Cisco Catalyst 8000V Edge Software Installation And Configuration Guide

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Install Cisco Catalyst 8000V on Nutanix AHV

Updated: March 5, 2026

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Overview

Provides an overview about Nutanix AHV hypervisor and specifies the requirements, installation methods, and verification of Cisco Catalyst 8000V deployment on Nutanix AHV.

Nutanix AHV (Acropolis Hypervisor) is a secure, type-1, native hypervisor based on Linux's Kernel-based Virtual Machine (KVM) technology. This hypervisor is built directly into the Nutanix Cloud Infrastructure (NCI) platform. The platform provides compute, storage, and networking capabilities across public and private clouds.

Benefits

Cisco Catalyst 8000V running on Nutanix AHV offers these benefits.

  • Management of Cisco Catalyst 8000V within this environment is performed through Nutanix Prism, which provides a unified console for virtualization, storage, and networking.

  • This hypervisor provides one-click upgrades, integrated full-stack lifecycle management, and an intuitive UI for your VM management.

  • Configuration settings, such as virtual networking and high availability, are managed at the cluster level, ensuring consistency and reduced operational risks.

Installation requirements

This list provides the requirements for installing Cisco Catalyst 8000V on Nutanix AHV.

  • Hypervisor Version: Nutanix AOS 7.3 with AHV

  • Network Interface Cards (NICs)

    • SR-IOV support is limited to Nvidia ConnectX-6 NICs.

    • Non-SR-IOV interfaces are treated as Virtio interfaces.

  • Machine Type: Q35

  • .qcow2 and .iso image formats are supported

  • UEFI boot must be enabled

  • Ensure access to a REST client, such as Postman, to install Cisco Catalyst 8000V using the REST API.

Supported configurations

This list specifies the supported configurations for this deployment:

  • 1 vCPU: requires a minimum of 4 GB RAM allocation.

  • 2 vCPUs: requires a minimum of 4 GB RAM allocation.

  • 4 vCPUs: requires a minimum of 4 GB RAM allocation.

  • 8 vCPUs: requires a minimum of 4 GB RAM allocation.

  • 16 vCPUs: requires a minimum of 8 GB RAM allocation.

Restrictions

This list specifies the limitations for deploying Cisco Catalyst 8000V in Nutanix AHV

  • Hot add and hot delete operations for NICs are not supported.

  • In Cisco IOS XE 26.1.1, SR-IOV is supported only with NVIDIA ConnectX-6 NICs.

Upload the Cisco Catalyst 8000V image file

Before you install Cisco Catalyst 8000V on Nutanix AHV, upload the .ova or the .qcow2 file to Prism Central.

  • For instructions on uploading a .ova file, refer to the Upload the OVA file section in this document.

  • For instructions on uploading a .qcow2 file, refer to the Upload the qcow2 file section in this document.

Upload the OVA file

Complete these steps to upload the OVA file before installing Cisco Catalyst 8000V on Nutanix Hypervisor. If you have a qcow2 file, refer to the Upload the qcow2 file section in this document.

Procedure

1.

Log in to the Prism Central Dashboard.
2.

Click Compute > OVAs and click Upload OVA.
3.

In the Upload OVA window, select the OVA File radio button to upload the file from your device, or select the URL radio button to upload the file from a URL.
4.

From the Select AHV Cluster drop-down list, select the cluster.
5.

In the Name field, specify a name for your file.
6.

In the Checksum field, choose either SHA-256 or SHA-1, and enter the appropriate value.
7.

Perform one of these actions:

  • If you chose the OVA radio button, in the Choose OVA File field, click Upload to upload the file.

  • If you chose the URL option to provide the file, specify the link to the file in the URL field.
8.

Click Upload.

The system displays your OVA file in the dashboard. You can use the file for the VM deployment.

Upload the QCOW2 file

This procedure lists the steps you need to perform to upload the .qcow2 file for installing Cisco Catalyst 8000V in Nutanix AHV. If you have uploaded an iso file already, ignore this section and proceed to the installation steps.

Procedure

1.

Log in to the Prism Central GUI.
2.

From the navigation, choose Compute & Storage > Images.
3.

Click Add Image and under Image Source, choose one of these options:

  • Upload a File: Click Choose File and select the .qcow2 file from your system.

  • URL: Specify the URL where the QCOW2 file is hosted.
4.

Specify these details:

  1. Name: Provide a unique image name for the file, for example, c8000v-universalk9_17.12.06a_qcow2.

  2. Image Type: Select the Disk option. Ensure you do not select ISO in this field. Choosing ISO would result in VM boot failure.

  3. Description: Optionally provide a description for your file.
5.

Select the appropriate Cluster or Storage Container based on your Prism Central version.
6.

Click Save to upload the file.