

    See Perform Preliminary Checks for detailed procedures.

  3. Verify that the software and hardware components are operating as expected.

    Example:

    RP/0/RP0/CPU0:ios# show version
RP/0/RP0/CPU0:ios# admin
sysadmin-vm:0_RP0# show platform
sysadmin-vm:0_RP0# show platform detail
sysadmin-vm:0_RP0# show inventory

Cisco NCS 1001 is validated and ready for Day 1 configuration.

Troubleshoot Cisco NCS 1001