Cisco Catalyst 8000V Edge Software Installation And Configuration Guide

Day 0 Configuration Using .txt or .xml Files

Updated: March 5, 2026

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Overview

Create the bootstrap file

Bootstrap properties

Sample iosxe_config.txt file

Sample iosxe_config.txt File for OpenStack environment

Sample ovf-env.xml file

Overview

Provides the high-level workflow and the procedures to perform the bootstrap configuration by providing a iosxe_config.txt file or an ovf-env.xml file.

During installation of a new, out-of-box device, you can provide bootstrap configuration to boot the device in autonomous mode.

Summary

In a private cloud such as KVM environment, you can perform the bootstrap configuration by providing a iosxe_config.txt file or an ovf-env.xml file. You can gather the configuration commands you want to apply via the CLI, paste them into a file, and provide the file to the VM as a CD-ROM. Depending on the hypervisor environment, the data is then used for the bootstrap configuration.

Workflow

These are the stages of performing the Day 0 configuration using .txt or .xml files.

Create the bootstrap file.
Configure the bootstrap file properties.

Create the bootstrap file

Complete these steps to create a bootstrap configuration file.

A bootstrap configuration file in .txt or .xml format lets you provide the Day 0 configuration for your device simply and flexibly. Perform this procedure when you create the virtual machine in hypervisors such as KVM.

Procedure

Perform one of these two steps:

Create the iosxe_config.txt file. Make sure the file includes each IOS conf t command on a separate line.
Create the ovf-env.xml file and configure the desired properties.

Note

To know more about the individual properties in the .xml file, see Bootstrap Properties .

To convert the .xml or the .txt file to a consumable form for the virtual machine, create a disk image from the file using the following command:

Example:

mkisofs -l -o /my/path/c8000v_config.iso <configuration_filename>

Mount the c8000v_config.iso as an additional disk during creation of the Cisco Catalyst 8000V virtual machine.

Bootstrap properties

The table describes the individual bootstrap properties used to create the ovf-env.xml file.

Table 1. Bootstrap Properties
Property	Description
console	Configures the console mode. Possible values include auto, virtual, serial.
domain-name	Domain name of the router.
enable-scp-server	Enables the IOS SCP feature.
enable-ssh-server	Enables remote login using SSH and disables remote login via Telnet. Requires that the login user name and password are set.
hostname	The host name of the router.
ios-config	Enables execution of a Cisco IOS command. To execute multiple commands, use multiple instances of ios-config, with a number appended to each instance. For example, ios-config-1, ios-config-2. The commands are executed in numerical order according to the appended number. Example `ios-config-1="username cisco priv 15 pass ciscoxyz" ios-config-2="ip scp server enable" ios-config-3="ip domain lookup" ios-config-4="ip domain name cisco.com”`
license	Configures the license technology level that is available when the Cisco Catalyst 8000V instance boots.
login-password	The login password for the router.
login-username	The user name for the router.
mgmt-interface	Designates the management interface for the Cisco Catalyst 8000V instance. The format must be GigabitEthernetx or GigabitEthernetx.xxx.
mgmt-ipv4-addr	The management gateway address/mask in the IPv4 format for the GigabitEthernet0 management interface.
mgmt-ipv4-gateway	The IPv4 management default gateway address. If you're using DHCP, enter dhcp in the field.
mgmt-ipv4-network	Configures the IPv4 Network (such as “192.168.2.0/24” or “192.168.2.0 255.255.255.0”) that the management gateway should route to. If this value is not specified, the default route (0.0.0.0/0) is used.
mgmt-vlan	Configures the dot1Q VLAN interface. Requires the management interface to be configured using the GigabitEthernetx.xxx format.
pnsc-agent-local-port	(Optional) Configures the Cisco Prime Network Services Controller service agent SSL port on the local Cisco Catalyst 8000V to receive policies from the service manager. This setting is used if you plan to remotely manage the Cisco Catalyst 8000V using the Cisco Prime Network Services Controller.
pnsc-ipv4-addr	Configures the IP address of the Cisco Prime Network Services Controller. This setting is used if you plan to remotely manage the Cisco Catalyst 8000V instance using the Cisco Prime Network Services Controller.
pnsc-shared-secret-key	Configures the Cisco Prime Network Services Controller shared secret key for the Cisco Prime Network Services Controller agent to set the SSL certificate from the controller. This setting is used if you plan to remotely manage the Cisco Catalyst 8000V instance using the Cisco Prime Network Services Controller.
privilege-password	Configures the password for privileged (enable) access.
resource-template	Configures the Resource Template. Possible values include default, service_plane_medium, and service_plane_heavy.

Sample iosxe_config.txt file

This is a sample ios_xe config.txt file.


hostname ultra-ios_cfg
license smart enable
username lab privilege 15 password lab
ip domain-name cisco.com
crypto key generate rsa modulus 1024
interface GigabitEthernet1
ip address 10.0.0.5 255.255.255.0
no shut
exit
ip route 0.0.0.0 0.0.0.0 10.0.0.1
line vty 0 4
 login local
exit

Sample iosxe_config.txt File for OpenStack environment

This configuration file serves as an example for use in OpenStack environments.

hostname c8kv-ios_cfg
license smart enable
username lab priv 15 secret lab
ip domain-name cisco.com
interface GigabitEthernet1
ip address 10.0.0.5 255.255.255.0
no shut
exit
ip route 0.0.0.0 0.0.0.0 10.0.0.1
line vty 0 4
login local
exit

Sample ovf-env.xml file

Here is a sample ovf-env.xml Day 0 configuration file.


<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<Environment
   xmlns:oe="http://schemas.dmtf.org/ovf/environment/1">
    <PropertySection>
        <Property oe:key="com.cisco.c8000v.license.1" oe:value="security"/>
        <Property oe:key="com.cisco.c8000v.console.1" oe:value="serial"/>
        
<Property oe:key="com.cisco.c8000v.config-version.1" oe:value="1.0"/>
        <Property oe:key="com.cisco.c8000v.domain-name.1" oe:value=""/>
        <Property oe:key="com.cisco.c8000v.enable-scp-server.1" oe:value="False"/>
        <Property oe:key="com.cisco.c8000v.enable-ssh-server.1" oe:value="False"/>
        <Property oe:key="com.cisco.c8000v.hostname.1" oe:value="lab"/>
        <Property oe:key="com.cisco.c8000v.license.1" oe:value="ax"/>
        <Property oe:key="com.cisco.c8000v.login-password.1" oe:value=""/>
        <Property oe:key="com.cisco.c8000v.login-username.1" oe:value="lab"/>
        <Property oe:key="com.cisco.c8000v.mgmt-interface.1" oe:value="GigabitEthernet1"/>
        <Property oe:key="com.cisco.c8000v.mgmt-ipv4-addr.1" oe:value="172.25.223.251/25"/>
        <Property oe:key="com.cisco.c8000v.mgmt-ipv4-gateway.1" oe:value="172.25.223.129"/>
        <Property oe:key="com.cisco.c8000v.mgmt-ipv4-network.1" oe:value=""/>
        <Property oe:key="com.cisco.c8000v.mgmt-vlan.1" oe:value=""/>
        <Property oe:key="com.cisco.c8000v.pnsc-agent-local-port.1" oe:value=""/>
        <Property oe:key="com.cisco.c8000v.pnsc-ipv4-addr.1" oe:value=""/>
        <Property oe:key="com.cisco.c8000v.pnsc-shared-secret-key.1" oe:value=""/>
        <Property oe:key="com.cisco.c8000v.privilege-password.1" oe:value=""/>
        <Property oe:key="com.cisco.c8000v.remote-mgmt-ipv4-addr.1" oe:value=""/>
        <Property oe:key="com.cisco.c8000v.resource-template.1" oe:value="service_plane_medium"/>
        <Property oe:key="com.cisco.c8000v.ios-config-0001" oe:value="logging buffered 10000"/>
        <Property oe:key="com.cisco.c8000v.ios-config-0002" oe:value="hostname uut-ovf"/>
        <Property oe:key="com.cisco.c8000v.ios-config-0003" oe:value="ip domain-name cisco.com"/>
        <Property oe:key="com.cisco.c8000v.ios-config-0004" oe:value="crypto key generate rsa modulus 1024"/>
        <Property oe:key="com.cisco.c8000v.ios-config-0005" oe:value="interface GigabitEthernet2"/>
        <Property oe:key="com.cisco.c8000v.ios-config-0006" oe:value="ip address 10.0.0.5 255.255.255.0"/>
        <Property oe:key="com.cisco.c8000v.ios-config-0007" oe:value="no shut"/>
        <Property oe:key="com.cisco.c8000v.ios-config-0008" oe:value="exit"/>
        <Property oe:key="com.cisco.c8000v.ios-config-0009" oe:value="ip route 0.0.0.0 0.0.0.0 10.0.0.1"/>
    </PropertySection>
</Environment>

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