Cisco Catalyst licensing covers the software that runs on and manages Cisco’s Catalyst campus switches, wireless access points and controllers, and WAN routers. Cisco sells it under two parallel models. In the older one, a Catalyst 9000 switch is bought with a perpetual Network Stack license and a term Cisco DNA or Catalyst software subscription, each in an Essentials or Advantage tier.[1] In the newer one, the Cisco Networking Subscription sells unified Switching, Wireless and WAN licenses that combine device features with management and assurance, co-termed in one subscription.[3] Both models count per device.
Cisco still sells both a Cisco DNA and a Catalyst software subscription option, and the Catalyst 9300 ordering guide treats them side by side as the same kind of per-device term license.[1] Enterprise Agreement meters for these suites, the Catalyst Center Offer Description and the end of sale of DNA Premier for SD-WAN are covered in Cisco software subscription and Flex Plan licensing. This article covers the device-level structure: what is mandatory, how long terms run, and what happens when a term ends.
Editions
Network Stack, Cisco DNA and Catalyst tiers
The Catalyst 9300 ordering guide describes three components: switch hardware, a Network Stack perpetual license, and a choice of Cisco DNA, Cisco Catalyst or Meraki software subscription. The Network Stack license, Network Essentials or Network Advantage, is included with the hardware according to the SKU suffix (for example C9300-48P-E or C9300-48P-A).[1] Network Essentials covers foundational Layer 2 and Layer 3 switching, automation, visibility and security. Network Advantage adds advanced routing, segmentation, multicast, scale and security features.[1]
The subscription comes in two tiers. Catalyst Essentials (or DNA Essentials) provides foundational automation, management, visibility and assurance. Catalyst Advantage (or DNA Advantage) adds advanced assurance, analytics, policy-based automation, segmentation and application visibility.[1] The DNA tier must match the Network Stack tier, so Network Essentials goes with DNA Essentials and Network Advantage with DNA Advantage (rule).[1]
The Catalyst Software Subscription data sheet lists the Catalyst 9200, 9300, 9400, 9500 and 9600 series as platforms for Catalyst Advantage.[2]
Unified licenses in the Cisco Networking Subscription
The Cisco Networking Subscription data sheet names six unified licenses: Cisco Wireless Essentials and Advantage, Cisco Switching Essentials and Advantage, and Cisco WAN Essentials and Advantage. They can be deployed on premises or in the cloud.[3] Switching licenses are split by access tier and port count, and WAN licenses by size:[3]
| License | Part numbers |
|---|---|
| Cisco Wireless Essentials / Advantage | LIC-CW-E, LIC-CW-A |
| Cisco Switching Essentials, Access Tier 1 | LIC-CS-AC1-L-E (48 port), LIC-CS-AC1-M-E (up to 24 port) |
| Cisco Switching Advantage, Access Tier 1 | LIC-CS-AC1-L-A (48 port), LIC-CS-AC1-M-A (up to 24 port) |
| Cisco Switching Advantage, Core Modular | LIC-CS-CO-MO-A (C9610 only) |
| Cisco WAN Essentials | LIC-CSWAN-S-E, -M-E, -L-E, -XL-E (Small to Extra Large) |
| Cisco WAN Advantage | LIC-CSWAN-S-A, -M-A, -L-A, -XL-A (Small to Extra Large) |
A Networking Subscription can also include Meraki subscription licenses for MX, MS, MR, MV, MG, SM and Z devices. Routing licensing is not available in it (rule).[3] Supported hardware includes all generations of Catalyst 9000 switches, apart from a few end-of-life C9500 models and the C9400 SUP1 for new purchases, as well as C9350, C9550 and C9610 smart switches, Meraki MS130/MS150, Cisco 8000 Series Secure Routers, Wi-Fi 6E and Wi-Fi 7 access points, and the 9800 and CW9800 wireless controllers. The Catalyst 9300 ordering guide lists IOS XE releases 26.2.1, 17.18.5 and 26.1.3 as supporting unified licensing on that platform.[1]
Metrics
Both models count per device. The catalog records the per-device software subscription as Catalyst Subscription (per device), and the WAN tiers as WAN Essentials and WAN Advantage. Essentials and Advantage are feature tiers of these meters, not separate metrics. Size letters in part numbers (Small to Extra Large for WAN, Medium or Large port counts for switching) separate SKUs within a tier. The data sheet does not describe them as a separate unit of measure.
Catalyst Advantage also carries entitlements in other units. It includes ISE Advantage licenses counted in Endpoint Sessions: 40 per Advantage license on the Catalyst 9600 and 9400 series, and 10 on the 9500 and 9300 series. The Catalyst 9200 gets none (rule).[2] On the Catalyst 9300, choosing Catalyst or DNA Advantage adds a ThousandEyes Network and Application Synthetics license (TE-EMBEDDED-T) and a Cisco Spaces Extend license (D-DNAS-EXT-S-T). Both follow the term of the parent subscription.[1]
Counting / floors
- Mandatory at purchase. On the Catalyst 9300, both a Network Stack license and a Cisco DNA or Catalyst subscription are mandatory when the switch is bought (rule). The ordering guide adds: “You must order an add-on license in order to purchase a switch.”[1]
- Terms. Catalyst and DNA subscriptions run for 3, 5 or 7 years. Meraki subscriptions on the same hardware run for 1, 3, 5, 7 or 10 years (rule). The default in Cisco Commerce is a 5-year DNA Advantage term.[1]
- Networking Subscription minimum. A new Cisco Networking Subscription has a standard minimum term of 36 months (rule). Licenses added later co-term to the same renewal date, and Essentials and Advantage licenses can sit in the same subscription.[3]
- Evaluation. Base and add-on licenses have a 90-day evaluation period. An expired evaluation license cannot be reactivated after a reload (rule).[1]
When a term ends
The two models handle expiry differently.
Under the Network Stack plus DNA model, the customer can renew the add-on license, or “deactivate the add-on license and then reload the switch to continue operating with the base license capabilities” (rule).[1] The perpetual Network Stack license keeps the switch running. Under Smart Licensing Using Policy, the DNA licenses on Catalyst 9000 switches are unenforced: the switch does not block their features, but their use is still reported to Cisco Smart Software Manager.[4]
Under the Networking Subscription, the data sheet sets out enforcement by domain:[3]
| Domain | Never licensed | Expired |
|---|---|---|
| Switching | On-device features keep working; Meraki Dashboard and Catalyst Center access limited | Same: “there will be no enforcement” on device (rule); subscription support ends |
| Wireless | Devices keep passing traffic; management platforms, Spaces, ISE and ThousandEyes may be restricted | Same; on-premises IOS XE software entitlement ends, local WLC management remains |
| WAN | Device cannot be provisioned on Catalyst SD-WAN Manager (rule) | Traffic continues; Out of Compliance message; software updates restricted except critical PSIRTs |
Virtualization & partitioning
Not applicable in the usual sense. These licenses are counted per physical switch, access point or router, not per core or virtual machine. The Catalyst 9300 ordering guide says Smart Licenses can be transferred between devices of the same type, for example from one Catalyst 9300 switch to another.[1]
Cloud / BYOL
Under the Networking Subscription, wireless and switching licenses can be managed in the Meraki Dashboard, either with cloud-managed devices or in a mixed mode where only licensing and inventory sit in the Dashboard, or in Cisco Smart Software Manager for on-premises-only deployments. WAN licenses held in CSSM are managed by Catalyst SD-WAN Manager, on premises or in the cloud. Cisco-hosted and managed SD-WAN is an add-on (LIC-CSWAN-HCLD and LIC-CSWAN-HCLDPRO).[3] Catalyst 9300 switches can also be ordered on a Meraki subscription, in which case the term license is ordered separately but must be recognized in the Meraki Dashboard.[1]
Programs
- Cisco Networking Subscription. Lets customers align renewal dates to cost centres, add licenses at a common renewal date, upgrade entitlements mid-term or at renewal, and mix tiers.[3] Included support matches Cisco Support Basic without RMA. Hardware replacement needs an RMA upgrade or a higher support tier (rule).[3]
- Base support in Catalyst subscriptions. Catalyst software subscriptions include 24x7 TAC access and software updates, with hardware replacement handled through the Catalyst 9000 Enhanced Limited Lifetime Warranty.[2]
- Cisco Enterprise Agreement. The Catalyst 9300 is eligible for unified licensing through both the Networking Subscription and the Cisco Enterprise Agreement.[1] EA growth allowances and true-forward rules are in Cisco software subscription and Flex Plan licensing.
Out of scope
- List prices and Cisco Capital financing.
- Feature-by-feature tier comparisons. Cisco publishes these as separate feature matrices, which are not reproduced here.
- Hardware models, power supplies and support contracts as assets (hardware asset management).
- Routing licenses outside the Networking Subscription.
- Meraki licensing models (co-termination, per-device and subscription). See Cisco software subscription and Flex Plan licensing.