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DNA and Supported L2 Features -- HELP!

Ex-Engineer1968
Level 1
Level 1

Hi, folks... I find myself in a jam and I need some guidance... fast! Excuse the large type - recently had eye surgery. 

A client of mine bought a DNA Essentials and a Network Essentials license for each of his new 9410 Catalyst chassis (dual SUPs) and his new Catalyst 9300 switches. But there is a lingering question as to whether they need the DNA Advantage license. 

It seems like between the 2 licenses I can configure basic L2 access layer features and functionality on all the switches. 

I need to configure: L2 vlans, rapid PVST+, QoS to support VoIP phones, dot1Q trunking, LACP, stacking (9300) - 

Please see the link to the DNA and Network Essentials matrix: https://www.cisco.com/c/m/en_us/products/software/dna-subscription-switching/en-sw-sub-matrix-switching.html

Thoughts and Questions

  • First, can someone sanity check what I just wrote above? Will those features and functionality still work WITHOUT the DNA Advantage license? Seems like between the Network Essentials and DNA Essentials license, I should be OK.
  • Second, seems like I will NOT be able to deploy ISSU in the 9410 chassis... correct? BUT, if someone has dual SUPs, do they really need ISSU? Just take one SUP down while you upgrade it... 
  • Third, will I be able to support both SUP modules in the 9410 chassis? Meaning, slide them in and have the switch recognize them...
  • Lastly, it also seems like I will NOT be able to configure stackwise virtual on the 9410s without the DNA Advantage. Correct?

THANK YOU!

1 Accepted Solution

Accepted Solutions

M02@rt37
VIP
VIP

@Ex-Engineer1968 

For your client's needs, the Network Essentials and DNA Essentials licenses will support all the essential L2 features like VLANs, rapid PVST+, QoS for VoIP, dot1Q trunking, LACP, and stacking for the Catalyst 9300 switches. These licenses are sufficient for configuring a typical access layer environment where L2 functionality is the primary focus. You won't need the DNA Advantage license for those features. However, ISSU does require DNA Advantage. While you can't use ISSU, with dual SUPs, you can still manage upgrades by taking one SUP down at a time, ensuring minimal downtime during the process.

For the dual SUP configuration, the chassis will recognize both SUPs, and you can configure SSO, which is included in the network Esentials license, to ensure redundancy and failover without service interruption. However, StackWise virtual on the 9410s would require the DNA Advantage license, so you won't be able to configure it unless you upgrade. That said, with dual SUPs already providing redundancy within each chassis, SWV may not be necessary in this access layer setup.

Best regards
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2 Replies 2

M02@rt37
VIP
VIP

@Ex-Engineer1968 

For your client's needs, the Network Essentials and DNA Essentials licenses will support all the essential L2 features like VLANs, rapid PVST+, QoS for VoIP, dot1Q trunking, LACP, and stacking for the Catalyst 9300 switches. These licenses are sufficient for configuring a typical access layer environment where L2 functionality is the primary focus. You won't need the DNA Advantage license for those features. However, ISSU does require DNA Advantage. While you can't use ISSU, with dual SUPs, you can still manage upgrades by taking one SUP down at a time, ensuring minimal downtime during the process.

For the dual SUP configuration, the chassis will recognize both SUPs, and you can configure SSO, which is included in the network Esentials license, to ensure redundancy and failover without service interruption. However, StackWise virtual on the 9410s would require the DNA Advantage license, so you won't be able to configure it unless you upgrade. That said, with dual SUPs already providing redundancy within each chassis, SWV may not be necessary in this access layer setup.

Best regards
.ı|ı.ı|ı. If This Helps, Please Rate .ı|ı.ı|ı.

This was a fantastic answer because it was complete and addressed exactly what i was asking. Thank you! Are you with Cisco TAC? Just curious. I will eventually accept your answer as the solution, but I just want to see if anyone else wants to chime in first. 

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